CD-ROM. Forensic Medicine, probably more than any other speciality in medicine, has to deal with all aspects of life and death. A forensic pathologist frequently faces circumstances and cases of death that very few other medical specialists ever meet during their whole professional careers and that most laymen do not even know exist. The knowledge of these aspects of human behaviour is of paramount importance for the forensic specialist, who faces these problems when examining the living or the dead. For instance when he has to differentiate between sudden unexpected natural deaths and violent deaths or between suicide, accident and homicide. This differentiation is often very difficult and presupposes a long professional experience and correct interpretation of sometimes very subtle and minute changes, which at first sight or with less experience may appear to be negligible and unimportant.

The differences in legislation, medicolegal systems and