Here’s a typical lunch out with my dad and me. We sit down. We order. Someone walks up and says, “Joe, Dave, good to see you.” Then the person starts a conversation that includes several personal and highly specific references to a common history that the three of us share.
Then the person walks away and I turn to my dad and say, “I will give you five grand if you can tell me that person’s first or last name.” Nothing. Neither of us ever knows who the person was. Then we eat.
Now it looks like we might be missing some key evolutionary trait. We are almost the direct opposites of what Harvard researchers call Super-Recognizers.
The brain’s ability to identify faces varies from person to person: while a small minority are unable to recognize others at all, the “super-recognizers” have an extraordinary talent for recollection, occupying the extreme end of the face-recognition spectrum.
I’m a little worried about how far I am to one end of this spectrum. Hopefully I’ll forget this post in a few minutes. In the meantime, anyone remember which group sings this song?
Who are you?
Who, who, who, who?
Who are you?
Who, who, who, who?
Who are you?
Who, who, who, who?
Who are you?
Who, who, who, who?
