Eh, what's up, geneticist/bioethicist/computer programmer?

I bought a collection of R. Austin Freeman's Dr. Thorndyke stories today. Freeman was a physician, like Conan Doyle. This happened a week after I read a theory that connected the rise of the mystery story with the rise of more rational legal systems in Western Europe. (The theory seems to hold true for China, also, where the heroes of the traditional crime stories were judges.)

Later, reporters, lawyers, insurance investigators and forensic pathologists starred in crime novels. It's easy to understand why. All these fields involve asking questions and solving puzzles, just as solving a crime does.

So, here's today's question: What professions are naturals for future crime novels? What sorts of workers who have not yet been protagonists of crime stories would make good fictional sleuths?

© Peter Rozovsky 2006