Big Ideas Lab podcast delves into Forensic Science Center cases, podcast nears milestone

In May 1999, Bulgarian customs officials seized a vial containing a small amount of highly enriched uranium (HEU) at a checkpoint on the Bulgarian/Romanian border.

The material, about four grams of HEU, was hidden in a shielded lead container inside the trunk of a car being driven by a Turkish citizen. The driver had first attempted to sell the material in Turkey and then traveled through Romania on his way to Bulgaria.

A Bulgarian customs agent, using standard profiling techniques, suspected that the driver was a smuggler. When the car was thoroughly searched, the officer eventually discovered the vial containing the HEU material.

The vial was sent for analysis to the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Forensic Science Center (FSC). The substance turned out to be HEU, which, in large quantities, is used to create nuclear weapons.

This investigation is one of hundreds of cases that have been tackled — and solved — by the 34-year-old LLNL Forensic Science Center, the focus of the newest episode of the Big Ideas Lab Podcast. Listen here on Spotify or Apple.

In another case cracked by the Forensic Science Center, Gloria Ramirez, a woman with late-stage cervical cancer, was admitted to Riverside General Hospital. Afterwards, several hospital workers became ill, possibly from airborne exposure to her body and blood.

Ramirez was dubbed “the toxic woman” by the news media.  She was receiving oxygen and had a concentration of DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide) in her system. LLNL scientists analyzed Ramirez’s blood samples to determine what happened in the Riverside hospital.

“What happens when the body sees things like DMSO, it immediately wants to detoxify it. So, it would then add oxygen to it and make dimethyl sulfone, and then they can oxidize it again and make dimethyl sulfate, which is a very volatile, toxic chemical,” said Brian Andresen, who founded the Forensic Science Center in 1991.

Through the years, as the Forensic Science Center has tackled important forensic investigations for federal agencies and dozens of cases for federal, state and local law enforcement organizations, its reputation has grown.

In one of his books (“Power Plays — Shadow Watch”), noted author Tom Clancy wrote, “They (the LLNL Forensic Science Center) did evidence analysis on the Unabomber case, the Times Square and World Trade Center bombings in New York, probably hundreds of other investigations,” Nimec said. “The LLNL’s FSC is the best group of crime detectives and national security experts in the field.”

Tune in to the latest episode of the Big Ideas Lab Podcast to learn more about these scientists and what they do for the nation. Listen here on Spotify or Apple.

The Big Ideas Lab is nearing one million downloads across all listening platforms, a milestone driven by engaging episodes tackling some of science’s most complex and pressing questions. The biweekly podcast will continue to explore the frontiers of research shaping national security, energy, computing, health and more through conversations with some of LLNL's most brilliant minds. Catch up on past episodes here on Apple or Spotify.