Express, or conceal?

In this event, Dr Nilanthy Balakrishnan will take you on a journey to explore the world of two-dimensional materials, this class of very thin materials that has been showing huge promise for a variety of technological applications. They will discuss what makes such materials so attractive and how these materials can revolutionise the development of future technological devices.

Liars look an awful lot like truth-tellers. But when we try to decide who is lying and who is telling the truth, we do not guess randomly. Come put your lie detection skills to the test and learn a little about the science of how we decide who is lying to us and who is not.

Swearing is a fascinating aspect of language. Evidence from Tourette's sufferers and aphasics suggests swearing may not rely on the usual language areas in the brain. While people tend to think of the use of four letter words as a modern phenomenon, the reality is that the earliest recorded uses of these words date back 1,000 years (the F word is one of the most recent, at c1500). Dr Richard Stephens, a psychologist based at Keele University, will be talking about why we swear and specifically his research showing that swearing helps people overcome pain and boosts physical performance.