Abstract The dermatoglyphic (lit.'skin-carvings') patterns of the hand are the intimate and private symbol of the individual. Although this is true of all the skin-ridge patterns on the surface of the hand as a whole, it is especially true of the digital dermatoglyphs, the fingerprints. Everybody knows that we each possess a unique set of fingerprints, a knowledge which is put to much use by police forces around the world, and moreover, that these patterns do not change. Their use as a mean...
