Polygraph (duplicating device) Polygraph (duplicating device) A Polygraph is a device that produces a copy of a piece of writing simultaneously with the creation of the original, using pens and ink. Patented by John Isaac Hawkins on May 17, 1803, it was most famously used by the third U.S. president, Thomas Jefferson, who acquired his first polygraph in 1804 and later suggested improvements to Charles Willson Peale, owner of the American rights. Because Jefferson was a prolific letter writer, the preservation of his copies have offered historians extensive insights into Jefferson's viewpoints and actions. Jefferson called the polygraph "the finest invention of the
Given name by the parents at birth. In informal situations, given names are often used in a familiar and friendly manner. In more formal situations, a person's surname is more commonly used—unless a distinction needs to be made between people with the same surname. The idioms "on a first-name basis" and "being on first-name terms" refer to the familiarity inherent in addressing someone by their given name. By contrast, a surname (also known as a family name, last name, or "gentile" name), which is normally inherited, is typically shared with other members of one's immediate family. Regnal names and religious or monastic