How many different shapes of human noses are there? Ten? Fifty? Hundreds?
The correct answer is 14, according to Abraham Tamir, an Israeli scientist. And while the study has its limitations, it is the first-of-its-kind survey detailing the shapes of schnozes.
Tamir set out to count, sort and categorize the shapes of human noses mainly because no one had ever done this experiment before. A professor of chemical engineering at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beer-Sheva, Israel, Tamir also teaches a course on the interaction between art and science.
Analyzing the shape of noses fulfilled both his scientific curiosity and his artistic appreciation for the contours and appearance of this vital part of human anatomy. Tamir also likes looking into topics that others have not yet investigated -- and the nose seemed, well, ripe for the picking.
