Original reporting and commentary about polygraphs, voice stress analyzers, and other purported "lie detectors."
Optics.org reports on a recent patent application in its “Patent Highlights” feature: Title: Non-invasive polygraph technology based on optical analysisApplicant: Defense Group, USInternational application number: WO 03/057003Infrared laser pulses could soon be used to determine whether someone is telling the truth or is under stress. In patent application WO 03/057003, US firm Defense Group describes …
Emma Young reports for the NewScientist.com news service. Excerpt: People who think of themselves as being intuitive make worse lie detectors than those who do not trust in a “gut instinct”, according to new research. “People generally aren’t very good at detecting lies – accuracy is between 45 and 65 per cent,” says Paul Seager …
Eric Swedlund reports for the Arizona Daily Star in an article titled, “UA on Security’s Cutting Edge.” Excerpt: John Allen, a psychology associate professor, will try to answer this question: “Is Brain ‘Fingerprinting’ Ready for Prime Time?” Conventional polygraphs measure factors such as heart rate and sweaty palms to determine nervousness or anxiety, but “brain …
Eric Swedlund reports for the Arizona Daily Star on a taxpayer-funded research program at the University of Arizona. Excerpt: To boost national security, the Defense Department is paying for a $4 million UA research project on detecting deceit in communication. In the electronic communication age, the military faces more challenges because analysts cannot always rely …
Fiona Harvey of the Financial Times reports on new software that purports to detect deception in electronic text messages. Excerpt: Software that can detect when people are lying in their e-mails sounds a bit far-fetched, but its manufacturers declare it is true. SAS Institute, which makes fraud-detection systems for banks and phone companies, will on …
Brandon Spun reports in the 4 February 2002 issue of Insight magazine on experimental detection of deception/concealed information techniques. Spun specifically addresses Dr. Larry Farwell’s “brain fingerprinting” technique, Dr. Daniel Langleben’s fMRI research, and Dr. James Levine and collaborators’ thermal imaging technology.
United Press International (UPI) reports on the development of a new system that purports to detect lies. Excerpt: An experimental new lie detector that measures sudden flashes of heat from around the eyes may soon provide another line of defense against terrorism . . . “On the other hand, when thinking about the possibility of …
Clive Thompson reports on Dr. Lawrence A. Farwell’s brain fingerprinting technique in this New York Times magazine article. Excerpt: The police have tried for years to get into the heads of criminals. But the accuracy of polygraphs, which measure pulse rates and blood pressure, has frequently been questioned — since steely-nerved liars can quell these …
Sarah Sturman Dale reports on Dr. Larry Farwell’s brain fingerprinting technique in this short article. Excerpt: He went to Harvard, works in Iowa and loves swing dancing. That’s not the typical profile of an anticrime crusader, but Lawrence Farwell is an unusual guy. While developing technology that would allow the vocally paralyzed to speak, he …
Sharon Berry reports in the October issue of SIGNAL magazine on a new technology which which Dr. John D. Norseen of Lockeed Martin Aeronautics Co. says may be able to determine if a person is lying. Excerpt: Whether a threat comes from pilot error or enemy aggression, scientists are finding that multisensor mapping and analysis …