It's Thanks to Evolution That No Two Faces Are Alike

a reply to: anxietydisorder

Never heard of that condition before, it must be so frustrating. Don't be embarresed about it, it's part of who you are. Those who love you will accept you may forget what they look like but you still remember them.

a reply to: anxietydisorder

That´s interesting, well from my point of view, I saw a documentary on that subject not so long ago.

Just wondering, do you know what celebrities look like?

Do you know what you look like yourself?

a reply to: AntiDude

I'd like to see that documentary if you know what it's called or where you saw it, that would be interesting.

I don't recognize celebrities the way other people do, so when I watch a movie there isn't an association with other work they have done. In some ways that's a bonus because things are always fresh to me and I'm only judging the actor on the role they are playing at that time. Other things like TV shows I watch constantly it's easier to keep track of the faces.

Often I will save up a set of shows or buy the discs and binge watch them over a short time. I did that with Sons Of Anarchy recently because the time between shows and their breaks between seasons made it too difficult for me to follow. So there are ways to work around the problem, like having a very good ear for voices helps me a lot.

As for recognizing myself. I see my face in the mirror enough to not have too many surprises. Though I have been camping for a week or more, letting my beard grow a bit, and really had to have a good look at my own face and being confused a little.

The doctors at the university did brain scans years ago and put me through days of testing. For the most part I'm completely normal with a higher than average IQ. There's just one small area near the base of my brain that doesn't quite work the way most other people's brains function. They ruled out injury or something degenerative, so it's just the way I am.

Jennyfrenzy - Don't be embarresed about it, it's part of who you are. Those who love you will accept you may forget what they look like but you still remember them.

The people that know me well understand, and it never bothers them to give me a bit of a prompt when we first start talking if they think I'm not sure who they are. And for the most part, I'm no longer that embarrassed to ask who someone is. Once I've explained it to people they understand.

I'm one of the few people that can say you (insert race) all look alike to me, and actually mean it.

a reply to: stuthealien

evolution i doubt as its fake ,maybe we are just unique,,,evolution is still a theory as in science to be proved it has to be observed and it has not been observed

Evolution is not "fake" as you claim it to be. A scientific theory is backed by evidence.

The formal scientific definition of theory is quite different from the everyday meaning of the word. It refers to a comprehensive explanation of some aspect of nature that is supported by a vast body of evidence.

Is Evolution a Theory or a Fact?

The scientific theory of evolution is backed by evidence.

Scientists have discovered a wealth of evidence concerning human evolution, and this evidence comes in many forms. Thousands of human fossils enable researchers and students to study the changes that occurred in brain and body size, locomotion, diet, and other aspects regarding the way of life of early human species over the past 6 million years. Millions of stone tools, figurines and paintings, footprints, and other traces of human behavior in the prehistoric record tell about where and how early humans lived and when certain technological innovations were invented.

Study of human genetics show how closely related we are to other primates – in fact, how connected we are with all other organisms – and can indicate the prehistoric migrations of our species, Homo sapiens, all over the world. Advances in the dating of fossils and artifacts help determine the age of those remains, which contributes to the big picture of when different milestones in becoming human evolved.

Human Evolution Evidence

There was a time when people claimed the earth revolved around the sun and the sun didn't revolve around the earth. People were excommunicated and some executed for such claims. Now it's a proven fact that the earth revolves around the sun.

Relating this information back to the OP, that the scientific theory faces evolved to look unique for recognition purposes, here is part of the study completed on the subject. (Apparently the article costs money but the national geographic article relates back to this study.)

Despite the importance of facial recognition in humans, the evolution of facial identity has received little attention. Here we demonstrate that faces evolved to signal individual identity under negative frequency-dependent selection.

Morphological and population genomic evidence that human faces have evolved to signal individual identity

a reply to: anxietydisorder

I'd like to see that documentary if you know what it's called or where you saw it, that would be interesting.

I'm not sure I think it was on Discovery or NGC, can't find it right now, but here's a yt page with lots of results.

www.youtube.com...


Thanks for sharing that. I know it must be a pain in the # for you but it is an intriguing subject nevertheless.


Another question that just popped, is it restricted to faces only or does this also apply to other (similar) shapes or features of objects for instance?

It's thanks to a Creator that no two faces are alike, because the Creator designed a specific code for each and every one of us. Evolution...lol.

a reply to: Rezlooper

Evolution...lol.

Are you saying that evolution is a process that doesn´t exist?

a reply to: AntiDude

I can look in the utensil drawer in the kitchen and know I want a can opener, and even if it's in plain view, sometimes I need to feel several different things before the right shape is in my hand for me to recognize it. Developing a system of order in drawers and cupboards mostly solves that aspect of the disorder.

Recognizing landmarks has been an issue a few times. I had a job that was very travel intensive for a while, and there were incidents that I would look around and not be sure what city I was in, even though I'd been in the city many times, but maybe not in the past few weeks. Back then I was using very distinctive buildings or topographical cues to remind myself. Los Angeles is a one sided bowl, Denver has mountains, Houston is flat with a chunk of large buildings downtown, while Dallas has all those angles with lights on them at night. Some cities have the smell of the ocean like San Francisco and Vancouver, other places have the smell of factories or farms.

All hotel rooms become a blur when you're constantly on the road, but there is always a phone book or something in the desk to remind you of the location.

Not having the ability to always recognize people, or sometimes places and things by sight, brings out other abilities most people wouldn't even consider using. So it's not as big of an annoyance as some people would think, you just draw your conclusions from different information.

a reply to: AntiDude

Hey, thanks for that link. I've watched a couple clips and WOW!!!

I never really think much about it, it's just the way I am. Until this thread came up today, and now seeing a few of these videos, I'm actually laughing with some tears in my eyes. Seeing people with the same issues I've always had has me a bit choked up right now.

Inside you worry you have something like Alzheimer disease, you wonder if something is going wrong with your brain. Those little thoughts nag at you, even if they are small and in passing each time you don't recognize someone or something. I actually study pictures of family members before I visit them so I don't screw up. I look at their kids on Facebook to try and not look foolish when a nephew or niece comes up to me and their face is a blank in my mind.

I'm not alone, so thanks so much for the affirmation.

a reply to: AntiDude

I agree with the other posters who have said its just a theory and we haven't witnessed. How can we say a few fossils that look like neanderthal man are our ancestors through evolution? How is this stated as fact when most likely, they were an entirely different species wiped out by mass extinction events of the past.

a reply to: Rezlooper

They didn't find just some fossils. They found way more humanoids than just Neanderthals.

I am also doubting the supposed origins of the human race, specifically, but evolution is an obvious, real process.

a reply to: anxietydisorder

I'm not alone, so thanks so much for the affirmation.

You are welcome. Did you never look for info like that before?

I can imagine how hard it can be if a part of your every day reality is more or less in a constant state of the unknown.

Maybe you should do a thread about this.

I have way more questions.

a reply to: AntiDude

When this was first noticed by doctors there was no such thing as YouTube, or even an internet. So no, I never really looked into it further than the information provided from a study at the university. Back then it was called aphasia, but later it was changed to agnosia, then because there was no injury or damage to my brain they came up with more names for it.

For the most part I just went on with my life and functioned quite well without needing further information on something I could control using different ways to get the same results as other people.

You can ask me anything, but I've been away from ATS for a few years and really don't want to start a thread yet. I'm just getting used to the new format around here. I need time to test the water before I dive into the deep end again.

originally posted by: stuthealien
evolution i doubt as its fake ,maybe we are just unique,,,evolution is still a theory as in science to be proved it has to be observed and it has not been observed

This is why pro-intelligent people hate dumb people.

originally posted by: Rezlooper
It's thanks to a Creator that no two faces are alike, because the Creator designed a specific code for each and every one of us. Evolution...lol.

Creator, toothed fairy,. all the same adult versions of nonsense. GREW UP!

originally posted by: Rezlooper
It's thanks to a Creator that no two faces are alike, because the Creator designed a specific code for each and every one of us. Evolution...lol.

Creator, toothed fairy,. all the same adult versions of nonsense. GREW UP!

a reply to: Rezlooper

Scientific theory is backed by evidence, evolution is the real deal. What I don't get is how people can think the world was created in 7 days, that to me is mind boggling.

There is a difference between a theory and a scientific theory, one is backed by evidence while the other is just a "hunch."

In everyday usage, "theory" often refers to a hunch or a speculation. When people say, "I have a theory about why that happened," they are often drawing a conclusion based on fragmentary or inconclusive evidence.

The formal scientific definition of theory is quite different from the everyday meaning of the word. It refers to a comprehensive explanation of some aspect of nature that is supported by a vast body of evidence.

Is Evolution a Theory or a Fact?

a reply to: MarsIsRed

And these one line retorts are all you got? Talk about dumb people.

a reply to: Jennyfrenzy

I'm not saying that I believe in that either. Just don't believe we evolved. I don't know when we were created. Science has been wrong many times and they also bury things that go against their main stream. There is evidence of human fossils that are, according to the scientific method, over a million years old, but that is buried. Oh well. For me, the idea that we evolved is just as sill as creationism is to you. To each our own. The 7 days could have spanned hundred of thousands of years for all we know, just saying. No one really knows. And just because science says so, don't make it so.

a reply to: Jennyfrenzy

It's safe to say you're beating a dead horse now. You can't educate someone stuck that hard in religious ideology because they can't see reason over the programing at this point.

Walk away with your head held high knowing your knowledge trumps their beliefs.