Lighting up Lies In the early 2000’s, researchers found a way to use an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) machine to detect when someone is lying. MRI machines are typically used when you get injured because it shows a clearer picture of soft tissue abnormalities. What researchers found, is that it also shows when certain areas of the brain “light up”. They call this a “Functional MRI (fMRI)”, they can use it to detect brain function rather than just diagnosing an injury. They can show patients pictures, ask them to read short text fragments or even ask them questions and see which part of the brain lights up when they respond. A polygraph is a test given to see if people are lying or not based on their heart rate when they’re asked certain questions. They’ve been proven to not be very effective because people can get nervous for other reasons rather than lying about what they’re being asked about.
Method and Results Researchers had participants choose from a few different envelopes
and try to trick, what they thought was a computer, by lying about what was in the envelope. What they didn’t know is that a person was watching the scan and seeing which portions of the brain would “light up”. They also had a group of people who were supposed to tell the truth about what was in the envelope. What they found was that the people who were lying, had two sections of their brains light up and those that were telling the truth only had one.
slightest picture is incredible discovery.
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Conclusion
Other Findings In a more recent study, researchers showed the participant’s movie clips and used new software to reconstruct fuzzy images from their brains. They’ve come remarkably close to “reading” someone’s mind with this machine. Although the images do seem to come out somewhat fuzzy, being able to get even the
The fMRI is a major breakthrough in technology. It not only shows where someone has injured themselves but can also potentially be a “fool proof” lie detector system. It will also help doctors when it comes to diagnosing mental illnesses and finding out what triggers people with those problems. Hopefully this technology will be used for good and for figuring out brain problems but there’s always the possibility it will be used for “evil”.