99% Invisible The Nutshell Studies
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May 20, 2015 This podcast explores the office of the chief medical examiner in Baltimore, Maryland, and their use of nutshell studies - miniature dioramas depicting scenes involving dead people. It discusses the work of Frances Glesner-Lee, who created the Nutshell Studies and their impact on training homicide detectives. The podcast also highlights the solutions presented by attendees of a seminar on the nutshells, emphasizing their importance as teaching tools. Finally, it mentions the 70th anniversary of the podcast and a challenge coin created to celebrate it.
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Creation Of The Nutshell Dioramas
- Frances Glesner-Lee built 18 miniature death-scene dioramas called the Nutshell Studies to teach police how to read crime scenes.
- Each tiny scene replicates real cases with obsessive detail, including textile work, cigarettes, and simulated blood patterns.
Train With Realistic Simulations
- Teach investigators with realistic, controllable simulations when real scenes are unavailable.
- Use scaled, evidence-rich replicas to train observation and inference skills safely.
Domestic Craft Turned Forensic Tool
- Glesner-Lee used her needlework and domestic skills to build forensic training tools with scientific intent.
- She believed perfect, realistic detail was essential to force investigators to take the training seriously.