IP: interesting arithmetic : BBC: Spotting the face of deception

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> From: "Hugh D. Hyatt" <hugh_hyatt () dwave com>
> To: farber () cis upenn edu
>
> There are additional reasons beyond Bob's why this won't work, even
> assuming the technology works as explained in the article:
>
> > Using the equipment, the scientists managed to correctly identify as
> > guilty seventy-five percent of the 'criminals', while 90% of the
> > 'innocent' group were successfully cleared of blame.
>
> There are approximately 500 million airline passengers annually (see
> http://www.faa.gov/apa/speeches/031298spjg.htm, in which Jane F.
> Garvey, FAA Administrator says "The number of passengers carried on
> commercial aircraft will nearly double over the next 15 years, reaching
> one billion by 2015.") If a dozen of these passengers try to hijack or
> blow up planes annually, this system will identify 50,000,000 people
> (or about 100 per minute or 1 out of every 10 passengers on each
> flight) as potential criminals.  Of these, 9 (75% of the actual
> 'criminals') will be actually intending to commit criminal acts.  Then
> what?  How do you separate the wheat from the chaff?  And don't forget
> that this system missed 3 passengers who presumably went on to commit
> the criminal acts they intended.
>
> On 3 Jan 2002, at 21:26, David Farber wrote:
>
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: "Bob Rosenberg" <bob () bobrosenberg phoenix az us>
> > Date: Thu, 03 Jan 2002 17:47:00
> > To: dave () farber net
> > Subject: BBC:  Spotting the face of deception
> >
> > Dave
> >
> > Let's presume that I'm at the airport, that I'm feeling tension because:
> >     A)  I'm afraid to fly,
> >     B)  I'm nervous about the traffic I just drove thru,
> >     C)  I had trouble finding a place to park,
> >     D)  I just saw a beautiful woman,
> >     E)  I just had an argument on an unrelated subject,
> >     F)  pick another reason of you own design.
> >
> > Does anyone on IP feel that makes me a liar?
> >
> > Bob
> >
> > Spotting the face of deception *
> > The airports of the future could identify potential terrorists by using
> > a lie detector that spots hidden blushing. Full story:
> > http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1739000/1739413
> > .stm
>
> Hugh D. Hyatt

For archives see:
http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/