What makes the Knott Laboratory SBT trajectory analysis all the more impressive and important is that Knott Laboratory has been an industry leader in forensic engineering and accident reconstruction animation services for over 40 years. The company's experts include structural and mechanical engineers, fire and explosion investigators, visualization experts, accident reconstructionists, and digital media forensics experts. That's why John Orr, a former Justice Department attorney, hired them to analyze the SBT.
To reconstruct the shooting scene with modern technology, Knott's experts conducted a high-definition laser scan of Dealey Plaza to generate a point cloud of up to 2 million points per second, to accurately measure point-to-point anywhere in the scene. Knott Laboratory also obtained historic photographic evidence from the plaza, the limousine, and the Zapruder film. Here's what happened after that:
No previous SBT analysis even came close to this level of locational data volume and accuracy and analytical sophistication. WC apologists can do nothing but offer lame excuses for refusing to accept this scientific finding. If Knott Lab had determined that JFK and Connally were SBT aligned, lone-gunman theorists would be hailing the trajectory analysis as definitive and conclusive, but since it found the opposite, they dismiss it, proving that not even hard science can sway them from their emotional devotion to the lone-assassin scenario.
Since Michael decided to bring this over from the other thread, I guess I have to reply here, too. To repeat the high-level version:
The Knott Lab effort was a second-rate amateurish hogwash. If you watch their promo video you'll find that they have the shot coming from the wrong side of the SN window, and have the bullet impacting JFK at his centerline. The bigger problem is the lack of rigor. A proper trajectory study would acknowledge the uncertainties in the location of the wounds, the differences between the exact size and shape of the models to the real life bodies, any deflection of the bullet after impact, etc. This would result in a series of trajectory cones, not a straight line. Of the various attempts to create a trajectory analysis for the shooting, the best is still the Failure Analysis one from the early 90's. I wouldn't give you $0.02 for the Knott Labs version. And on to some specifics:
MW: Knott Laboratory has been an industry leader in forensic engineering and accident reconstruction animation services for over 40 years. The company's experts include structural and mechanical engineers, fire and explosion investigators, visualization experts, accident reconstructionists, and digital media forensics experts.In the early 1990's , Failure Analysis Associates was one of the largest and most respected forensic engineering firms in the US. That's one reason why they were chosen by the ABA to provide forensic services and expert testimony for the ABA Oswald mock trial. Yet, despite a pedigree that rivals' Knott Labs', you don't mention the FaAA trajectory work.
MW: Knott Laboratory also obtained historic photographic evidence from the plaza, the limousine, and the Zapruder film.So did Dale Myers. From their own account, Knott Labs used the same techniques that Myers used to synchronize and locates their models with the Zapruder film
To reconstruct the shooting scene with modern technology, Knott's experts conducted a high-definition laser scan of Dealey Plaza to generate a point cloud of up to 2 million points per second, to accurately measure point-to-point anywhere in the sceneThis is a case where having more raw data doesn't make the result better. Dealey Plaza could be much better modelled using far less information than what we see in the KL video. On the KL video, during the flythrough, you'll notice how quickly the KL model becomes incoherent as the camera POV deviates from the scanner's location. I assume they didn't go to the trouble to create a proper model of the Plaza just to same time and effort.
No previous SBT analysis even came close to this level of locational data volume and accuracy and analytical sophisticationTheir analysis isn't all that sophisticated. As I've already noted, the put the rifle in the wrong window, and have the bullet hit JFK in the centerline. Rifle and wound placement isn't a minor detail in this case. Anything but! Still, KL completely flubbed it.
