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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sun Tzu who wrote (53372)	9/28/2001 11:29:03 AM
From: michael97123	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

sun, It's a good point you make. It points to a fundamental weakness in US foreign policy over the years not only in relation to Muslims. I promise that i will not lose interest after the victory over terrorism to help the world become more of a village with access to freedom and prosperity and peace for all. mike

To: Sun Tzu who wrote (53372)	9/28/2001 12:03:20 PM
From: michael97123	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

Anyone know the companies behind this technology? Face recognition may enhance airport security September 28, 2001 Posted: 11:35 AM EDT (1535 GMT) From David George CNN Science & Technology Unit ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- As airports scramble to beef up security in the wake of the September 11 attacks, aviation industry insiders say face recognition technology could become a major weapon in the war against terrorism. Iceland is the first airport in the world to announce it's using the technology to screen passengers, and others may follow its lead. The human face has 80 so-called landmarks -- including the bridge and tip of the nose, the size of the mouth and eyes, and the cheekbones. Scanning 15 faces at a time, comparing them to a database of images at the rate of a million faces a second, face recognition technology needs only 14 to 20 of those 80 landmarks to spot a face authorities are looking for. "We don't have the fingerprints of terrorist groups. But we do have the pictures of terrorist groups," said Joseph Atick, chairman and CEO of Visionics Corp., which markets face recognition equipment. The technology is so precise, Atick says, that it can't be fooled by disguises such as wigs or fake beards. It's just one example of what's called biometrics, the process of identifying people by unique physical characteristics. A fingerprint, for example, is a biometric, as is DNA. So are the retina and iris. A test of eye recognition technology designed to speed the passage of travelers through the Charlotte, North Carolina, airport proved 100 percent accurate in more than 6,000 applications among people who had previously submitted "eye prints" to their airlines. Industry spokesmen say moving known passengers through the airport faster gives immigration and security officers more time to concentrate on travelers who might warrant greater scrutiny. Biometric technology has replaced badges and ID cards for employees at many airports. Frequent travelers can bypass immigration procedures at nearly a dozen North American airports by registering their palm prints with the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Biometrics backers say this kind of technology is the key to increasing airport security. "We're not going to solve every problem, no matter how many biometric technologies we deploy. But we will certainly concentrate the problem and use resources more efficiently," said Richard Norton of the International Biometric Industry Association. The industry says there need to be rules to protect the privacy of people whose faces are scanned in public places, but argues that harsh new realities require vigorous, technology-based responses that include biometrics. "I say this is a paradigm shift in the world of security," Atick said, "because there is a paradigm shift in the world of war and terror."

To: Sun Tzu who wrote (53372)	9/28/2001 12:49:36 PM
From: FiloF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

Very simplistic to continually lay the blame at the hands of "Big Money" or the West or the US. It is the easy out. There are numerous factors involved, some of which are described in the article. I do agree that misguided or even corrupt US foreign policy is one, but it is just one of many. Fortunately, US policy can (and should) be changed in many instances. Given that the other factors are out of our hands, I am dubious that it will make a difference.