Subjects

The book lays out the techniques, secrets and curiosities of forensic science, explaining them in a reader-friendly manner; it investigates famous cases so that we can better understand what we read in newspapers and see in films and TV series.

Have you ever wondered how a murder case can be solved thanks to a single drop of blood? And how, on the other hand, a whole investigation can get screwed up in spite of seemingly seamless evidence such as DNA testing? The book shows how a fleck of skin, a hair or a leaf can lead to a name and surname. The most fascinating aspects include the main techniques used in forensic science, i.e. all the notions that come into play when evidence is found at a crime scene and needs to be analysed to solve the case.

The book takes a rigorously scientific dive into numerous cases that have laid the foundations of current forensic techniques; even if you have no scientific experience, you will be able to follow along as the book explains the procedures and analyses, linking them to famous news cases and little-known historical curiosities.

An essay that explores Russian culture and society, delving into its many diverse facets and looking at literature, music, art, cinema, popular culture and folklore.

A symbolically enigmatic figure, the sphinx is used in the book to represent Russia, a country that has always been mysterious and incomprehensible to the eyes of every Westerner.

Building on this mythology, the author intends to remove the haze that envelops the land thanks to a series of keywords that do not always quite translate but do contain extraordinarily vast ranges of meaning that are crucial to penetrate the deepest soul of Russian reality.

The journey begins with geography and reaches politics, passing through religion, everyday life, interpersonal relationships and the collective and personal history of a country erroneously linked to stereotypical images made of matryoshka dolls, vodka and icons.

Throughout the book’s five chapters, a physicist and a philosopher move between science and consciousness, exploring topics ranging from the scientific method to the role of the technology that shapes the world, up to the reflection on the existence of a Creator God.

The dialogue begins by examining contradictory attitudes towards science and technology. On the one hand, science makes it possible to explain matter and the Universe, thanks to the mesmerizingly perfect laws of physics; yet, there is plenty of scepticism towards the very knowledge that provides the keys to interpret reality. On the other hand, technology has a dramatic impact on everyday life, embracing everything between the extremes of those who cannot do without it and those who flat out reject it. Scientific thought meets philosophy, poetry and art, providing complementary food for thought to settle timeless disputes between science and philosophy or between science and religion.