An Israeli start-up says it can take one look at a person’s face and realize character traits that are undetectable to the human eye.
Faception said it’s already signed a contract with a homeland security agency to help identify terrorists. The company said its technology also can be used to identify everything from great poker players to extroverts, pedophiles, geniuses and white collar-criminals.
So, homeland security is spending money on a modern day version of phrenology.
Look at the company’s website. It’s like some kind of parody. It’s like Nazis measuring nose size.
This is obviously nonsense, but even if they were correct, by their own statements they’d be wrong 20% of the time. Of every 5 people they’d label as a terrorist or a pedophile, one would be completely innocent.
The fact that homeland security has invested in this is frightening.
I have a machine that can predict criminal tendencies through skin pigment analysis, too. Call me, DHS.
Eh. Law enforcement is already infatuated with polygraph machines. Those things are regarded as pseudoscience by many scientists, and the National Research Council has found no evidence of effectiveness (cite: Wikipedia).
Worse yet, they will act even when the machine doesn’t give them grounds. My wife’s nephew’s probation officer tried to send him back to jail on the basis of an “inconclusive” polygraph result.
The illusion of control is very seductive.
And they said there was nothing to Phrenology .
(they were right of course)
Look at all the mug shots of prisoners in your local jail.
Then go to your local college and look at the people there.
Notice any general differences? I SURE do!
Me_Billy:
Look at all the mug shots of prisoners in your local jail.
Then go to your local college and look at the people there.
Notice any general differences? I SURE do!
You know, I honestly thought that no one here would try to defend this. Silly me.
Place yourself in other people’s shoes. You might learn a few things. Many police departments have ride along programs. Might want to ride along with an officer some time. It will open your eyes!
This isn’t the pit, so I’m not taking the bait.
Someone has pointed out that the company stated that they had “signed a contract with a homeland security agency”, but did not specifically say that it was US homeland security, so it could be any country.
Beady eyes are the giveaway.
This sounds like something I might want to integrate into the new racial profiling software platform I’m developing.
davidm
May 25, 2016, 3:11pm
12
They can even pick out those dastardly bingo players!
(Scroll down to “OUR CLASSIFIERS”.)
Me_Billy:
Look at all the mug shots of prisoners in your local jail.
Then go to your local college and look at the people there.
Notice any general differences? I SURE do!
Go to your local college, arrest people at random. Book them and take their mugshots.
See any difference? Me neither.
I have a program that can predict sociopathic tendencies by analyzing the target’s connection to government security agencies.
Man there’s a sucker born every minute.
Remember the fake bomb detector ? People paid good money for a “glorified dousing rod”. Now they’re buying more snake oil. Will they ever lean? How stupid are these people?
davidm
May 25, 2016, 7:05pm
16
Just_Asking_Questions:
Man there’s a sucker born every minute.
Remember the fake bomb detector ? People paid good money for a “glorified dousing rod”. Now they’re buying more snake oil. Will they ever lean? How stupid are these people?
I don’t recall hearing about that one, but when I saw the above article I immediately thought of this one: Quadro Tracker - Wikipedia
The device consisted of three principal components. A “locator card” purportedly containing a “signature” of the object to be detected was inserted into a plastic “card reader” about the size of a tape cassette that could be attached to the user’s belt. This was connected to a hand-held unit about 4 inches (10 cm) long to which a horizontally swivelling metal antenna was attached. The antenna would purportedly point to the item being sought when a suitable locator card was inserted into the “card reader”.
According to the manufacturers, the Quadro Tracker could be used to detect items as varied as drugs, weapons, explosives, specific people, golf balls, alcohol, precious metal, dead pets or wild game animals. In the most expensive version of the device, costing $8,000, the user could insert Polaroid photographs of the item or person to be detected. According to Quadro Corp., “Quadro units have been designed to locate people from a photograph, as well as from a fingerprint. Thus missing prisoners, or escaped prisoners can be located with ease. The machine will identify an individual, no matter what disguise or surgery is undertaken. It has been tested over a distance of 500 miles, and will track, we believe, at any distance.”
Andy_L
May 25, 2016, 7:10pm
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That’s the device that turns up in a Clancy novel to save the heroes, isn’t it?
davidm
May 25, 2016, 7:20pm
18
I have no idea. Clancy writes about it as if it really works?
I’m putting my money into mood rings. They are uncannily accurate.
Andy_L
May 25, 2016, 7:30pm
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