Polygraph or Variograph?
In Poland and only in Poland, a polygraph is occasionally called a “variograph”. For some, the argument in favor of the name “variograph” is that the term “polygraph” is allegedly misleading as it can be associated with the printing industry. The author argues that in other countries, the ambiguity of the name “polygraph” does not cause confusion. Furthermore, the author mentions several names synonymous with “polygraph” and recalls how the name of the device commonly known as the “lie-detector” has evolved in the US before it eventually became known as the “polygraph”. Finally, the author proves that the name “polygraph” was in use in the Polish physiological literature already in the 19th century, for denominating the device capable of simultaneously registering more than one physiological function of the human body.