National Geographic Secrets of the Body Farm HD 1080 WEB H264 4000
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Not Synced[Narrator] You're watching National Geographic
Channel Presents. -
Not SyncedThere's a place so ghastly and grotesque
that most people recoil in horror, -
Not Syncedbut these acres, filled with decaying
human flesh actually save lives. -
Not SyncedThis is a training ground
for forensic specialists, -
Not Syncedsolving murders one corpse at a time,
unlocking the secrets of the body farm. -
Not Synced[dog barking]
-
Not Synced>>It's pretty dark out here.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] A skeleton
uncovered in Memphis. -
Not Synced>>Maybe we can find a grease spot where
the actual body is decomposed. -
Not Synced[Narrator] A family,
murdered in Mississippi, -
Not Synceda body stashed
in a Las Vegas locker. -
Not SyncedReal crimes, with real consquences.
-
Not Synced>>We got a rib, we got a right scapula.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] What's the connection
between these grisly discoveries? -
Not SyncedReal CSI. Scientists, turned
crime scene investigators, -
Not Synceddramatized on a hit TV series,
but what do they really do? -
Not Synced>>Did the skull look small to you too?
-
Not Synced>>Ready? [unclear]
-
Not Synced[Narrator] And where do
they learn their trade? -
Not SyncedWelcome to ground zero in
the field of forensic anthropology, -
Not Synceda unique outdoor classroom,
where the subject is death, -
Not Syncedand more than half the CSI units working
in the US today have been trained. -
Not SyncedFounded by Dr. Bill Bass of the University
of Tennessee more than 25 years ago, -
Not Syncedresearch conducted within these
few wooded acres in Knoxville -
Not Syncedhas redefined the frontiers
of forensic science. -
Not Synced[Dr. Bill Bass] The anthropology
research facility, -
Not Syncedwhat most people call the 'body farm,'
is a research facility that I set up -
Not Syncedto begin to look at the decay and
the rates of decay in human bodies. -
Not SyncedLike many anthropologists,
Bass started out studying ancient bones. -
Not SyncedHis expertise eventually led to his helping
the police with modern day murder victims. -
Not Synced[Bass] You know, we kill our friends
and neighbors many different means, -
Not Syncedand a lot of people are shot
or bludgeoned or stabbed. -
Not SyncedMy orientation was what happens when
a body decays and how long does it take? -
Not Synced[Narrator] He learned to read
bones for signs of trauma, -
Not Syncedknife marks in ribs,
unusual fractures in skulls. -
Not SyncedDrawing on unclaimed bodies
from county morgues, -
Not Syncedhe built an extensive
collection of skeletons, -
Not Syncedbut early in his career, Bass realized that
bones weren't the only source of clues. -
Not SyncedDecomposing flesh had
secrets to reveal as well. -
Not Synced[Bass] I got a call one afternoon, it was
between Christmas and New Years-- -
Not Syncedit was cold-- from the Williamson County
Sherriff's office, -
Not Syncedtelling me that they had a grave that had
been disturbed, would I come and help? -
Not SyncedSo I get over there. This is a family
cemetery, back of a home. -
Not Synced[Narrator] Someone had broken
into the earth, near a headstone. -
Not SyncedJust beneath the surface, a headless male
corpse. The remains looked fairly fresh. -
Not SyncedPolice needed to know how fresh.
Had a new body been added to an old grave? -
Not SyncedDr. Bass agreed the body was in good shape,
pink flesh still clung to the bones. -
Not Synced[Bass] I looked at it, I said you have
a 24 to 28 year old white male -
Not Syncedwho's been dead about a year.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] But something didn't add up.
Bass kept digging, -
Not Syncedultimately identifying the body
as Colonel William Shy, -
Not Synceda rebel officer killed in the Civil War,
buried in an air-tight cast iron coffin, -
Not Syncedthe corpse had been
incredibly well-preserved. -
Not SyncedBass' original assessment had
been off by more than a century. -
Not Synced[Bass] People wonder why
I started a body farm. -
Not SyncedIt's because of a couple of
experiences like that, -
Not Syncedthat make you realize that, you know, you
really don't know much about decay rates, -
Not Syncedand we need to do
something about that. -
Not Synced[Narrator] By now, more than
four hundred human corpses -
Not Syncedhave decomposed
at the body farm, -
Not Syncedevery phase documented
under a wide range of conditions. -
Not SyncedSome critics say letting corpses
decay here is irreverent, -
Not Syncedbut the scientists insist the dead
are held in the highest respect. -
Not Synced>>It's important to remember
that the anthropology department, -
Not Syncedthe forensics center doesn't
own these bodies. -
Not SyncedThey're a gift to us to study
decomposition, but if the day comes -
Not Syncedand families ever decide that they
want them, they belong to them. -
Not Synced>>I always try and take a minute
and say thank you, -
Not Syncedbecause without them,
we wouldn't be able to do -
Not Syncedany of this research and
this place would not exist. -
Not Synced[Narrator] There's no doubt that the
work done here is incredibly valuable, -
Not Syncedresulting in the convictions of
countless violent criminals -
Not Syncedwho may have
otherwise walked free. -
Not SyncedAnd those bodies,
so generously donated, -
Not Syncedare put to good use in earnest
efforts to protect the living. -
Not Synced[Bass] We've looked at decaying bodies
in various scenarios: -
Not Syncedclothing, no clothing, sun, shade,
buried, not buried, water, trunks of cars. -
Not SyncedWe've been able to establish
a sequence of events -
Not Syncedthat occurs under
all of these conditions. -
Not Synced>>You can see all through here, where it's
all decayed, and we've got some more bugs. -
Not Synced>>Forensic anthropology and
forensic entomology -
Not Syncedreally take off from right here
where we're walking. -
Not SyncedI mean this is, in a sense, ground zero
where this particular research takes place. -
Not Synced>>It's interesting, because they say okay
[fades out] -
Not Synced[Narrator] Dr. Murray Marks is one of the
thousands who have studied at the facility. -
Not SyncedNow he's on the faculty,
guiding the research -
Not Syncedof a new generation of scientists.
-
Not Synced[Marks] When I see remains like this,
I'm always reminded that this -
Not Syncedis such a unique laboratory,
because where else can we study -
Not Syncedthis whole process
of decomposition? -
Not SyncedWe're there to speak for the victim,
for the people that don't have a voice. -
Not SyncedBy doing that, we get
ever closer to the truth, -
Not Syncedand ever closer to making
someone pay for their crime. -
Not Synced[Narrator] The body farm's
many successes has -
Not Syncedspread the facility's
influence far and wide. -
Not SyncedA new program called
the National Forensic Academy -
Not Syncedallows police and lab technicians from
throughout the United States -
Not Syncedto hone their skills amid a
cornucopia of fresh bodies, -
Not Synceddecomposing corpses,
and overgrown skeletons. -
Not Synced>>If at any time you have a problem,
I strongly recommend -
Not Syncedyou turn around
and take a deep breath. Okay? -
Not SyncedIt is not a pleasant thing.
It is something that you have to face -
Not Syncedat some point in your careers.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] In a wooded corner of the
facility, the scientists have scattered -
Not Synceda mixture of human bones,
animal bones, bullet casings, -
Not Syncedand other
simulated evidence. -
Not SyncedStained by time, soil, and weather,
and hidden by leaves, -
Not Syncedthe scattered bones
are difficult to find, -
Not Syncedjust as they would be
at an actual crime scene. -
Not SyncedSorting through human remains can be an
unsettling task, even for professionals. -
Not Synced>>Sometimes that whiff is just too much.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] Next: how to find
a murder victim when the body -
Not Syncedis already buried six feet under.
-
Not SyncedNational Geographic Channel
Presents will be right back. -
Not SyncedNow, back to National Geographic
Channel Presents. -
Not SyncedThe secrets of the body farm aren't
reserved solely for human students. -
Not SyncedMost cadaver dogs are trained
to find corpses -
Not Syncedwith synthetic samples
that smell like decay. -
Not SyncedHere, dogs are able to practice on
multiple human bodies, -
Not Syncedin varying states of decomposition.
-
Not Synced[Dog Trainer] What you got?
You find something? -
Not Synced[Narrator] They're taught to lie down
or bark when they find human remains. -
Not Synced[Dog Trainer] Oh, good girl.
What you got? Show me. -
Not SyncedGood girl. Ready?
Want to find some more? -
Not Synced[Narrator] Finding corpses on
the surface is just a warm-up. -
Not Synced[Dog Trainer] Out here.
-
Not Synced[Narrator] The dogs move on to a series of
concrete slabs for the graduate course. -
Not SyncedUnder the yellow arrows, a researcher has
buried corpses and other debris. -
Not Synced[dog barks]
-
Not Synced[Dog Trainer] Very good!
-
Not Synced[Narrator] Success is rewarded
immediately, to reinforce -
Not Syncedevery dog's complete
attention to the task. -
Not SyncedJane Survey is in the early stages of
training her dog to indicate a discovery. -
Not Synced[Jane Survey] While there's such
overwhelming scents, -
Not Syncedwe want them to concentrate and
indicate on every one they find. -
Not SyncedWhat can happen, especially in early
stages of training in something like this, -
Not Syncedis that they would go from one source,
to another source, -
Not Syncedto another source
without indicating. -
Not SyncedThis is a great opportunity because
it tells them every single one, -
Not Syncedindicate immediately,
then go on to the next. -
Not Synced[to dog] You did very good,
you're a smart dog! -
Not SyncedFind it.
-
Not Synced[dog barks]
-
Not SyncedIf you saw her head--
Flora, show me. -
Not Synced[dog barks]
No, you show me. Yes, good dog! -
Not SyncedWhen she got over here,
her breathing changes, -
Not Syncedand if you watch them
very closely you can tell that. -
Not SyncedIt's almost like they inhale
and then they stop breathing, -
Not Syncedbecause they're
processing the scent. -
Not SyncedGood dog!
Are you the smartest girl? -
Not Synced[Narrator] Even the best cadaver dogs can
have a difficult time locating some corpses. -
Not SyncedThe body farm is the perfect lab for
developing new technologies -
Not Syncedthat can help locate
human remains. -
Not Synced[Bass] We have a problem in the United
States of the husband and wife, -
Not Syncedone of them gets mad,
kills the other one, -
Not Syncedthey take them out in the
backyard and bury them. -
Not SyncedThen they pour a concrete slab
over them and it's hard to find. -
Not Synced[Narrator] This is an experimental
ground-penetrating radar system, GPRX. -
Not SyncedOn loan from the US government,
it's one of only two units -
Not Syncedof this GPR model in the world.
-
Not SyncedIt's been developed to locate dinosaur
bones, find unexploded artillery shells, -
Not Syncedand reveal hidden bodies.
-
Not SyncedThe system is about the size
and weight of a weedwhacker, -
Not Syncedbut it's packed with
powerful electronics. -
Not SyncedBeneath these concrete paths at the
anthropology research facility, -
Not Syncedlie seven human bodies.
-
Not SyncedMichelle Miller buried the bodies at
depths ranging from one foot to six feet. -
Not SyncedWhat would a body look like at each depth?
Could the radar see through cement? -
Not SyncedAnd would a body under cement
look different from a body under dirt? -
Not Synced[Miller] I want to see the difference
between cement and actual-- just the clay. -
Not SyncedThe head of one individual
is right here, -
Not Syncedand the head of the other
individual is right there, -
Not Syncedand hopefully I'll be able to see the
definite difference of the GPR -
Not Syncedshooting through the
cement versus the non cement. -
Not Synced[Narrator] Miller didn't stop there,
she added other variables. -
Not SyncedCould the system distinguish between
a fresh corpse and a bare skeleton? -
Not SyncedOr between a body and rubble?
-
Not Synced[Miller] I want to see if it could
really differentiate, you know, -
Not Syncedbetween a definite
individual and not. -
Not SyncedWhat I did is I buried one
individual on this side of the pad. -
Not SyncedOn the other side of the pad,
I actually made a mock-up. -
Not SyncedI used plastic buckets, metal buckets,
two-by-fours, and metal tubing, -
Not Syncedand actually built a body.
-
Not Synced[Bass] What we're trying to do is to
match a situation like you're getting -
Not Syncedin terrorist attacks now, where you get
not only the people being blown up, -
Not Syncedbut you get all of the building or
the surroundings filled in with them. -
Not SyncedCan you distinguish a body under
all of that, what you may call 'noise,' -
Not Syncedif you want to say that,
or something is confusing the picture. -
Not Synced[Narrator] The system's field display
shows little detail, -
Not Syncedjust a series of swirls and squiggles,
representing different densities. -
Not SyncedMiller wants to know if those
patterns can be read as bodies. -
Not SyncedBack at the lab, the data is downloaded
into a more sophisticated computer -
Not Syncedto enhance the display.
-
Not SyncedThe display shows a cross-section
cutaway of the earth. -
Not SyncedA red band across the top
shows the concrete, -
Not Synceddense, but transparent
as a windowpane to the GPRX. -
Not SyncedBeneath that, disturbed soil,
which yields uniform signals of green. -
Not SyncedThen, two feet down,
the signals go crazy, -
Not Syncedmatching the size and shape
of the body hidden there. -
Not SyncedOnce a body's been found,
the detective work truly begins. -
Not SyncedThe one piece of evidence everyone wants?
Time since death. -
Not Synced[Bass] The police don't
ask you 'who is that?' -
Not SyncedThey ask you 'how long
have they been there?' -
Not SyncedNow I didn't have any
experience with maggots, -
Not Syncedso I looked in the literature, and
there was very little in the literature. -
Not SyncedSo I decided this was an area
that we needed to do research on. -
Not SyncedWe need to find out what happens
in the decay stages of human individuals. -
Not Synced[Narrator] In the 1980s, Bass and
a graduate student began -
Not Syncedcharting the order and the
timing of insect activity in corpses. -
Not SyncedMost numerous
were blow flies. -
Not SyncedIridescent flies that could
sniff out a body within seconds. -
Not SyncedEach female blow fly laid eggs
by the hundreds, -
Not Syncedusually in natural body
openings or bloody wounds. -
Not SyncedIn summertime, the eggs could
hatch in just two hours, -
Not Syncedthe resulting larvae, maggots
soon formed a writhing, flesh-eating mass. -
Not SyncedThe maggots were nourished to maturity
by the proteins and lipids in the flesh. -
Not SyncedSome two weeks later, they formed
pupa casings, or cocoons. -
Not SyncedA few days later, a new generation
of adult flies emerged -
Not Syncedfrom those pupa casings,
and the cycle began anew. -
Not SyncedOther insects joined the
post-mortem food chain. -
Not SyncedYellow jackets fed on blow fly eggs,
and beetles nibbled cartilage off bones. -
Not SyncedBut the key players were
blow flies and their maggots. -
Not Synced[Neil Haskel] Then we can go to the
proper charts [fades out] -
Not Synced[Narrator] The studies provided crucial
data to scientists like Neil Haskel, -
Not Synceda forensic entomologist, who teaches
at St. Joseph's College in Indiana. -
Not SyncedHe also testifies in murder trials.
-
Not SyncedComing up: a brutal and mysterious
murder of a young family. -
Not SyncedCould insect activity
crack the case? -
Not SyncedFind out when Secrets
of the Body Farm continues. -
Not SyncedYou're watching National Geographic
Channel Presents. -
Not SyncedThe expert testimony of forensic
entomologist Neil Haskel, -
Not Syncedtrained at the body farm,
proved crucial as a grisly case -
Not Syncedunfolded in Las Vegas, Nevada.
-
Not SyncedPeople renting storage space in a
mini warehouse had noticed a nasty smell.
- Title:
- National Geographic Secrets of the Body Farm HD 1080 WEB H264 4000
- Video Language:
- English
- Duration:
- 45:53
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