What Speaks Louder Than Words?

Humans are social animals and communication is key to our interactions with others. But when having a conversation with someone, our body language matters as much (if not more) than what we are actually saying. Did you know that your personality actually shows in all the small things you do and people are able to assess it by just looking at you? In this talk, I will take you on a journey to the non-verbal world. It is a world of wonders, first impressions and gestures. It is a world of body postures and facial expressions. It is a fascinating visual world of communication!

On one hand, infant cries are a great method to elicit care from caregivers. On the other hand, excessive crying is considered the main cause of most infant maltreatments. So what do we know exactly about baby cries? Are they manipulating us? Are there different types for different needs? Can we recognize our own babies from their cries? Do baby boys and baby girls cry differently? And more importantly, can we prevent them from crying? In this talk, I will present recent research addressing these questions, going from experimental studies at the lab to hunter-gatherers' parenting tips.

Like humans and other primates, macaques have big brains and live in large social groups. In order to live in these complex groups, they need to keep track of each other and take part in intricate social interactions. To do this, they use sophisticated and subtle communication, such as facial expressions, body postures and vocalisations. If we can understand the behavior of macaques better, we can make comparisons with humans and other primates to try to understand how and why we behave the way we do.