Physiognomy Physiognomy Physiognomy (from the Greek φύσις "physis" meaning "nature" and "gnomon" meaning "judge" or "interpreter") is a practice of assessing a person's character or personality from their outer appearance—especially the face. It is often linked to racial and sexual stereotyping. The term can also refer to the general appearance of a person, object, or terrain without reference to its implied characteristics—as in the physiognomy of an individual plant (see plant life-form) or of a plant community (see vegetation). Credence of such study has varied. The practice was well accepted by the ancient Greek philosophers, but fell into disrepute in the
Standard person Standard person The standard person or reference person is a theoretical individual that has perfectly "normal" characteristics. This model is used for much research into radiation safety. For many years, the standard person was called reference man because the work assumed a healthy, young adult male. In recent years, reference woman and reference child models have been created, along with variations on body size, age, sex, and race. In the future, the model may be expanded to include selected plants and animals. Eventually, for medical purposes, the concept may be replaced by effective attention to measuring the exposure of individual