There may be a reason we see a man, rather than a maiden, in the moon. When people spot facelike patterns in inanimate objects, those faces are more likely to be perceived as male than female, researchers report in the Feb. 1 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
In experiments with over 3,800 U.S. adults recruited online, participants reviewed about 250 photos of illusory faces — in objects from potatoes to suitcases — and labeled each one as male, female or neutral. Faces were deemed male about four times as often as they were female. Both male and female participants showed that bias, with about 80 percent of
→ Continue reading at Science News