The Patient is a modern society. Material objects of cultural or industrial value are the threatened Organs. The Threat is theft, robbery, piracy, counterfeit and their unavoidable consequences – import, export and other illegal transfer of property. Is this really serious, Doctor? Unfortunately, the answer is “Yes”! In relation to the illegal trade in cultural assets, ICOM (International Council of Museums), an international institution engaged in various preventive activities, ascertains that: „Illicit traffic in cultural goods ranks third in the listing of criminal activities worldwide, following drug and arms trafficking”. This paper is deliberately insufficient: although it is focused on the protection of cultural assets, but it also relates directly to the assets of industrial value. In essence, it proposes a preventive measure based on the physical properties of materials and nanotechnology. The method is called nano-trace and is used to support activities of various international institutions – UN, UNESCO, Council of Europe, EU, European Commission, Interpol, and we would add PACT Association – that, like ICOM, are constantly seeking the best response to the above presented key problem. Like all new scientific methods and technologies it can be improved. Our deliberations in this paper, however, are aimed primarily at broadening the agenda.
This article aims at introducing the complex nature of handwriting examination for judicial purposes and the resulting competences which ahandwriting expert must have. The knowledge of neurophysiological conditioning of handwriting strokes, together with the knowledge of inks, their physical and chemical reactions with surfaces on which handwriting is applied, techniques allowing their observation and acquiring clear enlarged photographic images are indispensable for acorrect expert examination, explanation of how the conclusions were arrived at and illustrating the results. Appropriate selection of techniques of acquiring images requires not only the knowledge of optical and lighting equipment but also practical skills in its appropriate use. Thus, handwriting examination combines the knowledge from various areas: neurophysiology of movement, psychology of handwriting, chemistry, physics and use of optical equipment, which together guarantee objective and reliable examination yielding correct results.
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