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"Discovery Files" Features from the National Science Foundation
"About Face"
Fully produced report in MP3 format:
48 kbps |
96 kbps
(90 seconds)
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READER SCRIPT
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I'VE GROWN ACCUSTOMED TO YOUR--BRAIN... THE "DISCOVERY FILES": NEW ADVANCES IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, FROM THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION. RESEARCHERS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ARE GETTING INTO YOUR HEAD--WITH NEW FINDINGS ON HOW THE BRAIN PROCESSES FACES. THEY'VE ISOLATED BRAIN REGIONS THAT THEY BELIEVE RESPOND TO CUES OF GENDER, ETHNICITY, AND IDENTITY. THE STUDY IDENTIFIED CERTAIN NEURONS THAT SEEM TO BE SELECTIVELY TUNED TO RESPOND TO THESE TRAITS. AND, IN A REAL "ABOUT FACE", THESE WERE FOUND IN AREAS NOT PREVIOUSLY ASSOCIATED WITH FACIAL CATEGORIZATION. WHEN YOU SEE A FACE, THE FIRST THINGS YOUR BRAIN CLASSIFIES ARE GENDER, ETHNICITY, AND AGE. THE STUDY'S AUTHORS SAY THAT THIS IS NOT A LEARNED BEHAVIOR; IT SEEMS TO BE PRE-PROGRAMMED IN OUR BRAINS. THE DISCOVERY THAT FACIAL RECOGNITION AND CLASSIFICATION HAPPEN IN MORE AREAS OF THE BRAIN MAY HELP US SHED LIGHT ON CERTAIN FORMS OF AUTISM--AND COULD HELP US UNDERSTAND WHY TWO- TO THREE-PERCENT OF THE POPULATION HAS TROUBLE RECOGNIZING FACES--OR, IN SOME CASES, CAN'T EVEN TELL WHETHER THE PERSON IS A MAN OR A WOMAN. IN THE WORDS OF NOTED BRAIN RESEARCHER, GROUCHO MARX, "I NEVER FORGET A FACE. BUT, IN YOUR CASE, I'LL BE GLAD TO MAKE AN EXCEPTION." THE "DISCOVERY FILES" COVERS PROJECTS FUNDED BY THE GOVERNMENT'S NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH BROUGHT TO YOU BY YOU! LEARN MORE AT "N-S-F"-DOT-GOV--OR ON THEIR PODCAST.
For additional "Discovery Files" features from the National Science Foundation, click here.
