如何辨識並詮釋臉?
How do we identify and interpret faces?
「臉」的外表與內在的思想、感情和意識之間有關連性嗎？
以「美」為例，儘管在個人主觀與客觀的文化角度之間，關於「臉」的吸引力認定標準存有很大的差異性。但從古至今，人們將美麗分類時，特別著重平衡與對稱性的重要性，顯然大家對於所謂美麗臉龐的看法相當地一致。然而，人們是否逐漸把美的事物與「好」或「可接受」這些特質畫上等號；而對於那些不符合此審美標準的人，是否有不好的影響？
據說早在古典希臘時期，畢達哥拉斯就正式開始研究面相術（面貌及表情與人格特質的關係）。中國面相學的發展超過兩千五百年的歷史。從那時以來，關於解讀面相的看法及理論常常導致一個刻板模式的結論，例如「罪犯的面孔」或「智者的面孔」。
從文藝復興時期起，藝術家及科學家就採用新技術對「臉」進行研究，測量、分類並有系統地把這些資料存放起來。事實上，直到十九世紀中期，鏡子才成為日常生活的一部份，在那之前，許多人並不知道自己究竟長相如何，只能倚賴繪製肖像及他人的反應得知。照相術的發明更使人們對自身的觀感有所轉變。人群肖像和科學照相術也逐漸成為記錄和研究個人與文化認同的方法。
近三十年來，科技的發展對臉的研究有很大助益。警方的影像對照及辨認系統已經可以藉由資料庫裡拼湊出不同臉部的特徵，幫助目擊證人找出記憶中罪犯的長相。現在美國政府已經要求旅客持可由機器讀取的護照，且其中包含面部特徵的「生物辨識」資料。英國政府也在最近引進利用類似技術的通用身分證，進行大規模面部辨識系統測試。
你的「臉」顯露了什麼訊息？男性與女性的「臉」有何差異？當人們老化時，「臉」會發生什麼變化？再者，我們又怎樣指認出曾經被目擊犯罪的人們呢？
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There have been many theories about the relationship between facial appearance and thought, feeling and consciousness.
Take the case of beauty: there is remarkable consensus about what makes a beautiful face. From the ancient world to the modern day, the classification of the beautiful face has been based on balance and symmetry, despite wide differences between individuals and cultures as to what is considered physically attractive. Is there, however, a growing trend to increasingly link what is beautiful with what is 'good' or 'acceptable', with negative consequences for those of us who do not fit the norms?
The formal study of physiognomy (how facial features and expression relate to character) is said to have begun in classical Greece with Pythagoras. The ancient Chinese art of face reading was developed more than 2,500 years ago. Beliefs and theories about the meaning of the face have, since then, often led to stereotypes such as the 'criminal' face or the 'intellectual' face.
Artists and scientists have pressed new technologies into service to study, measure, classify and archive faces ever since the Renaissance. Until mirrors became common-place in the mid-nineteenth century, many people did not know what they looked like, relying on portraits and the reactions of other people. The arrival of photography changed the way people perceived themselves. Social portraiture and scientific photography became different ways of recording and investigating both individual and cultural identity.
In the last thirty years there have been rapid advances in the description and analysis of facial structures, textures and movements. Now the USA requires most travelers to have machine-readable passports containing 'biometric' data relating to facial characteristics.
What does your face reveal? What is the difference between male and female faces? What happens to faces as they age? And how can we identify people we have seen commit crimes?
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迷信所謂的科學，是最大的迷信．
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「家貧出孝子，困境造賢人．」
「把手指放在善惡交界之處，就可以碰觸上帝的袍服。」
Blithe 在 星期二 2006-05-09 14:32 作了第 2 次修改
