Did you know that where you are from and where you have been can be traced through a single strand of your hair?

According to this study published in the Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry journal in 2009, a team of  Spanish and British scientists  have found a way to trace your travels by testing your hair by using a laser-ablation technique. This technique is able to detect variations in the sulphur isotopes of a single hair strand over time.

During the study, researchers collected hair samples from three volunteers, two of whom were permanent United Kingdom residents while the third had spent the previous 6 months travelling through Croatia, Austria, and Australia.

Results of testing showed that the traveller’s hair strand had considerable variations in the sulfur isotopes while hair strands from the two home-bound U.K. residents had minimal to no changes.

These interesting results could have huge relevance for governmental agencies interested in tracing the lifestyles of international criminals and terror suspects.

I doubt it’s a test that would be applied to ordinary travelers, but if one day, you’re heading through customs and feel a slight tug on your head, it might just be that you’ve suddenly be tagged for a hair test…

(image credit)

Related posts:

1. Drop by these indie record stores on your travels
2. Twitchhiker travels the world with the help of twitter friends.
3. Adding a little atmosphere to your travels
4. Travels By Way of Ween

This entry was posted on Monday, August 29th, 2011 at 6:26 am and is filed under Liz projects, weirdness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.