Surprising Science — March 3, 2011

Computer Cum Makeup Artist

Ever wish you had your own personal makeup artist? That dream could soon be a reality with a computer that scans your face and suggests the perfect personalized makeup combination.

bigthinkeditor

Technology that takes a 3D image of your face and measures your complexion, shadows and lines could help you with your makeup: “The technology, showcased at CeBIT, the world’s biggest high-tech fair, takes a 3D image of your face and measures your complexion, shadows and lines. Specially designed computer software then matches your face to 60 pre-programmed models and advises how much makeup should be applied to which parts of your face based on professional make-overs conducted on the models.”

a computer generated image of a human brain.

Thinking

The great free will debate featuring Michio Kaku and Steven Pinker

Who — or what — really controls your mind?

Building destroyed by the Halifax Explosion. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The Past

The largest accidental explosion of all time

More than a century ago, Halifax suffered an accidental blast one-fifth the size of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

a collage of photos of a man with a hat and a book.

High Culture

6 great books with wildly unreliable narrators

Dive into the twisted truths and concealed realities told by literature’s most unreliable narrators.

a group of five matches on a pink background.

The Well

Signs you’re burned out — and how to bounce back

If you don’t feel better after the weekend, the “burnout paradox” could explain why.

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7 min

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with

Laurie Santos

Starts With A Bang

The trick to instantly identifying JWST images

If you can identify a foreground star, the spike patterns are a dead giveaway as to whether it’s a JWST image or any other observatory.

Up Next

Guest Thinkers

The Sustainable Food Myth

The fact that foodies so often construct their pursuit of rarified taste to be an environmentally and socially responsible act only intensifies the ugly paradox at the core of the movement.