Face it!

Scientists dismiss these readings as no more than facial astrology. "There is as yet no good data to support this practice," observes Lesley Zebrowitz, professor of psychology at Brandeis University.

While many may regard it as a sort of harmless parlor game, face reading does have a more pernicious effect. Charles Darwin noted that he was almost barred from voyaging on the H.M.S. Beagle because the captain thought his nose suggested a lazy nature. In the 1920s. Los Angeles judge Edward Jones insisted that he could, with over 90% accuracy, determine someone was a "born criminal" by his protruding lips and too-close-together eyes.

Though today no one would make such a blatant assessment of character based on anatomy, facial shape at least subconsciously does appear to figure into our judgments. In her book, Reading Faces, Zebrowitz meticulously documents her research showing that baby-faced adults. with big eyes and full cheeks and lips, bring out in the rest of us a nurturing protective response, the kind we give to children.

In one remarkable study, she tracked proceedings in Boston small claims court for more than 500 cases and found that. whatever the evidence, chubby-cheeked plaintiffs were more apt to prevail than claimants with more mature-looking faces. Says Zebrowitz: "Although our judicial system talks about 'blind justice,' it's impossible to control the extra-legal factor of stereotyping based on physical appearance."

DEBORAH BLUM

THE FACE OF THE FUTURE

Just five-and-a-half weeks after conception, the human face begins to form. Three nodes emerge on the surface of the fetus; the middle one grows outward to create the countenance. We grow muscle and nerves and eventually, unlike our more "primitive" coldblooded cousins, we develop soft, supple skin, and thick hair, which helps protect our warm-blooded bodies from chilly temperatures. Because we chew our food instead of swallowing it whole like lowlier creatures, our mouths are more than crude openings; they are sensitive malleable structures.

Early mammals, covered in hair, had smell and touch as their dominant senses. But over eons, vision became vital. Eyes migrated frontally, the better to see prey; long and dense facial hair eroded, leaving muscles free to work other parts of the face. Finally, the face could see and be seen by the world--and react to it. Today, thanks to evolution, we have faces capable of exquisite expressions of emotion.

But evolution continues. The faces we enjoy today may not be the ones our descendants bear, say scientists. What will the face of the future look like? Probably more youthful, predict researchers, because it is more sexually desirable. Attracting a mate is a driving imperative in nature, after all. Moving in the direction of looking younger, our teeth are gradually getting smaller and our heads balder.

According to some scientists, even more radical changes are in store, albeit millions of years down the evolutionary road. As the amount of sensory information assaulting the body increases, our eyes and ears may increase in size to handle all the input. As our verbal abilities and needs become more complex, our palates, larynxes, and tongues will grow larger. Our noses will shrink, however, as scent becomes even less important (we already have a very weak sense of smell compared with other animals). Nose hair, once used to warm incoming air, will become entirely superfluous, thanks to controlled temperatures.

New scientific research and technology will likely add to the changes in our visage. The dawning of genetic engineering takes our faces at least partly out of evolution's control and puts it in our own hands. In the future, we may be able to pick our features from a pattern book and anti-aging drugs may keep us wrinkle-free. Explorations through the cosmos will affect our faces as well. As studies with astronauts show, zero gravity initially erases wrinkles by redistributing blood and fluid in the head. With time, however, this face-lift becomes a downfall: eyes soon become bloodshot and skin becomes puffy. In just a few days, the distended face loses the ability to produce distinct expressions. Such setbacks are manageable. "Body suction machines," or aluminum barrels pulling fluid back down in the body, will allow space travelers to save face.