I think I’ve seen you before
Filed under Computer Forensics, Current News
Memory, eyewitnesses and facial recognition: the underlying complexity of memory as a cognitive process.
There are many forms of memory and our memory plays tricks on us. Memory is an organism’s ability to store, retain, and recall information. But… how do we remember? What are the major reasons why we forget? How do people recognize faces?
There are three major processes involved in memory: encoding, storage and retrieval. Memory is frequently changed by what people previously knew or experienced. An event or initial perception comes into the sensory memory where it is stored for up to a couple of seconds and then quickly disappears unless it is transferred to another level. This next level is the short-term memory which stores information for up to 30 seconds. Information becomes permanent if you go over it and thus it’s stored at the long-term storage area, lasting as little as a few days or as long as decades.
Memory is crucial for all of us but it isn’t always perfect. We occasionally forget the names and other details of people, we forget to pay our bills and yes, we forget an answer on a quiz! But when we are called upon to testify, our memory becomes an object of suspicion.
Identifications rely on memory, and accurate recollections of a crime can be particularly complex for witnesses. Some studies found that witnesses who viewed conventional lineups and photo displays picked the wrong person about half the time.
Some scholars point out some problems when witnesses try to identify suspects. Sometimes they pick the one who looks most like the person they saw, some can be pushed toward making the right choice.
Are humans better face recognizers than machines? While recognizing someone’s face is a complex process, humans are remarkable capable to distinguish among thousands of faces. In fact monkeys and humans share a specific perceptual mechanism for discerning among the numerous faces they encounter daily. Our faces contain information which help us recognize people and may have implications for improving face recognition software. An FBI expert said that facial recognition does not figure in the FBI’s biometric strategy since “the algorithms just do not exist to deliver the highly reliable verification required” (see full press release here).
Leaving out the machines and going back to our imperfect memories, a Professor at ISU is exploring the thought processes of eyewitnesses when their memory fails as they still try to identify the perpetrator of a crime. His goal is to improve police procedures even further. Here’s the link for the full article:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-11/isu-isp110909.php
Memory failures are common but eyewitness identification still carries great weight with jurors. More research is needed to avoid wrongful identifications by witnesses to crimes.
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