Recently officials in New York have developed a new method to solve cases that have stumped law enforcement for years.  Inmates in fifty-eight county jails across the state will receive playing cards with pictures of people who are missing in hopes of finding information about what happened to these people.  The story can be read at http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN0136128320080501. 

Investigators are hoping that by starting their search at “the source of the crime” they will be able to find prisoners who have information about the crimes that may have been committed against these missing people.  The idea is that because of the small-world phenomenon where everyone is linked by “short chains of acquaintances” those who are incarcerated will be able to provide information about these cold cases that others could not.  The investigators have exhausted all other leads, trying to come up with an answer starting with the “small-worlds” of the victims, but they are coming up empty-handed.  By distributing these playing cards investigators will be able to begin their search from the other end of the chain, starting with the “small-world” of the prisoners and working their way out, hopefully to the victims.  This idea inherently makes sense, because those who have committed crimes likely associate with others who have committed crimes or spent a lot of time in places where crimes may have been committed.  This makes those who are incarcerated great sources for information about these missing people.  They have contacts within and outside of the criminal world and may be able to use these contacts to help law enforcement close their cases.