Can you handle the truth?

Videos designed to trigger Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) or “brain tingles" are slowly morphing from a niche YouTube interest to a mainstream internet phenomenon. Celebrities and big brands are making ‘ASMR videos’ and there are over 500,000 internet searches a month for the term. But what is ASMR and why is it so popular? This talk will explore some of the fledgling scientific research into ASMR, its links with other sensory experiences such as synaesthesia and misophonia, its use in advertising, and what might we might see in the future regarding ASMR.

A unique performance by the Belly Dancers at the University of Manchester, reacting to the beat of the tabla drum through muscle isolation and torso movement to express the importance of body positivity. Studies have suggested that body confidence issues can stem from a disproportionate focus on the external appearance of the body; belly dancing has been shown to reduce self-objectification and increase positive body image and body satisfaction! This dance aims to instead celebrate the amazing ways in which the body can move, shimmy and sway and all performed by women studying/working in STEM!

The human face is one of the most natural ways for us to show others how we feel, whether that be happiness, sadness or anger. These emotions are displayed using different and specific facial expressions that are normally easily recognisable, even across different cultures and languages. Detecting these normal expressions is relatively easy for computer vision algorithms, where they are able to process and analyse digital images or videos that contain facial expressions and classify which emotion is being shown. However, finding subtle micro-expressions is much harder and yet to be solved.

On the night, we’ll have a collection of artworks by the fantastic Chloe Knights (https://www.chloeknights.com/), Kelly Stanford (https://www.kellystanford.co.uk), Beck Smith (instagram.com/rebecsart) and Tony Pickering (http://pick-art.co.uk/about ). There’ll be time before, during and after the talks to observe and interact with these fantastic pieces of art!