Every now and then I see someone in an airport or other public place who looks very familiar. Now and then I’ve actually walked up to someone and greeted them by name and gotten a blank, off-putting look in return. That is embarrassing! However, I feel vindicated today after taking this 5 minute web test for facial recognition and passing it with a grade (11 out of 15) that makes me a potential “super recognizer.” 🙂 The researchers at University of Greenwich asked me to follow up by taking a 45 minute test to verify my superior abilities, but I am going to quit while I’m ahead.
If you flunk this facial recognition test, you suffer from “prosopagnosia”—that would not be good because it indicates a poorly developed “fusiform” in the back of your brain. 🙁
For those who do qualify in the UG web quiz and take the longer test, the payoff could be a job with the crack team of super-recognizers at Scotland Yard. Read about them in this fascinating National Geographic post with the Gory Details on “Face Finding Superpower for Fighting Crime”.