Biological/forensic question...

Is it easy, hard, or impossible to determine the actual age of a person from a biological examination? I'm not talking about the obvious wide divisions (infant, little child, older child, teenager, etc.) but within a year or two.

For example, if you're presented with a boy claiming to be 17, would it be possible to determine for sure that he is in fact 15? If yes, is this limited only to "growing years", and precision would drop drastically once you pass to adulthood? (for example, presented with a woman claiming to be 24 and she is actually 22)

If either or both are possible, what would the indicators be?

At the doctor's...

... I've had a pain in my foot, about at the base/joint of the big toe, for a while, but it's been getting much worse in the last couple days. Hopefully she can figure out what's up...

By Jove...

... I remember back in '67 I heard a noise outside our tent, and stepped out and shot a rhino in my pajamas. And how he got into my pajamas I will never know. Ha!


Apparently the most likely diagnosis for my problem is gout.

GOUT! That's a disease in Agatha Christie novels, for old former Colonial Indian Colonels surrounded by Benares Brass and eating curries cooked for them by their man that they brought with them from Delhi!

Blast it all, am I going to have to start growing those muttonchop whiskers?

The Process of Publishing -- Why it Works That Way...

In the spirit of my earlier posting, I'm reposting something I put on Usenet earlier in response to someone who sees the basic process of submission as demeaning and nonsensical.

( cut for your protection )

Just another addition to the discussion.