Researchers at Bath University have unveiled a system where noses, not fingerprints or irises, could be scanned and used for biometric authentication. Using a system called PhotoFace, first developed at the University of the West of England Bristol and Imperial College London, individuals had photos of their noses taken four times, each in different lighting, to determine which category their nose fall under. The software found six main nose types: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. It turns out that nose scanning isn’t as reliable an identifier of individuals as, say, iris scans. But they have other advantages, namely: it’s difficult to obscure or fake your nose. Furthermore, nose scans are easier to capture because noses are… well… sticking right out. “Ears have been looked at in detail, eyes have been looked at in terms of iris recognition but the nose has been neglected,” said University of Bath’s Dr. Adrian Evans in a 2010 BBC interview.
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