Paul Ekman

Paul Ekman (1934, US) is an eminent psychologist and co-discoverer of micro expressions. His research focuses on non-verbal behavior, facial expressions and gestures. He discovered that facial expressions of emotions are cross-culturally universal. He proved that they are biologically determined, as claimed by Darwin, rather than culturally. He developed the Facial Action Coding System (FACS), a tool for measuring and identifying facial expressions. Ekman holds a PhD in clinical psychology which he got from the Adelphi University. After an internship at the Langley Porter Neuropsychiatric Institute, he became a First Lieutenant and chief psychologist at Fort Dix. In 1972 Ekman became a professor of psychology in the UCSF medical school, where he retired in 2004. In 2009, TIME magazine ranked Dr. Ekman one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He wrote books and publications, including Telling Lies and Emotions Revealed: Understanding Faces and Feelings to Improve Emotional Life.