The Science Of Face Blindness (Or Prosopagnosia)
02/29/12 12:00PM  Download MP3 

Courtesy of Bradley Duchaine
These are examples of paired famous faces and non-famous faces used in Dr. Duchaine’s experiment. [Answer key: Top row (l-r) John Travolta; George W. Bush; Tom Cruise; Dame Judi Dench; Bottom row are all non-celebrities]
Dr. Brad Duchaine of Dartmouth College relates how those with face blindness compensate for their lack of facial recognition and the research he is conducting, including trying to train children with prosopagnosia to identify others faces.
Also on the program, Vermont National Guard Captain Zachariah Fike is a Purple Heart recipient. But he has also returned two Purple Hearts to the families of the recipients and is currently working on a third project. We hear about what motivates him to return these medals to the families.