New study identifies the 'not face'
Scientists at Ohio State University say they have discovered a new universal facial expression that communicates disapproval.
The scientists have dubbed it the "not face" and say it's a combination of facial expressions for contempt, anger and disgust.
Aleix Martinez, the lead researcher of the study tells As It Happens host Carol Off that people will recognize the face instantly, even if they've never heard of it before.
He described the expression like this, "You would furrow your brows down, press your lips together and raise your chin. Whenever you see it, you'll know it's a not face."
For the study, they filmed people using English, American sign language, Mandarin and Spanish, while they responded negatively to questions. Researchers then wrote a computer algorithm to identify their facial traits.
"We believe that by identifying this same facial expression in four different languages, from four different origins, [it] demonstrates universality," Martinez says. "Although we all speak different languages ... the underlying neuro-mechanisms are exactly the same across all cultures."
He also says an important discovery in the study is that the expression has a grammatical function, "with grammar you have the ability to construct an infinite number of sentences with a finite number of elements and that's very powerful."
Martinez says the universality of the expression across the human species is historically important, "If you do something that can put you in danger, you would have to know immediately if you are doing the right thing or not. It has a necessity within our society for survival—especially children."