Activity for Solving Crimes with the Necrobiome

This activity explores content presented in the animated video Solving Crimes with the Necrobiome, which describes the microbial changes associated with decomposing corpses.

In the video, Ed Yong and scientist Jessica Metcalf describe how a community of many microbes, known as the necrobiome, takes over our bodies after we die. Scientists study the necrobiome to better understand the process of decomposition. This research also provides tools for criminal investigators. For example, forensic experiments have shown that it may be possible to estimate time of death by sequencing the DNA of microbes found on and around corpses.

The “Student Handout” probes students’ understanding of the key concepts addressed in the film. The “Educator Materials” document provides suggested pause points in the film with questions for students, background information, and detailed discussion points; a list of related resources and references; and an answer key for the “Student Handout.”

The “Resource Google Folder” link directs to a Google Drive folder of resource documents in the Google Docs format. Not all downloadable documents for the resource may be available in this format. The Google Drive folder is set as “View Only”; to save a copy of a document in this folder to your Google Drive, open that document, then select File → “Make a copy.” These documents can be copied, modified, and distributed online following the Terms of Use listed in the “Details” section below, including crediting BioInteractive.