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Scientists have devised a way to determine roughly where a person has lived using a strand of hair, a
technique that could help track the movements of criminal suspects or unidentified murder victims.
The method relies on measuring how chemical variations in drinking water show up in people's hair.
"You're what you eat and drink, and that's recorded in your hair," said Thure Cerling, a geologist at
the University of Utah.
While U.S diet is relatively identical, water supplies vary. The differences result from weather patterns. The chemical composition of rainfall changes slightly as rain clouds move.
Most hydrogen and oxygen atoms in water are stable, but traces of both elements are also present as
heavier isotopes (同位素). The heaviest rain falls first. As a result, storms that form over the Pacific
deliver heavier water to California than to Utah.
Similar patterns exist throughout the U.S. By measuring the proportion of heavier hydrogen and
oxygen isotopes along a strand of hair, scientists can construct a geographic timeline. Each inch of hair
corresponds to about two months.
Cerling's team collected tap water samples from 600 cities and constructed a map of the regional
differences. They checked the accuracy of the map by testing 200 hair samples collected from 65 barber
shops. They were able to accurately place the hair samples in broad regions roughly corresponding to
the movement of rain systems.
"It's not good for pinpointing (精確定位)," Cerling said. "It's good for eliminating many possibilities."
Todd Park, a local detective, said the method has helped him learn more about an unidentified woman whose skeleton was found near Great Salt Lake.
The woman was 5 feet tall. Police recovered 26 bones, a T-shirt and several strands of hair.
When Park heard about the research, he gave the hair samples to the researchers.
Chemical testing showed that over the two years before her death, she moved about every two
months.
She stayed in the Northwest, although the test could not be more specific than somewhere between
eastern Oregon and western Wyoming.
"It's still a substantial area," Park said "But it narrows it way down for me."
1. What is the scientists' new discovery?
A. One's hair growth has to do with the amount of water they drink.
B. A person's hair may reveal where they have lived.
C. Hair analysis accurately identifies criminal suspects..
D. The chemical composition of hair varies from person to person.
2.What does the author mean by "You're what you eat and drink" (Line 1, Para.3)?
A. Food and drink affect one's personality development.
B. Food and drink preferences vary with individuals.
C. Food and drink leave traces in one's body tissues.
D. Food and drink are essential to one's existence.
3.What is said about the rainfall in America's West?
A. There is much more rainfall in California than in Utah.
B. The water it delivers becomes lighter when it moves inland.
C. Its chemical composition is less stable than in other areas.
D. It gathers more light isotopes as it moves eastward.
4.What is the practical value of Cerling's research?
A. It helps analyze the quality of water in different regions.
B. It helps the police determine where a crime is committed.
C. It helps the police narrow down possibilities in detective work.
D. It helps identify the drinking habits of the person under investigation.
