So, ummm...there's like a name for this?

Apparently I am not the only one this happens to and there is now a name for it and everything!!


LiveScience.com livescience Staff

livescience.com – Tue May 19, 7:15 pm ET

Some people claim to never forget a face. And the ability can prove to be socially awkward.

A new study finds some people can remember faces of people they met years ago and only in passing. Others of us, of course, aren't blessed with that ability...

The "super-recognizers," as they're being called, excel at recalling faces and suggest that there is - as with many things - a broad spectrum of ability in this realm. The research involved administering standardized face recognition tests. The super-recognizers scored far above average on these tests - higher than any of the normal control subjects...

Super-recognizers recognize other people far more often than they are recognized. So they often compensate by pretending not to recognize someone they met in passing, so as to avoid appearing to attribute undue importance to a fleeting encounter, Russell said.

"Super-recognizers have these extreme stories of recognizing people," says Russell. "They recognize a person who was shopping in the same store with them two months ago, for example, even if they didn't speak to the person. It doesn't have to be a significant interaction; they really stand out in terms of their ability to remember the people who were actually less significant."