The article discusses the human neural system responsible for face perception and social communication. Face perception is mediated by a distributed neural system consisting of multiple, bilateral regions in the extrastriate visual cortex. This system differentiates between the representation of invariant aspects of faces (e.g., identity) and changeable aspects (e.g., eye gaze, expression, lip movement). The system has a hierarchical organization, with a core system in occipitotemporal regions mediating visual analysis and an extended system involving other cognitive functions that extract meaning from faces. The amygdala plays a central role in processing social relevance, particularly in response to potential threats. The article also explores the involvement of other neural systems, such as those for spatial attention and auditory verbal comprehension, in face perception. It highlights the importance of understanding the interactions among these regions for developing an understanding of human face perception and social cognition.The article discusses the human neural system responsible for face perception and social communication. Face perception is mediated by a distributed neural system consisting of multiple, bilateral regions in the extrastriate visual cortex. This system differentiates between the representation of invariant aspects of faces (e.g., identity) and changeable aspects (e.g., eye gaze, expression, lip movement). The system has a hierarchical organization, with a core system in occipitotemporal regions mediating visual analysis and an extended system involving other cognitive functions that extract meaning from faces. The amygdala plays a central role in processing social relevance, particularly in response to potential threats. The article also explores the involvement of other neural systems, such as those for spatial attention and auditory verbal comprehension, in face perception. It highlights the importance of understanding the interactions among these regions for developing an understanding of human face perception and social cognition.