Paul Ekman’s classic book on reading faces and body language provides the science for highly anticipated Fox TV series Lie to Me.

Paul Ekman is a renowned expert in emotions research and nonverbal communication. In Telling Lies, he describes how our language, facial expressions, and the way we hold our bodies can be read to tell whether we are being honest or not. Fox TV has created a series inspired by Ekman’s work starring Tim Roth, of Reservoir Dogs and The Incredible Hulk, as Dr. Cal Lightman, who is hired by law enforcement agencies to spot deception and expose the truth in criminal investigations.

For this edition, Ekman has added a new chapter on his latest research. He has figured out the most important behavioral clues to deceit, developed a one-hour self-instructional program that trains people to observe and understand “micro expressions,” and done research that identifies the facial expressions that show if someone is likely to become violent. A self-instructional program to train recognition of these dangerous signals has also been developed.

Lie to Me premieres on January 28, 2009.