10.00 We met up with Imtiaz - or ‘Im’ as she told us to call her - in the university canteen, for a chat over morning coffee. She explained what we’d be doing and told us about her amazing career! 10.30 After our chat, Im took us to one of the science labs, where we were shown around some of the equipment used in forensic investigations. Then she told us to get our white coats and rubber gloves on because we were going to be solving a forensic mystery for ourselves. First, we were shown how to analyse chemicals (like these blue crystals) using a ‘flame test’. Im told us that all the metallic elements in the Periodic Table have different colours if you hold them in the flame from a Bunsen Burner, so burning a mystery substance can help you work out what it is... Once we’d done the flame test, we tested the same chemicals again to find out even more about them … Sometimes the tests had to be done several times to get a definite answer - Im says it’s crucial to test and re-test evidence, because in a courtcase, someone could get a life sentence based on your results… And you need to keep careful notes of all the tests you do and the results!! 12.00 After all that hard work, it was time for lunch. Im introduced us to three PhD students who are studying forensics at APU, Joanne Kelly, Victoria Leeman and Laura Gregory. The students were great company – and after lunch they showed us round the campus. We checked out the careers library for ideas… 13.00 …and we even tried out sitting in a lecture hall… (but we sneaked back out just before the lecturer got there!) We really liked APU - and Katie says she's definitely going to apply to come here when she's done her exams. 14.00 Im’s colleague, Darren Phillips, used to work for the Forensic Science Service. He told us lots of real-life stories about forensic investigations… and he warned us not to believe EVERYTHING you see on those TV programmes! The labs are full of very fancy microscopes. This one's called a RAMAN MICROSCOPE, and it works by shining a laser onto the surface of a forensic sample… 15.00 Next door, another colleague Kevin Bright showed us the GRIM. That stands for the 'Glass Refractive Index Measurement' Machine! This is used to examine glass from bottles, windows etc in various ways. Once you've got the results, you can compare them with what's in the national database of glass samples and hopefully identify where your piece came from... 16.00 Just before we left, Im, Darren and Kevin introduced us to ‘Morticia’. She’s not a real person - phew! - just a dummy ,modelling all the protective gear you’d need if you were working in a real forensics laboratory. If you’d like to find out more about how to get into a forensics science, have a look here. PS if you’re keen on forensics, check out Planet Science Whodunit and try some for yourself!