New app uses mathematical theory to match your face to celebrities' faces

(PhysOrg.com) -- Are you as dashing as George Clooney, or as glamorous as Angelina Jolie? Researchers at Queen Mary, University of London have developed an app that uses a mathematical formula to analyse your face and tell you which celebrities you look like.

The Fame Factors interactive app is based on research on facial perception in the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, and has been developed by QApps, Queen Mary’s ground-breaking app development venture, which aims to turn ground-breaking research and expertise into smartphone technology.

The shape and proportions of the features on peoples' faces is one of the many complex factors we consider when we look at a person. Fame Factors uses the Golden Ratio – a mathematical ratio of 1 to 1.618 that is found all over nature – to number crunch the proportions of your face and compare it to a database of more than 70 famous stars’ pictures.

The team worked with industry partner and award-winning smartphone developers Always on Message to bring the research to life.

Professor Peter McOwan, co-founder of QApps, explains: “We had already used this golden ratio face trick from nature to improve the technology to let a robot track a face in a crowded room, but this new app makes this science even more fun for everyone to explore.”

The team also hope that Fame Factors will help entertain friends and family during the festive holidays. Professor McOwan adds: “Using Fame Factors to find how your face fits within our cast of celebrities is sure to provide heaps of festive fun with friends and families. Upload, play and see if you can guess who your celebrity lookalike is!”

Fame Factors is free, and available at the iStore for iPhones, or online here: www.qappsonline.com/apps/fame-factors/