Does Facebook 'See Things' too?

A Ghostly Face?

Most of us will have seen faces in the clouds, in tree canopies and suchlike. We're wired to see and recognise faces from infancy. As adults it can be fun gazing up at little fluffy clouds. As for paranormal instances, it makes accepting that fuzzy or blurred photograph in the dark as a legitimate capture of a disembodied person more difficult. I want to believe but please make the grounds for the substance of that belief credible, reliable.

At The Crewe Heritage Centre I had a customer take this photograph (enlarged for perspective) in the North Signal Box. My brain definetly recognises a very distinct face with numerous features. I think "wow! it's really something!". Then I think "Hang on, there's a zig-zaggy light trail to the left. This is just the brain interpreting something vague and fuzzy as a face".

This is known technically as a pareidolia. A fascinating phenomenon, but quite natural. Disappointingly explains away many hoped for paranormal piccies.

Is this a picture of a spirit or entity hanging around the signal box? Or something quite rational? There's a choice to be made - a choice of "What will I believe?". You can try sitting on the fence, which is my most adopted posture, but believe you me, it's not the most comfortable. I also frequently find myself slipping off the fence more on to one side than the other, before jumping back up on the fence. I want to believe, but...

Faint face in (front of?) the curtain

Now, since Facebook has introduced facial recognition technology, I've noticed that occasionaly when it prompts you to tag friends and faces, it will see something which has hitherto remained unnoticed.

Following a recent event in a pub, when I uploaded the pics to Facebook, it prompted me "Who's in These Photos?". Among them was a faint face either in, or in front of the curtain. Love it! But is Facebook using the same kind of criteria for face detection as humans, but with it being driven by computer software, it's even more obsessive and accurate about it than we are?

I'm quite a sucker for cemeteries too. Reviewing some older photos of mine of cemeteries in Edinburgh, I popped them up for a few friends to see. This was the first time I'd noticed Facebook asking to tag a face which actually wasn't there.

Besides the depictions of Memento Mori, Cherubs, Angels, Abraham Lincoln (yes, really - albeit pre-Vampire hunter days), there is a small face apparent over a gravestone carving. I've got other examples which Facebook has flagged up to me, but these remain the best to show at the resolution generated.

What do you think? Do you have any good strange faces and likenesses to share which might be paranormal or pareidolial?

All the images used here will go larger when clicked on.

Copyright Tim Prevett, History and Mystery Tours. Heritage Walks and Ghost Tour details HERE.