Useless Facts - "Prosopagnosia refers to the inability to identify people by their faces. In severe cased (sic) prosopagnosia a person may not be able to identify themselves in a mirror."
I found this web site and quote while searching for information on prosopagnosia.
Ironic how one person's Useless Fact could be another person's life story.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Faceless Gym Member
At the gym last night, I headed for my favorite piece of cardio equipment, the Cybex Arc Trainer. There are only two of the model I like, and one was empty. As I got closer to it, I realized there was a sign on it that said "temporarily out of service", so it wasn't available after all. The women working out on the one right next to the broken one offered hers to me as soon as she finished, which would be in 7 minutes. I thankfully accepted and moved over a few feet to the next cardio machine and began to stretch.
I faced away from her so she would not feel like I was anxiously looking over her shoulder, and took out a magazine to page through as I waited. A few minutes later, a woman walked up, stood right in front of me and smiled politely, like she wanted to get on the machine I was using as a stretching post. I asked if she wanted to use it, and with a puzzled look on her face she said "No, I finished with the Arc Trainer, you can use it now."
These are the times when I feel stupid, or more correctly, feel I appear stupid. If the woman knew about my prosopagnosia, she would have immediately understood why I didn't recognize her but, of course, I would never try to explain it during such a brief encounter. And the truth is, it never occurred to me that I wouldn't recognize her.
Even after all these years (I've been faceblind since high school) it still surprises me how bad I am at recognizing faces. Its almost like I wake up every day expecting to be able to recognize people facially just like everyone else. Apparently I'm blindly optimistic.
I faced away from her so she would not feel like I was anxiously looking over her shoulder, and took out a magazine to page through as I waited. A few minutes later, a woman walked up, stood right in front of me and smiled politely, like she wanted to get on the machine I was using as a stretching post. I asked if she wanted to use it, and with a puzzled look on her face she said "No, I finished with the Arc Trainer, you can use it now."
These are the times when I feel stupid, or more correctly, feel I appear stupid. If the woman knew about my prosopagnosia, she would have immediately understood why I didn't recognize her but, of course, I would never try to explain it during such a brief encounter. And the truth is, it never occurred to me that I wouldn't recognize her.
Even after all these years (I've been faceblind since high school) it still surprises me how bad I am at recognizing faces. Its almost like I wake up every day expecting to be able to recognize people facially just like everyone else. Apparently I'm blindly optimistic.
Friday, April 6, 2007
Wired Magazine Cover Personality
Wired Magazine: "Special Feature: Get Naked and Rule the World
Get Naked and ...
Smart companies are sharing secrets with rivals, blogging about products in their pipeline, even admitting to their failures. The name of this new game is RADICAL TRANSPARENCY, and it's sweeping boardrooms across the nation. Even those Office drones at Dunder Mifflin get it. So strip down and learn how to have it all by baring it all."
I have seen this magazine cover on newsstands, and I watch "The Office" religiously, and yet, I had no idea this cover personality was the woman who plays Pam, the receptionist on The Office until Andrea mentioned it in the comments section of a previous post.
When I went to the WIRED website to grab an image of the current cover, I found the two shots of the same pose, one where Jenna Fischer is clothed, and one (even LESS recognizable, since I use clothing to help identify people) with her sans clothing behind the same generously sized sign. Totally different facial expression on her than you see on The Office + out of context = non-recognition.
Get Naked and ...
Smart companies are sharing secrets with rivals, blogging about products in their pipeline, even admitting to their failures. The name of this new game is RADICAL TRANSPARENCY, and it's sweeping boardrooms across the nation. Even those Office drones at Dunder Mifflin get it. So strip down and learn how to have it all by baring it all."I have seen this magazine cover on newsstands, and I watch "The Office" religiously, and yet, I had no idea this cover personality was the woman who plays Pam, the receptionist on The Office until Andrea mentioned it in the comments section of a previous post.
When I went to the WIRED website to grab an image of the current cover, I found the two shots of the same pose, one where Jenna Fischer is clothed, and one (even LESS recognizable, since I use clothing to help identify people) with her sans clothing behind the same generously sized sign. Totally different facial expression on her than you see on The Office + out of context = non-recognition.
Face Blind Humor
Written by a fellow prosopagnosic:
I might not know you when we meet,
I might not know you on the street,
Not in a store,
Not at my door,
I might not know you here or there,
I might not know you anywhere.
--by Deb "Seuss"
And that about sums it up!
I might not know you when we meet,
I might not know you on the street,
Not in a store,
Not at my door,
I might not know you here or there,
I might not know you anywhere.
--by Deb "Seuss"
And that about sums it up!
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Culture Is Key To Interpreting Facial Emotions
"Culture Is Key To Interpreting Facial Emotions"
Science Daily — Research has uncovered that
culture is a determining factor when interpreting
facial emotions. The study reveals that in
cultures where emotional control is the standard,
such as Japan, focus is placed on the eyes to
interpret emotions. Whereas in cultures where
emotion is openly expressed, such as the United
States, the focus is on the mouth to interpret
emotion.
Across two studies, using computerized icons and
human images, the researchers compared how
Japanese and American cultures interpreted
images, which conveyed a range of emotions.
'These findings go against the popular theory
that the facial expressions of basic emotions can
be universally recognized,' said University of
Alberta researcher Dr. Takahiko Masuda. 'A
person's culture plays a very strong role in
determining how they will perceive emotions and
needs to be considered when interpreting facial
expression.'
These cultural differences are even noticeable in
computer emoticons, which are used to convey a
writer's emotions over email and text messaging.
Consistent with the research findings, the
Japanese emoticons for happiness and sadness vary
in terms of how the eyes are depicted, while
American emoticons vary with the direction of the
mouth. In the United States the emoticons : ) and
: - ) denote a happy face, whereas the emoticons
:( or : - ( denote a sad face. However, Japanese
tend to use the symbol (^_^) to indicate a happy
face, and (;_;) to indicate a sad face.
When participants were asked to rate the
perceived levels of happiness or sadness
expressed through the different computer
emoticons, the researchers found that the
Japanese still looked to the eyes of the
emoticons to determine its emotion.
"We think it is quite interesting and appropriate
that a culture that tends to masks its emotions,
such as Japan, would focus on a person's eyes
when determining emotion, as eyes tend to be
quite subtle," said Masuda. "In the United
States, where overt emotion is quite common, it
makes sense to focus on the mouth, which is the
most expressive feature on a person's face."
These findings are published in the current issue
of The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology
and are a result from a collaborative study
between Masaki Yuki (Hokkaido University),
William Maddux (INSEAD) and Takahiko Masuda
(University of Alberta). The results also suggest
the interesting possibility that the Japanese may
be better than Americans at detecting "false
smiles". If the position of the eyes is the key
to whether someone's smile is false or true,
Japanese may be particularly good at detecting
whether someone is lying or being "fake".
However, these questions can only be answered
with future research.
Note: This story has been adapted from a news
release issued by University of Alberta.
Copyright © 1995-2007 ScienceDaily LLC — All
rights reserved —
Science Daily — Research has uncovered that
culture is a determining factor when interpreting
facial emotions. The study reveals that in
cultures where emotional control is the standard,
such as Japan, focus is placed on the eyes to
interpret emotions. Whereas in cultures where
emotion is openly expressed, such as the United
States, the focus is on the mouth to interpret
emotion.
Across two studies, using computerized icons and
human images, the researchers compared how
Japanese and American cultures interpreted
images, which conveyed a range of emotions.
'These findings go against the popular theory
that the facial expressions of basic emotions can
be universally recognized,' said University of
Alberta researcher Dr. Takahiko Masuda. 'A
person's culture plays a very strong role in
determining how they will perceive emotions and
needs to be considered when interpreting facial
expression.'
These cultural differences are even noticeable in
computer emoticons, which are used to convey a
writer's emotions over email and text messaging.
Consistent with the research findings, the
Japanese emoticons for happiness and sadness vary
in terms of how the eyes are depicted, while
American emoticons vary with the direction of the
mouth. In the United States the emoticons : ) and
: - ) denote a happy face, whereas the emoticons
:( or : - ( denote a sad face. However, Japanese
tend to use the symbol (^_^) to indicate a happy
face, and (;_;) to indicate a sad face.
When participants were asked to rate the
perceived levels of happiness or sadness
expressed through the different computer
emoticons, the researchers found that the
Japanese still looked to the eyes of the
emoticons to determine its emotion.
"We think it is quite interesting and appropriate
that a culture that tends to masks its emotions,
such as Japan, would focus on a person's eyes
when determining emotion, as eyes tend to be
quite subtle," said Masuda. "In the United
States, where overt emotion is quite common, it
makes sense to focus on the mouth, which is the
most expressive feature on a person's face."
These findings are published in the current issue
of The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology
and are a result from a collaborative study
between Masaki Yuki (Hokkaido University),
William Maddux (INSEAD) and Takahiko Masuda
(University of Alberta). The results also suggest
the interesting possibility that the Japanese may
be better than Americans at detecting "false
smiles". If the position of the eyes is the key
to whether someone's smile is false or true,
Japanese may be particularly good at detecting
whether someone is lying or being "fake".
However, these questions can only be answered
with future research.
Note: This story has been adapted from a news
release issued by University of Alberta.
Copyright © 1995-2007 ScienceDaily LLC — All
rights reserved —
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
To Test or Not to Test?
One of the decisions you may need to make as a Prosopagnosic (PA) is whether to get tested or not. Its something I decided to do awhile back, while visiting London (see previous posts). I also arranged to meet Matt, another PA from my FaceBlind group list, while I was there in London. We talked a lot about whether it was beneficial to get tested.
Once you do get tested there is the burning desire to make sense of whatever you've just learned about yourself, and it is often easiest to do this by comparing notes with someone else who has taken the tests, or at least, understands the condition. All these new thoughts come tumbling out of your mind, as you try to reconcile and reorder your own image.
I met Matt (see photo) just after I got tested, and wished he had already been, so I could talk to him about specifics of the different tests. There is an implied "code of silence" about the PA tests, so as not to bias the results of future test takers. Matt took the tests a week or so after I did, and had a similar reaction to the results.
What follows in a short set of text messages between Matt and I about his initial reaction to getting tested. I thought it was something other PA's might appreciate. Thanks to Matt for his permission to share these thoughts:
Matt: "I am possibly one of the worst people Dr. Brad has ever met. I found that exhausting. And funny - I laughed through most of it, esp putting the faces in order:)"
Me: "Yes! That was the tough one. Congrats, you're mad;)"
Matt: "Hooray for madness, then. I'm in a pub having a soothing beer on my own, but I'm bursting to tell people that my stupidity has a name now. Perhaps I won't tho."
Me: "Wish I was there to have a pint with you. Tell them all! Cheers!"
Matt: "You're right tho - the people who need to know are the strangers who wouldn't understand. Those I feel I can tell are the friends I can ID anyway. Eeek."
So in the end, you have an official diagnosis, and it is somewhat of a relief, but then who do you tell?
Once you do get tested there is the burning desire to make sense of whatever you've just learned about yourself, and it is often easiest to do this by comparing notes with someone else who has taken the tests, or at least, understands the condition. All these new thoughts come tumbling out of your mind, as you try to reconcile and reorder your own image.
I met Matt (see photo) just after I got tested, and wished he had already been, so I could talk to him about specifics of the different tests. There is an implied "code of silence" about the PA tests, so as not to bias the results of future test takers. Matt took the tests a week or so after I did, and had a similar reaction to the results.
What follows in a short set of text messages between Matt and I about his initial reaction to getting tested. I thought it was something other PA's might appreciate. Thanks to Matt for his permission to share these thoughts:
Matt: "I am possibly one of the worst people Dr. Brad has ever met. I found that exhausting. And funny - I laughed through most of it, esp putting the faces in order:)"
Me: "Yes! That was the tough one. Congrats, you're mad;)"
Matt: "Hooray for madness, then. I'm in a pub having a soothing beer on my own, but I'm bursting to tell people that my stupidity has a name now. Perhaps I won't tho."
Me: "Wish I was there to have a pint with you. Tell them all! Cheers!"
Matt: "You're right tho - the people who need to know are the strangers who wouldn't understand. Those I feel I can tell are the friends I can ID anyway. Eeek."
So in the end, you have an official diagnosis, and it is somewhat of a relief, but then who do you tell?
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Recognizing Hands and Faces
Dealing With Face Blindness - FOX16.com
I found this news story from last year - an interview with a woman about living with Prosopagnosia. There was a pertinent quote by the woman, Kathy, who was the subject of the story:
I found this news story from last year - an interview with a woman about living with Prosopagnosia. There was a pertinent quote by the woman, Kathy, who was the subject of the story:
"Kathy says it's not that her vision is blurry, but instead faces are no more unique to her than hands are to us."
Now that I have started telling a few people about my Prosopagnosia, I am always looking for a way to explain it to people, and this is one of the better ones I have come across. We have all looked at people's hands, seen them, and then forgotten what they looked like once we walked away. Most people would be hard pressed to recognize someone else by hands alone.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
The Faceblind View: Pan's Labyrinth review
The Faceblind View: Pan's Labyrinth review
From Andrea's movie reviews for Prosopagnosics blog. Will you be able to tell the characters apart?
From Andrea's movie reviews for Prosopagnosics blog. Will you be able to tell the characters apart?
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Prosopagnosia Key Words and Abbreviations
This list is really helpful if you start reading more about Prosopagnosia. PA's tend to use a lot of abbreviations:) It is from www.Prosopagnosia.com (a few minor edits have been made).
List of words related to face-blindness.
AC - Autistics and cousins (sometimes seen, but seldom, on the face blind lists) (Bill)
AS - Abbreviation for "Asperger's syndrome". (Bill)
ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. The acronym ASD is used on many lists that discuss
Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Aspergers Syndrome, Tourettes Syndrome, and (sometimes) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. (Julianne Douglass`)
Aspergers syndrome - A condition where a person has a collection of neurological deficits, considered by some to be a less severe case of autism. Quite a few Aspergers are face blind, though not all face blind people have Aspergers. (Bill)
Autistic Spectrum - An umbrella term used to cover all of the conditions (autism, Asperger, Tourette, etc.) which are considered to be related with each other based upon their underlying criteria and severity with which they seem to affect the people who have have the condition. (Glenn)
CAPD - Abbreviation for "central auditory processing disorder". (Bill)
Central auditory processing disorder - a sound processing deficit in which sounds are scrambled in the brain. Quite a few face blind people have CAPD, though CAPD is quite common and most people with it are not face blind. (Bill)
Essences - a term covering demeanor, body language, and emotions, when these things are used as a face blind person's primary way of telling people apart. (Bill)
FB - face-blind (Cecilia)
fb-folks - The private mailing-list that is strictly for people with PA. More info can be found at
http://home.earthlink.net/~blankface/folks.shtml
fb-public - The public message board about PA found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/faceblind. (Cecilia)
FFA - Fusiform face area - the part of the brain some researchers believe recognizes faces (Bill)
fMRI - Abbreviation for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, a technique that shows what part of the brain is being used at a given instant (Bill)
Gorbachev effect - the situation that face blind people can all recognize someone with a striking physical difference. These are usually ugly differences because people strikingly beautiful tend to look quite average (origin: the statement that "all face blind people can recognize Gorbachev") (Bill)
Key traits - (or just "traits") - characteristics of others that a face blind person concentrates on in building his filing system for telling people apart (Bill)
NT - short for NeuroTypical, i.e., any person who has a "normal functioning" brain. Despite how this sounds, it is not considered a derogatory comment. John Smith would be a typical NT. (Glenn and Cecilia)
PA - prosopagnosia (Cecilia)
Place blind - common name for "topographic (or topographical) agnosia" (Bill)
Topographic agnosia - the inability to visualize and process places. This causes one to have difficulty with getting lost. Quite a few face blind people have topographic agnosia, though not all persons with either condition have the other. (Bill)
List of words related to face-blindness.
AC - Autistics and cousins (sometimes seen, but seldom, on the face blind lists) (Bill)
AS - Abbreviation for "Asperger's syndrome". (Bill)
ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. The acronym ASD is used on many lists that discuss
Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Aspergers Syndrome, Tourettes Syndrome, and (sometimes) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. (Julianne Douglass`)
Aspergers syndrome - A condition where a person has a collection of neurological deficits, considered by some to be a less severe case of autism. Quite a few Aspergers are face blind, though not all face blind people have Aspergers. (Bill)
Autistic Spectrum - An umbrella term used to cover all of the conditions (autism, Asperger, Tourette, etc.) which are considered to be related with each other based upon their underlying criteria and severity with which they seem to affect the people who have have the condition. (Glenn)
CAPD - Abbreviation for "central auditory processing disorder". (Bill)
Central auditory processing disorder - a sound processing deficit in which sounds are scrambled in the brain. Quite a few face blind people have CAPD, though CAPD is quite common and most people with it are not face blind. (Bill)
Essences - a term covering demeanor, body language, and emotions, when these things are used as a face blind person's primary way of telling people apart. (Bill)
FB - face-blind (Cecilia)
fb-folks - The private mailing-list that is strictly for people with PA. More info can be found at
http://home.earthlink.net/~blankface/folks.shtml
fb-public - The public message board about PA found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/faceblind. (Cecilia)
FFA - Fusiform face area - the part of the brain some researchers believe recognizes faces (Bill)
fMRI - Abbreviation for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, a technique that shows what part of the brain is being used at a given instant (Bill)
Gorbachev effect - the situation that face blind people can all recognize someone with a striking physical difference. These are usually ugly differences because people strikingly beautiful tend to look quite average (origin: the statement that "all face blind people can recognize Gorbachev") (Bill)
Key traits - (or just "traits") - characteristics of others that a face blind person concentrates on in building his filing system for telling people apart (Bill)
NT - short for NeuroTypical, i.e., any person who has a "normal functioning" brain. Despite how this sounds, it is not considered a derogatory comment. John Smith would be a typical NT. (Glenn and Cecilia)
PA - prosopagnosia (Cecilia)
Place blind - common name for "topographic (or topographical) agnosia" (Bill)
Topographic agnosia - the inability to visualize and process places. This causes one to have difficulty with getting lost. Quite a few face blind people have topographic agnosia, though not all persons with either condition have the other. (Bill)
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Good Map Feature
Not only does downtown Houston, have street maps posted around the city core on lamp posts, it has also done a great job making the maps easily readable for Topographical (or navigational) Agnosics.
Each map is oriented to the specific spot where it is posted, so that UP on the map is always STRAIGHT AHEAD. If only all maps where posted like this.
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