confident	or	pleased. 	A	downward	direction	implies	secret	or	negative	feelings. A	situation	in	which	this	may	be	useful	is	at	a	poker	table. 	 	 TORSO 	 The	torso	is	the	house	for	all	of	the	vital	organs,	and	the	brain	will	do	what	it must	to	ensure	this	area	is	protected	if	it	senses	danger. 	 People	lean	in	towards	things	they	like	or	are	comfortable	around. 	For	example, if	two	people	are	on	a	date	at	a	restaurant	and	they	are	both	leaning	in	towards each	other,	the	date	is	most	certainly	going	well. 	(Especially	if	you	can	find other	signs	of	positive	body	language,	such	as	feet	touching,	or	if	the	woman	is twirling	her	hair. 	Always	remember	that	the	best	evidence	comes	in	clusters. ) Leaning	away	signifies	discomfort,	dislike,	and	other	similar	emotions. 	 Another	sign	of	comfort	is	what	Joe	Navarro	(author	of	 What	Every	BODY	Is Saying )	calls	“ventral	fronting”. 	If	someone	displays	their	torso	openly,	such	as with	their	arms	out	of	the	way	of	their	torso,	they	are	open	to	the	subject. 	 The	crossing	of	the	arms	is	a	sign	that	must	be	read	carefully. 	For	many	people, crossing	arms	is	a	comfortable	position. 	People	also	cross	their	arms	if	they're cold,	and	it	might	have	no	bearing	on	their	emotional	status,	besides	discomfort from	the	weather	(see	below	for	another	explanation). 	It	is	important	to	take notice	when	someone	makes	a	 sudden 	move	to	cross	their	arms,	and	notice	how tightly	they	are	holding	their	arms. 	A	tight	grip	is	a	sign	of	discomfort,	anger, nervousness,	or	some	other	negative	emotion. 	 The	opposite	of	ventral	fronting	is	ventral	denial:	turning	away	of	the	torso. 	If someone	turns	their	torso	away,	even	by	just	a	few	degrees,	they	are	most	likely uncomfortable,	nervous,	or	may	dislike	the	person	or	subject	they	are	facing. Examples	of	ventral	denial: 				 Buttoning	or	constant	buttoning	and	unbuttoning	of	one's	(although buttoning	a	jacket	might	be	necessary	in	a	formal	situation),	playing with	cufflinks	or	a	watch,	rolling	and	unrolling	sleeves,	fixing	a	tie. 	The