Iris patterns
Nine years ago, the Herald knew that photographs of the iris of the eye were the basis for the most accurate biometric identification technology currently available (except in people with very dark eyes, where it doesn’t work so well). Because the iris is protected by the cornea and doesn’t change over time, it gives much more stable identification than most other biometrics. The main limitation is that people often don’t like putting their eyes close to a camera.
Today, however, the Herald says that iris patterns change rapidly in response to a wide variety of health changes.
Then he looks at the eye where each section of the iris relates to a body part. There may be stress rings, iron, or markings or colours which indicate changes in cholesterol and blood sugar levels, the state of your immune system, memory and circulation issues.
He also looks at the texture of the iris which shows the body’s constitution we are born with. “A strong constitution will look like silk, a weaker constitution will have a rougher texture like hessian.”
At least one of these stories is wrong, and I’m pretty sure I know which one.
Thomas Lumley (@tslumley) is Professor of Biostatistics at the University of Auckland. His research interests include semiparametric models, survey sampling, statistical computing, foundations of statistics, and whatever methodological problems his medical collaborators come up with. He also blogs at Biased and Inefficient See all posts by Thomas Lumley »