PSC404, Spring 2001
Assignment 6, due Friday 23 March 2001
Neutron-activation analysis and the assassination

Read: Relevant sections of Neutron-Activation Analysis and the John F. Kennedy Assassination.

Answer these questions:
      1. What was the main goal of the neutron-activation analysis of bullets and fragments from the assassination?

      2. Explain briefly how NAA works.

      3. Explain how the FBI analyzed the fragments with NA. What did they officially conclude? What did they unofficially conclude? List one or two strengths and weakness of their approach and their results.

      4. How did Vincent Guinn’s later results compare with the FBI’s earlier results?

      5. Briefly recap the problem of heterogeneity of Sb as expounded by Wallace Milam. Why is it potentially so significant?

      6. Explain why the measured heterogeneity and the measured groupings of fragments are incompatible.

      7. How can we resolve the incompatibility in (6)?

      8. What are the main conclusions about the JFK assassination offered by the NAA?

      9. Explain how NAA fixes a three-point path of the head shot from Oswald’s rifle to the fragments recovered form the front seat of the car. Why is this result so important?

      10. What are some of the objection to the results of the NAA? Are any of them valid?

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