Bugs as clues in grisly crimes to be topic of opening Museum of Earth Science Lecture

Entomologist Joe Keiper, executive director of Martinsville's Virginia Museum of Natural History, will discuss the application of entomological evidence found on victims to help reconstruct the timelines of heinous crimes on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

Titled "Entomology of Serial Killings," Keiper's presentation will be at 7 p.m. in the Hurlburt Student Center Auditorium on campus. It is free and open to the public. The lecture is the first in the Spring 2014 RU Museum of the Earth Sciences Lecture Series.

According to Keiper, serial killings have been documented in world society since ancient times, but the application of entomological evidence found on victims has been used only recently to help reconstruct the timelines of these heinous crimes. Keiper will review his experience and discuss methods used during investigations.

The Radford University Museum of the Earth Sciences is part of the department of geology in the College of Science and Technology and an affiliate of the Virginia Museum of Natural History. The Museum serves as an educational resource for earth science-related themes for the university, K12 communities and the general public. It is open from October through November and from January through April while RU is in session.

To learn more about the Museum of the Earth Sciences or the MES Lecture Series, contact Steve Lenhart at (540) 831-5257 or slenhart@radford.edu.