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When we lie, our brains work hard to make sure we get the story right and come off as truthful¹. Law enforcement officials try to tap into that effort, for example with polygraphs, to find out if a suspect is telling the truth. But such stress tests are beatable and not admissible in court. Now comes a report that handwriting tests could be a competitor to the familiar, but unreliable lie detector². The study appears in the Journal of Applied³ Cognitive⁴ Psychology⁵.

Researchers at Israel’s Haifa University worked with 34 volunteers, who wrote truthful and false paragraphs on paper using a wireless⁶ electronic pen and a pressure sensitive tip. A computerized system measured pressure and stroke duration, both on the paper and in the air. Spatial⁷ measures, such as stroke length, height and width were also tracked. And the scientists found significant differences in pressure and spatial measures in deceptive⁸ statements compared with the truth.

The investigators⁹ say they need to validate¹⁰ this initial result and compare the technique with polygraphs and other lie detection tools. But perhaps in the future even a written claim of innocence¹¹ could turn out to be a de facto confession¹².—Cynthia Graber