I know you (1)
Do you always remember a face? Then researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia have the perfect test for you. The UNSW Face Test (google it) was developed to identify so-called super-recognizers: people with an absurd ability to recognize faces. The researchers are investigating what is behind that ability.
I know you (2)
About one to two per cent of people are super-recognizers. It’s a genetically determined ability. The test is designed to be so difficult that only super-recognizers will succeed. So far, nobody has achieved a perfect score. Most participants manage around 50-60 per cent. The test is free and takes about 20 minutes to complete. Fancy a challenge? Your editor got 68 per cent, almost in the top 10 per cent.
Between the ears
The structure of our brains bears a strong resemblance to that of galaxies in space. That is what a brain surgeon and an astrophysicist from the universities of Verona and Bologna have concluded. They suspect neurons and galaxies are subject to similar structuring principles, though caused by different physical forces. Could it be true after all that there’s a universe inside our heads?
Under Pressure
Researchers at the Australian National University have managed to make diamonds at room temperature. In nature, diamonds form deep inside the Earth when carbon is subjected to high temperatures (>1000 degrees Celsius) and pressure. In the lab, it proved possible with just the high pressure. To be precise: a pressure equivalent to 640 African elephants standing on the point of a ballet shoe. Weighty research.