I have taken the polygraph myself. My tester was the president of the National Polygraph Association...He explained to me that Polygraphing is one of the better than any forensic test except for DNA. He explained that it was 87-93% accurate. He hooked me up to some palm testers, put a leather pad reader under my thighs/rear, put two tubes around me (upper and lower chest), then took my blood pressure/pulse on my left arm. The first time he asked me the questions I was breathing normal, you know cause in that much silence thats all you really have to think about. After the 6th question he turned the laptop half way around and said what have you been reading. I explained that I had just finished a novel. He said, "No, about this." and i responded with, "Nothing, I heard that if you read about it, you will mess up and its better to know nothing about it when you come in to take it." He said, "yeah okay..." Why are you trying to screw with the test. All that constant breathing, he pointed out something to me on his laptop of my breathing and some other breathing...not like i would know what it meant. He also said me clearing my throat was to throw off the machine. 
   He kept accusing me of hiding information and that i better spit everything out. He said he didn't care what happened to me because he had already gotten paid. He was almost yelling at me...I was just like what the hell... (in my head). He kept accusing me of hiding information and asked what my major was. I said Digital Graphic Design. He said that, that was not that technilogical...I just wanted to be like yeah okay, lets go see who can photoshop or make 3D renderings...He asked me if i could do his job better than he. I said um no, thats why you're the president of the National polygraph Assoc. Then he kept getting mad and such saying he was going to give me it one more time and if there was anymore of this bullshit then he would leave.

  I was just wondering...Do all Polygraph testers try to get your feathers ruffled like this to see how you respond under pressure.???

The next time he tested me I took longer and tried to just think of the questions more. I tried not to think about my breathing or cough or anything. I did the test again after that and tried to do as he said. After he unhooked everything from me he said well hopefully I will be able to pull some information from this. Shook my hand then i left.

In order to make sure my identity was not that easily detectable, I have waited a little while to let everyone know my results.

First, I passed   I am required to take polys about twice a year as the result of a conviction/plea deal that I disavow and always have.  Anyway...

The first test I took, I did a CM, although I think the polygrapher tried to goad me into it (it had to do with respiration; I don't want to get specific here, as I don't know who on the other side reads these things).  He was upset, but never told me whether or not I passed.  I guess I didn't fail, because my PO didn't say anything to that effect, either.

The second, more recent one, was a lot easier.  It was the same interrogator, but he was much more congenial.  He asked me to do a couple of things differently after the first of 3 rounds of questions, which I did, and all was rosy.  After the second round, we sat and talked for about 10 minutes about casual topics.  Then the 3rd round, no problems.  He asked about a question I may have reacted a bit to (or not), I told him the question stressed me, and he said ok.  In the end, I passed fine.

Funny thing: he attached the pneumograph, ass pad, and sphygmomanometer, but not the galvanic response plates on the fingers.  He couldn't have just forgotten.  Opinions?  Might he have figured somehow that I already knew about the test, how it worked?  I don't know.  Someone out there, parse this for me   I have to do probably 4 more of these... so any info would help...  8)