After Christmas/Christmas Party
SOAP BUBBLES-Lyotropic Liquid Crystals

David A. Stoney, Ph.D.
McCrone Research Institute
Chicago, illinois

January 23, 1998

There are liquid crystals all over your sink. Yes, that puddle of gooey stuff around your soap bar is a liquid crystal, and a particularly interesting and important type. We will be discussing and observing the polarized light microscopy of lyotropic liquid crystals-the kind that are formed from soap and soap-like molecules as they intereact with water. You'll learn more respect for the goo and discover another interesting family of materials to examine.

Bio Sketch
Dr. David A. Stoney has a B.S. Degree in Chemistry and Criminalistics, a Master's in Public Health, and a Ph.D. in Forensic Science, all from the University of California, Berkeley. He worked for six years in a crime laboratory in California, before joining the faculty of the University of Illinois at Chicago as Assistant Professor and Director of Forensic Sciences. Eight years later he became the Director of the McCrone Research Institute. A nationally recognized forensic expert in trace evidence analysis and interpretation. Dr. Stoney is a Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Editor of The Microscope, and on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Forensic Sciences. He has numerous publications on the microscopy and interpretation of physical evidence. Along with teaching courses in forensic microscopy, trace evidence analysis and particle identification, Dr. Stoney conducts major portions of our Federal research program at the Chamot Microscopy Facility at Cornell University.