Of Colanders and Lie Detectors

Have you heard the story about the police who used a colander connected to a photocopier as a lie detector? It turns out that the "real" lie detector -- the polygraph -- works on much the same principle.

Download The Lie Behind the Lie Detector for a thorough debunking of the polygraph:

http://antipolygraph.org/lie-behind-the-lie-detector.pdf

And for more on the urban legend about the colander-based lie detector, see:

http://www.snopes.com/legal/colander.asp

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• polygraph
• lie
• detector
• colander
• spaghetti
• strainer
• copy
• machine
• photocopier
• copier

[brynemma]

its bad that they use polygraph tests on chat shows like Maury or Steve wilkos when it is obviously flawed

[jonahansen]

Way to go, George. Too bad people in the US are losing their ability to think critically.

[LightningIrving]

Ugh... I'm with you 100%, Maschke. I've hated that excuse for an invention since the day I learned of it's existence... I eventually realized, on my own, that it was nothing but a glorified heart rate monitor.

[logitechstanton]

thank you for making this video!

[sirius212ify]

@iissouthpaw The polygraph is a scientific fraud and can be beaten by simple meditation and/or memory task techniques. In fact, on an episode of Mythbusters one of the researchers beat one of the so-called best polygraphs available. The scientific flaw behind the lie detector is the misnomer "lie detector." Once a person realizes it's only physiological responses the machine measures, the connection between outright lying and those responses is severed completely.

[4thel0ve]

Lie detectors would never work accurately on me. Ever since I was a kid, I had a tendency to become very upset when being questioned about something I didn't do; and I tended to overthink the questions.

My 'readings' would be off the chart. They'd deem me guilty before I could blink.

[gregariousimp]

I've been writing a Term paper on polygraphs, and I am SO grateful other people are not only skeptical, but openly against the use of polygraphs. It let the Green River Killer free and he killed 8+ more people after his polygraph test set him loose.

[pucelle]

This video was a complete waste of my time.

[thenfm]

It's simple to beat a polygraph. About 5 mins. before the test, go thru the alphabet and think up a complex name for all 26 letters. Whenever a person ask you a question, give your false answer, then recite all the names in your head. Shifting focus from anxiety to difficult memory task = win.

[PlasticSwordz]

A few days ago I was watching Steve Wilkos. It was about the mother, father, grandmother and grandfather that were charged with murdering a 7 week old baby. I remember this case when it happened. The show resorted to using lie detector tests to see who had anything to do with murdering the baby. Now the whole case seems weird to me, and I'm sure that at least one of the people were in on the murder. BUT, for all we know the grandfather and father (The two accused) could have just been nervous.

[DEFkon001]

The ploy is BS, but exists today as an extension of the crystal ball, and other similar devices employed over the years. The polygraph exploits the common person's faith in advanced technology. As our ancestors worshiped and believed in sprits, and supernatural phenomena to explain to world around them, today many resign themselves to faith in technology built by 'smarter' men. I don't know if the social implications are good or bad, but many believe in it. Keeps the foolish in line I suppose.

[iissouthpaw]

@haditha27, i didnt say that the green beret i was referring to used the polygraph to interrogate. I simply said that a polygraph can be used to see if a person is lying. This doesnt mean that you couldn't hold out information while undergoing a polygraph, but it does mean that if you tell an outright lie, they will know you are lying.