| Author | Message | ||
     Terry A. Smith |
Sue, A 1993 Canadian study of 26 million fingerprints (2.6 million people x 10 fingers) revealed that the Arch Pattern appeared at 3.4% , the Tented Arch Pattern at 4.6%, the Radial Loop at 4.4%, the Ulnar Loop at 58.5% (Loops totalling 62.9%) , and Whorl Patterns (combined) at 29.0 % . Our National (RCMP) Fingerprint Database is currently being converted for use with a different AFIS vendor's product. Unfortunately, as the AFIS world 'progresses' and minutiae matching becomes more accurate, the use of patterns of classification seems to be going the way of the dinosaur. I hear that the Tented Arch pattern is presently on the endangered species list in Canada. They will soon be known simply as Arches, for search purposes. The Henry System of Classification is no longer offered as a course of study at the Canadian Police College, despite the benefit that an examiner can gain from such knowledge. Pity. | ||
| Sue |
what are the statistics of percentages with loops, arches, whorls and composites? | ||
| Ernie Hamm |
Mr. Jones is on the right path with his post. I was being a bit facetious in my post as an 'answer' is not very definitive. The biblical quote is presented in the first line of "Fingerprinting: A Manual for Identification" by Chapel, part of my early training's required reading and, while perhaps not completely appropriate, has a good ring to it and interpretations can be tailored to the occasion when it is taken out of context. Other biblical cites on fingerprints can also be found in "Practical Fingerprinting" by B.C. Bridges. Dr. Nehemiah Grew does seem to be the first 'named' person in the history of fingerprint observation through his report to the Royal Society in 1684, which was then published in the Society's volume 'Philosophical Transactions for 1684". Other books (besides Beavan's) having good early historical references are "Fingerprinting", "Practical Fingerprinting" (named before), "Fingerprint Techniques" by Andre Moenssens and "The Fingerprint Story" by Gerald Lambourne. | ||
| Gary W. Jones |
I realize that this is a fingerprint-related site and I don't wish to engage in deep theological discussions in this forum, however I would like to respond to the writer who gave a quotation from the book of Job as an answer to who first noticed fingerprints. It is my firm belief that the Bible never contridicts any factual science and I am always delighted to read someone quoting Scripture in connection with science -- thank you! However, in this instance, I believe the quotation from Job 37:7 does not refer to fingerprints. If the preceeding verse is read, it will illustrate that Job is saying that inclement weather prevents men from working ("sealth up the hands") and during this time they should contemplate upon the things of God. Good counsel. I think it is impossible to know exactly when or by whom fingerprints were first noticed, especially as a means of identification. Like the theory of flight, the observation of fingerprints was probably seen by many individuals on many levels at various times. Cave drawings illustrate that these observations go back many centuries. I am not a fingerprint historian, however I believe that Dr. Nehemiah Grew (1641-1712) using the newly invented microscope, authored one of the first papers on this subject, commenting upon the "remarkable lines in the hands." For the more modern history of fingerprints, I highly recommend the book, "Fingerprints," by Colin Beavan, Hyperion, 2001. It is a book of fingerprint history that reads like a novel. | ||
| Ernie Hamm |
"He seals the hand of every man, that all men may know His work", Job 37:7 | ||
| sophie |
who was the first person to find out about fingerprints? |
