Polygraphy, Polyestery, and Polyamory
Its invention is largely credited to William Moulton Marston, an American psychologist who in 1915 began to demonstrate a lie detection test, which determined whether the subject was being deceptive using a blood pressure cuff, or sphygmomanometer, to take measurements of systolic blood pressure during interrogation.
(He also created the comic book character Wonder Woman under the alias Charles Moulton. Wonder Woman was known for her Lasso of Truth that compelled people to tell the truth when wrapped in its coil — clearly, Moulton had serious trust issues. Maybe it had something to do with his polyamorous lifestyle: he and his wife lived with a third woman, Olive Byrne, for many years.)
Well, I wasn’t expecting any of that from this article about the history of lie detectors.