Face Recognition

New technology is using the science of biometrics to scan faces for security purposes. Noting within nanoseconds up to 80 "landmarks" of the human face, a match of 15-20 is enough to confirm identity. Christians, however, have always been comforted by the knowledge that God not only recognizes them, but has numbered the hairs on their heads.

140,000. That's the number of hairs on a blonde woman's head.

110,000? That's the number that a black-haired woman has.
So you can forget about "blonde jokes." A hair-counting German scientist has discovered that the fair-haired among us have much fuller heads!

But what about other distinguishing characteristics? Researchers have found that the human face has 80 so-called "landmarks" - including the bridge and tip of the nose, the size of the mouth and eyes, and the cheekbones. These landmarks are used in an increasingly important area of investigation called "biometrics," the process of identifying people by unique physical characteristics. For years, investigators have used fingerprints as a biometric, and of course DNA has been frequently employed for purposes of identification. But now, with powerful computer technology, biometrics can even include identification by retina or iris, using "eye prints."

But what's the point of all this? In a word: security.

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