To the Editor:
Re “Recognizing Faces in the Era of Masks” (Science Times, Sept. 1):
I suffer from face blindness and have never been able to explain it to the friends and colleagues I fail to recognize. Once I memorize someone’s hair, if they change the color or style, I have to start memorizing all over again.
People have always recognized me so I haven’t been on the receiving end of feeling overlooked by the people I know. Now, as I walk with my face covered, people I recognize by their hair or gait don’t recognize me.
As part of my Covid response, I have dyed my hair pink to give my friends an easy way to identify me.
Shelly Beaser
Philadelphia
To the Editor:
While vacationing in the Adirondacks in July, we chatted with fellow birders one day. The next day, on a different birding walk, I said to them, “I think we saw you yesterday.” They replied, “Oh, yes, we recognize you from your masks.”
(The masks, by the way, were stitched by Afghan refugees.)
Caroline Kearney
Brooklyn
