Dr. Loren Pankratz is a psychologist and clinical professor at Oregon Health & Science University here in Portland, Oregon. the New England Journal of Medicine and the American Journal of Psychiatry and other peer-reviewed medical journals have published his articles on the subjects of deception, lying and

In a recent article in "The Oregonian" newspaper, Dr. Pankratz had this to say:

Lie-catchers often believe they can catch the lie within an interaction. But that's not the best way to catch a liar. The best way is to understand the larger context of what the individual knows, what his audience knows and how he manages his advantage. There are many clues to deception. They might look you in the eye, or flatter you. They don't provide credible information about the questions you ask. Clues always need to be checked out with facts.

Eye-contact is not detectable in Second Life, but flattery certainly is. In some role-playing scenarios, flattery is the norm, especially toward people of importance.

But checking facts and considering context is second nature.

Heralding A Stolen Hobbit

Open Letter to the Estate of JRR Tolkien:

I believe electronic copies of the JRR Tolkien works "Sir Gawain and The Green Knight", "The Hobbit", "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers", "The Return of the King" and "The Silmarillion" are being sold in the online virtual world of Second Life without permission from the copyright holder.

The allegedly infringing works are located in an area called 'Eldamar/139/59/43' by an object called "E-books vendor" owned and benefitting one called AmandaL Memnonic. The object dispenses copies of the above works for a fee. The copies are easily re-copied and exported into other electronic media. The copies bear no copyright notice or disclaimer. In a short instant message communication, AmandaL Memnonic admitted that she had imported the full texts as electronic files into SecondLife and that she is selling them there.

My intital report to Linden Labs will be ignored according to their policy because I am not the copyright holder or the agent. They request that reports of copyright infringement include a signature and this statement:

"I have good faith belief that the use of the copyrighted materials described above and contained on the service is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or by protection of law. I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed."

Linden Labs complete mechanism of redress and copyright protection is explained on their DMCA: Digital Millennium Copyright Act web page.