I think that fingerprints are a good way to identify someone. Each person has a unique set of prints, so using fingerprints to identify someone is accurate and reliable.
In class we lifted our prints from beakers. Fingerprints make impressions on objects we touch because of the oil on our hands. Powder is used to make latent fingerprints visible. Tape is then used to lift the powder off the beaker. This was tough to do at first because I had never done something like this before, but it got easier as I kept working on it. The powder was messy and got everywhere. We stuck the tape with the fingerprints onto a sticky note so we could examine the print easier.
On another day in class, we used ink pads and used them to put our prints onto paper, like what they do on old police shows. It was really difficult to make the prints come out clear because the ink kept smudging. After doing some test prints, I figure out that prints came out easier if you pressed it lightly and rolled the finger to get the whole print.
Both these labs taught me important things about fingerprints and evidence collection in general. I learned that fingerprints do get left behind, but they can be hard to identify. Fingerprints will not always look perfect and will look messy. Sometimes there will only be partial prints left behind. I have learned that evidence collection is vital and will be helpful in solving crimes. It can be hard to collect evidence like fingerprints, but they are an important part of crime scenes and identification.