Forensics - Paperback

by Sina Najafi (Editor), Eyal Weizman (Contribution by), Hito Steyerl (Contribution by)

Derived from the Latin "forensis," the word forensics refers to the "forum" and designates the practice of making an argument by using objects before a professional, political or legal gathering. Cabinet issue 43, with a special section on "Forensics" edited by Eyal Weizman, features Weizman on the changing role of forensics following the discovery of the body of Nazi war criminal Josef Mengele; Lawrence abu-Hamdan on the use by the British police of minute shifts in electrical signatures to precisely date recorded phone conversations; an interview with legendary forensic anthropologist Clyde Snow; and artist projects by Hito Steyerl and Fareed Armaly. Elsewhere in the issue: Rachel Berwick on "zugunrühe," a term coined in the 1950s to describe the phenomenon of nighttime restlessness of birds about to migrate; D. Graham Burnett and Sal Randolph's guide to identifying paper shredder patterns in order to reassemble destroyed documents; an artist project by Amie Siegel; and much more.