Isotope analysis
A recent development in forensic science is the isotopic analysis of hair strands. Hair has a recognisable growth rate of 9-11mm per month or 15 cm per year. Human hair growth is primarily a function of diet, especially drinking water intake. The stable isotopic ratios of drinking water are a function of location, and the geology that the water percolates through. Sr, Sr and oxygen isotope variations are different all over the world. These differences in isotopic ratio are then biologically 'set' in our hair as it grows and it has therefore become possible to identify recent geographic histories by the analysis of hair strands. For example, it could be possible to identify whether a terrorist suspect had recently been to a particular location from hair analysis. This hair analysis is a non-invasive method which is becoming very popular in cases that DNA or other traditional means are bringing no answers.
Hair ice
Hair ice forms on moist, rotting wood from broadleaf trees when temperatures are slightly under and the air is humid. Each of the smooth, silky hairs has a diameter of about and a length of up to . The hairs are brittle, but take the shape of curls and waves. They can maintain their shape for hours and sometimes days. This long lifetime indicates that something is preventing the small ice crystals from recrystallizing into larger ones, since recrystallization normally occurs very quickly at temperatures near .