Maureen de la Harpe
The body of postgraduate science student Lenny is found in the reeds on the banks of the Peel Inlet when an early morning jogger is attracted by the ringing of the victim's mobile phone. Police trace the call to Lenny's girlfriend, Lola. A bottle is found near the body…
"Who Killed Lenny?" was the burning question posed to 48 Year 10 students cum amateur sleuths from schools around Perth and Mandurah in July 2000.
The students - all female - were taking part in an innovative holiday program organised by Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) in co-operation with the departments of Zoology, Chemistry, Physics, Geology and Geophysics and Geography.
The object of the exercise, according
to Tricia Gardiner, administrative assistant
with WISE was to enthuse
students into taking science in Years 11 and 12, and hopefully going on to
study in at university. "This is the first time we have held such an event and
we've had an amazing response."
The amateur sleuths spent all day on campus, analysing evidence from the crime scene and sifting information provided by the 'CIB' following interviews with five suspects, Gordon Bleu, Dr Kurl, Pauline Huntsman, Lucy Lovelost and Joe Boulder.
In Zoology, they took a close-up look at the life-cycle of maggots; in the Chemistry lab they identified the poison in the drink bottle - lead acetate. Using lasers in the Physics lab they measured the width of Lenny's hair as well as other stray strands of hair found on his clothing. (As lecturer Simon Woodings told them, "Hair can be very important in forensic investigations.")
In Geology and Geophysics, they peered into microscopes to analyse pollen samples found on the corpse. which they compared with samples from the shoes of the suspects. Pollen is everywhere, they learned, which makes it a powerful 'invisible' tool for forensic scientists, producing evidence that has frequently persuaded a criminal to confess.
By early afternoon, Presbyterian Ladies' College student Sophia Chapman had singled out Dr Kurl as a prime suspect. She was enjoying her foray into detective work, and is interested in pursuing science at university: "This is good because it gives you ideas for careers options." Fellow student Alison Cook agreed: "It is great to be able to do real things," she said as she worked with the laser. "At school we wouldn't be able to do this."
When they all came together at the end of the afternoon, they had little trouble identifying the culprit … who will not be identified here in case WISE runs the program again!
The students left the campus with great enthusiasm for studying science.
Reproduced with the kind permission of UWA News, Vol 19, No11, p11.
A note from Tricia Gardiner, Women in Science and Engineering, The University of Western Australia.
Women in Science and Engineering was established in 1989 and aims to increase the numbers of women in engineering and the physical sciences (eg physics, chemistry, mathematics and computer science).
"Who Killed Lenny?" was one of many events for students organised by WISE in 2000. Due to demand, "Who Killed Lenny?" was repeated in September 2000.
WISE wishes to thank Dr Ian Dadour of the Department of Zoology, Dr Kathryn Hindmarsh of the Department of Chemistry, Mr Simon Woodings and Ms Eliza Bovell of the Department of Physics and Dr Lynne Milne of the Department of Geography for their involvement in the development and presentation of "Who Killed Lenny?".
More information regarding "Who Killed Lenny? and other WISE activities is available at http://www.wise.uwa.edu.au
"Who Killed Lenny?" is based upon "Who Killed Benny?", developed by Monash University. WISE would like to thank Dr Antonio Patti for providing information about "Who Killed Benny?". WISE would also like to thank Dr Andrea Robinson of Monash University for information regarding the 1999 Monash University Chemical Murder Mystery. See the web-site at http://web.chem.monash.edu.au/department/chemystery/chemystery.html