0:00:02 > 0:00:05I've got to pay the director and I've only got £5. Can you help me?
0:00:05 > 0:00:08Yeah. You just got to do this.
0:00:08 > 0:00:13Fold it once like so, twice like that.
0:00:13 > 0:00:18- Three times, just squeeze it. - Yup.- Give it a magic blow.
0:00:18 > 0:00:25And your fiver should look more like a tenner.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29- That works.- That'll cover his expenses. Thanks very much.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32Watch this lecture and I'll explain how Billy does her magic.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00APPLAUSE
0:01:14 > 0:01:19Welcome to the 2011 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22I'm Bruce Hood and I'm about to amaze you with some mind-reading.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25I don't need a brain scanner to do this - I'm going to use
0:01:25 > 0:01:27my own mind to read yours!
0:01:27 > 0:01:31I've got some playing cards here.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36I'm going to put them out on the table. Let's see...yes, OK.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39Now, I want you to select one of the cards.
0:01:39 > 0:01:46But I'm going to read your mind, I'm going to influence your mind.
0:01:46 > 0:01:51So, choose a card, and concentrate on it. I'm trying to read your mind.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53Now I'm controlling your mind. Focus on the card.
0:01:53 > 0:01:58Have you got it? Have you got it in your mind? Hold it there.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Yes...let's see.
0:02:04 > 0:02:09I think it's going to be... It's going to be that one.
0:02:10 > 0:02:16OK, prepare to be amazed.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20Your card is no longer there!
0:02:20 > 0:02:22AUDIENCE GASPS
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Did I read your minds and control your thoughts?
0:02:37 > 0:02:39Of course not.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43That would require psychic powers, which simply don't exist.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45Despite what you have seen or heard, humans do not have
0:02:45 > 0:02:48supernatural powers and if they claim they do,
0:02:48 > 0:02:52they are either fooling themselves or using a trick, just like I did.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54What I really did was I got you to focus your attention
0:02:54 > 0:02:57on one card, so that you ignored all the other cards
0:02:57 > 0:03:01All I had to do was change all the cards so every card is different.
0:03:01 > 0:03:05Even though that mind-reading was a stunt,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08we can mind-read others and actually we do this all the time.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11Not with any supernatural spooky powers,
0:03:11 > 0:03:13but with just the way we understand others
0:03:13 > 0:03:16and try to predict what they're going to do next.
0:03:16 > 0:03:17If you think about it,
0:03:17 > 0:03:20how often do you try to figure out what someone else is thinking?
0:03:20 > 0:03:23You try to work out what's on their mind
0:03:23 > 0:03:26by watching their behaviour, looking at their expressions
0:03:26 > 0:03:29and imagining what you would do in their situation.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32In a sense, you are putting yourself in their shoes.
0:03:32 > 0:03:36In fact, you are the best mind-reader in the animal kingdom.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38How do we get so good at mind-reading?
0:03:38 > 0:03:42Well, the answer is childhood. It's not a time of immaturity -
0:03:42 > 0:03:45it's the research and development phase of our lives.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48We are absorbing ideas from those around us
0:03:48 > 0:03:49and trying to work out
0:03:49 > 0:03:52what they think, and new ways of seeing the world.
0:03:52 > 0:03:54The more time a species spends in childhood,
0:03:54 > 0:03:57the more creative their minds are, the more social they are
0:03:57 > 0:04:00and the more sophisticated their brains.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02Our childhood is all about becoming human.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04CHIRPING
0:04:04 > 0:04:06AUDIENCE: Ah!
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Other species have hardly any childhood at all.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14For example, these are baby chicks, only a few days old.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16Aren't they cute? Yeah?
0:04:16 > 0:04:20Hi, guys! You're on television.
0:04:20 > 0:04:21LAUGHTER
0:04:21 > 0:04:24I'd like to introduce you to another baby,
0:04:24 > 0:04:27not a chick this time, but a young human called Finn.
0:04:27 > 0:04:32Now, quietly. Here we go.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37Hello! This is baby Finn.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41- How old is he? Can I hold him? - Of course you can.
0:04:41 > 0:04:42He's 11 weeks old today.
0:04:42 > 0:04:47Happy birthday, weekly birthday, Finn. Can you see him?
0:04:47 > 0:04:52- So, how far is he walking at the moment?- Not very far!
0:04:52 > 0:04:57- Oh. Is he reading?- No, not much! - Not reading.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00What school is he at?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03- No school.- Not at school yet.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06LAUGHTER
0:05:06 > 0:05:13- Well, what does he do? - Sleeps, eats, poos.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16I was only joking, of course. He can't do very much on his own.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20If we left him by himself he probably would be in trouble.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Whereas these chicks are much younger,
0:05:22 > 0:05:25and they probably would survive a lot better.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28So Finn always needs his mother. Let me give him back.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31It might look like Finn's not doing very much,
0:05:31 > 0:05:35but his brain is busy wiring up, taking in all this information,
0:05:35 > 0:05:36listening to me as we speak,
0:05:36 > 0:05:40taking in the social interaction, storing it in his brain.
0:05:40 > 0:05:43By the time he reaches maturity, Finn will have a social brain.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46With this social brain, Finn will learn from others
0:05:46 > 0:05:48and actually all about others.
0:05:48 > 0:05:53When he can do that, he can predict what they will do next.
0:05:53 > 0:05:58Finn, are you thinking what I'm thinking? Are you?
0:05:58 > 0:06:01LAUGHTER
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Big smile.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08How do we know that babies are so social and when does it all begin?
0:06:08 > 0:06:10Let me take you all back to just before you were born.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14Let's imagine we're inside the womb. Let's bring the lights down.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17RHYTHMIC BEATING SOUND
0:06:17 > 0:06:20You can't see very much inside the womb, can you?
0:06:20 > 0:06:24Just listen. What's that sound? Hands up.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26What do you think that is?
0:06:26 > 0:06:27Is it the heart?
0:06:27 > 0:06:29It's the heartbeat, that's right.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32And sometimes you can hear your mother's voice.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35'Well, we've decided not to find out if it's a boy or a girl...'
0:06:35 > 0:06:37The human voice has a melodic quality
0:06:37 > 0:06:39infants pick up on, and even before
0:06:39 > 0:06:42they're born, babies can recognise their own mother's voice.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45In one study the mothers read Cat In A Hat by Dr Seuss.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47You can just hear it.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50'The sun didn't shine. It was too wet to play
0:06:50 > 0:06:53'so we sat in the house all that cold, cold, wet day.'
0:06:53 > 0:06:57When the babies were born, they preferred
0:06:57 > 0:07:00their mother's version of the story in comparison to anyone else's.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03The only way they could have learned their mother's voice
0:07:03 > 0:07:06was by listening to it whilst still in the womb.
0:07:06 > 0:07:10So your brain starts learning before you are even born.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15And after you are born, even though the senses are still very limited,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18babies will pay special attention to humans.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20For example, humans can recognise faces
0:07:20 > 0:07:23and prefer them in comparison to other patterns.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Can I have some patterns here?
0:07:26 > 0:07:28These are patterns used in these studies.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31Here's one which looks like a face
0:07:31 > 0:07:36and one which is all the same but a kind of random pattern.
0:07:36 > 0:07:40Let's see if Finn still prefers faces to random patterns. Yeah?
0:07:40 > 0:07:42OK, so can you...
0:07:44 > 0:07:48Hello. Are you going to hold them? OK.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51LAUGHTER
0:07:51 > 0:07:53OK.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56LAUGHTER
0:07:56 > 0:08:03(Shh! Quiet, quiet.) Let's see, how about this face?
0:08:06 > 0:08:08Oh, is that interesting?
0:08:08 > 0:08:10(Not as interesting as his hands.)
0:08:19 > 0:08:21Do you see how Finn,
0:08:21 > 0:08:26when he sees the pattern, follows it with his eyes?
0:08:28 > 0:08:30OK. Now, when scientists did this...
0:08:30 > 0:08:35Finn is 11 weeks old but the scientists did it with newborns
0:08:35 > 0:08:38and newborns seemed to come out ready, looking for faces.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41So faces are like magnets to baby, capturing their attention
0:08:41 > 0:08:43so that they can hardly look away.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46We'll not give a loud round of applause, he seems settled.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48We'll wave goodbye to Finn.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51(Bye, Finn, you can go now. Bye.
0:08:52 > 0:08:53(There you go.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55(Thanks very much.)
0:08:56 > 0:08:58See you in 15 years!
0:08:58 > 0:09:00LAUGHTER
0:09:00 > 0:09:04Faces are important to Finn, but what happens when you get older?
0:09:04 > 0:09:08I'd like to introduce you to Esme. Come on through, Esme.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11- Hi, there.- Hi.
0:09:11 > 0:09:16Esme is wearing these eye glasses, which are special.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20What these glasses are, is they have a mirror and a small camera.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24So the reflection of Esme's eyes are being fed into the computer,
0:09:24 > 0:09:27and the computer is processing this information,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30and you'll be able to see exactly where Esme is looking
0:09:30 > 0:09:32when she looks around the world.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35So, if you look on screen... Let's bring you over here, Esme.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39I have my assistant here. ..tell me what you can see.
0:09:39 > 0:09:45I can see a brain, some drinks, some apples and some tea.
0:09:46 > 0:09:51- Um, some mugs.- OK.- A cash register. - OK.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53Let's try you with another pattern.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56So, if you look at the... That's that one.
0:09:58 > 0:10:03So here's the same scene again. What are you looking at?
0:10:03 > 0:10:07I'm looking at the people who are talking on the phone
0:10:07 > 0:10:09and being very busy.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12In the same scene, when you have faces present,
0:10:12 > 0:10:14faces are much more interesting and important
0:10:14 > 0:10:17to humans, so the human face is something we're interested in.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21Let's see what it is about the human face that you enjoy.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23OK?
0:10:27 > 0:10:32OK. There we go. She's actually tracing out a triangle.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Her eye movements are on the eyes, and looking at the mouth,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38and then between the eyes.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42In fact, the eye region is the most important part of the human face.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45If you measure brain activation, it's driven a lot by the eye region.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48Let's have a look around at the audience, shall we?
0:10:48 > 0:10:51Why don't you look at this section over here?
0:10:53 > 0:10:54What can we see?
0:10:56 > 0:11:00So Esme is looking around, and picking out all the faces.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03There you are, don't you all look good? Give a little wave.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05Hello, Esme! There you go.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07Thank you very much, Esme, we can let you go.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09Round of applause for Esme.
0:11:16 > 0:11:19We've become so good at recognising faces
0:11:19 > 0:11:22that there are areas of our brain devoted just to this.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24These are found in a small processing area
0:11:24 > 0:11:25just behind your ears.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27In some unfortunate cases, when people
0:11:27 > 0:11:30get damage to these regions can lose the ability
0:11:30 > 0:11:32to tell faces apart
0:11:32 > 0:11:35or fail to recognise famous faces, friends and family.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38Anything resembling the structure of a face
0:11:38 > 0:11:41with two eyes and a mouth can trigger these brain areas,
0:11:41 > 0:11:43which is why we tend to see faces all the time.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47Take a look at some of these examples up here.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49Does that look like a face?
0:11:49 > 0:11:51Yeah? Anyone see it?
0:11:51 > 0:11:53Yeah. How about this one?
0:11:53 > 0:11:54Yeah.
0:11:58 > 0:11:59That's an easy one.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03You see, that's a face there, isn't it?
0:12:05 > 0:12:06I like that one! Very good.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10That looks like a shark.
0:12:12 > 0:12:13And there we have...
0:12:13 > 0:12:16In the Royal Institution toilets, look at the taps
0:12:16 > 0:12:18you'll see faces on the taps.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20We are programmed to find faces anywhere.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Here's another face, take a good look. Anyone recognise who it is?
0:12:24 > 0:12:26AUDIENCE MURMURS: Albert Einstein.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28- Shout it out. - AUDIENCE: Albert Einstein!
0:12:28 > 0:12:32Yes, it is Albert Einstein. But have another look at the face again.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35There's something a little bit peculiar about it.
0:12:35 > 0:12:39As it's moving, it looks like his eyes are following you.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41Tell you what, let's bring in Albert Einstein,
0:12:41 > 0:12:45because I want to show you this effect a little more closely.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47Round of applause for Albert Einstein.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55OK. This is called the hollow face illusion, discovered by
0:12:55 > 0:12:58another Christmas lecturer, Richard Gregory.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01Faces usually point out the way.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03We don't often see faces,
0:13:03 > 0:13:05as in the case of a mask, pointing in the way.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08When you see the inside of the mask,
0:13:08 > 0:13:12your brain just assumes it's the face pointing out the way.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15And that's why you get this strange effect -
0:13:15 > 0:13:18the eyes appear to rotate in the opposite direction.
0:13:18 > 0:13:22You don't have a model for an inverted face in your brain.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25But you do have them for faces that point out the way.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30And that's why you experience this very bizarre, peculiar illusion.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33So I think it's a big round of applause for Albert Einstein.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43The more faces we see, the stronger the mental model of a face becomes.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46Faces are one of the most important ways we tell each other apart.
0:13:46 > 0:13:50Here's a familiar looking face. Does anyone know who it is? Shout it out.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52AUDIENCE: Brian Cox.
0:13:52 > 0:13:57Professor Brian Cox. Are you sure?
0:13:57 > 0:13:59Or is it...his evil twin?
0:14:01 > 0:14:03What's wrong with his face?
0:14:04 > 0:14:06Anyone know? Yes.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10- His eyes are upside down.- Yes, his eyes and his mouth are upside down.
0:14:10 > 0:14:14But so long as the eyes and mouths are in roughly the correct location,
0:14:14 > 0:14:16we take it to be a normal face.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19As you get older, and more experienced with faces,
0:14:19 > 0:14:22you process them differently using lots of short cuts
0:14:22 > 0:14:24so you tend not to notice details so much.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27What's really interesting is that younger children would be faster
0:14:27 > 0:14:30to notice that something is wrong with Brian's face
0:14:30 > 0:14:33because they look at the features, rather than the face as a whole.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36So why are we so interested in faces? They communicate
0:14:36 > 0:14:41huge amounts of information, particularly about emotions.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44These emotions are states of the body that prepare you for action.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48They affect behaviour, breathing, pulse rate,
0:14:48 > 0:14:50even how we digest our food.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53All the really important things we need to do to survive.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57If I show fear and panic on my face, then I'm signalling to you
0:14:57 > 0:14:59and you know there's a problem
0:14:59 > 0:15:01and we should get out of here pronto.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05There are six basic types of emotion. Look up here on the screen.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07See if you can tell which emotions these are.
0:15:07 > 0:15:12All right. What do you think emotion A is? Anyone like to suggest?
0:15:12 > 0:15:13Shout it out.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15ALL: Angry.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19Angry? Hands up for angry. OK, that's right.
0:15:19 > 0:15:22What about B?
0:15:22 > 0:15:24ALL: Fear.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28Do we have fear? Hands up for fear. I think that is fear. What about C?
0:15:28 > 0:15:31ALL: Surprise.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34That's an easy one. That's surprise. Now, what's going on in D?
0:15:34 > 0:15:36ALL: Happy.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38That's well and clear. What about E?
0:15:38 > 0:15:42- ALL: Sad.- Sad. And F?
0:15:42 > 0:15:45- ALL: Disgust. - Disgust, great.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49Charles Darwin first suggested we use emotional expressions
0:15:49 > 0:15:53as a form of communication. Let's see how good you are with that.
0:15:53 > 0:15:54I'll get you over here, Andy.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57Joe, why don't you come? See if you can do some emotions.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01OK, would anyone like to pull an emotional face?
0:16:01 > 0:16:05OK, chap at the end here. Let's pull one.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08What's that supposed to be? Anyone?
0:16:08 > 0:16:09LAUGHTER
0:16:09 > 0:16:12I think that's fear, isn't it? Anyone else?
0:16:12 > 0:16:14That's happy.
0:16:14 > 0:16:15LAUGHTER
0:16:15 > 0:16:17OK, what about up here?
0:16:17 > 0:16:19Here, go for it.
0:16:19 > 0:16:20LAUGHTER
0:16:20 > 0:16:26Ah, it's definitely fear. Round of applause for fear. Well done.
0:16:26 > 0:16:27APPLAUSE
0:16:30 > 0:16:33We're so good at reading emotional expressions,
0:16:33 > 0:16:35we can even tell when someone is faking a smile.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38Have a look at these two pictures of the same person.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Which one do you think is the genuine smile and which one is fake?
0:16:42 > 0:16:45Is A the genuine smile? Put up hands if you think so.
0:16:45 > 0:16:49Oh, a couple for A. What about B?
0:16:49 > 0:16:52Yes, clear winner. B is the correct smile.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55Now what is it about the faces which makes the difference?
0:16:55 > 0:16:58Well, let's just narrow it down and see.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00It's all to do with eyes.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03She's smizing, smiling with her eyes. She's using a different
0:17:03 > 0:17:08set of muscles which control the eye region. Wrinkles around the eyes
0:17:08 > 0:17:11show the smile is genuine.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13Some emotions are programmed by evolution,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17while others are shaped over childhood by those around us.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Babies do express some emotions early on.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22Even blind babies smile,
0:17:22 > 0:17:26though they've never seen a smile to copy or imitate.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29But emotions can also be shaped by experience.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32Take disgust. This emotion isn't present in the newborn.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36Babies can be quite disgusting if you think about it.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38However, somewhere around the age of two,
0:17:38 > 0:17:43children start to learn what is disgusting by watching others.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47Ah, I could do with a drink actually. I'm feeling a bit parched.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58That's good juice. Anyone want to try some apple juice?
0:18:00 > 0:18:01How about you?
0:18:01 > 0:18:05- Now what's your name?- Emily. - Come here, Emily.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09- Would you like to try some of my apple juice?- Yes, please.
0:18:09 > 0:18:10- We should use a new glass.- Yes.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14Good. I've got a new container. How about, er...?
0:18:14 > 0:18:17LAUGHTER
0:18:17 > 0:18:21This is what I use when I run out of glasses.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24Look in there.
0:18:24 > 0:18:25ALL: Eurgh!
0:18:33 > 0:18:36- Would you like to have some apple juice?- No, thanks!
0:18:36 > 0:18:37LAUGHTER
0:18:37 > 0:18:40- You sure?- Yes. - Seems all right to me.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44No? Ah, maybe you need a straw.
0:18:44 > 0:18:45LAUGHTER
0:18:45 > 0:18:48I know what you'd like. Would you like to have a straw?
0:18:48 > 0:18:51- No thanks!- You sure?
0:18:51 > 0:18:54Why? It's all right. Look.
0:18:54 > 0:18:55ALL: Urgh!
0:18:55 > 0:18:56LAUGHTER
0:18:56 > 0:19:00It's delicious! No?
0:19:00 > 0:19:03Big round of applause for Emily.
0:19:03 > 0:19:04APPLAUSE
0:19:08 > 0:19:13TOILET FLUSHES
0:19:13 > 0:19:17It's a brand-new toilet. Perfectly clean, safe to drink from.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19What's that? That was the wrong toilet?
0:19:19 > 0:19:20LAUGHTER
0:19:20 > 0:19:24I'm joking, of course. We've come to learn that toilets are for waste,
0:19:24 > 0:19:27so we can't easily overcome our disgust
0:19:27 > 0:19:31triggered by the thought of drinking out of a contaminated toilet.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35Even when we know it's brand-new, you can't help feeling revolted.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38After that drink, I'm feeling a little bit peckish.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42- Snacks! Get your snacks here! - Ah, something to eat.
0:19:44 > 0:19:45Joe, come over here.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48What have we got here?
0:19:48 > 0:19:50That's right - bugs.
0:19:50 > 0:19:51GROANING
0:19:51 > 0:19:53Mm!
0:19:53 > 0:19:58I'm feeling quite good about this now. Anyone for a bug?
0:19:58 > 0:20:03How about... Would you like to have a little nibble of a bug?
0:20:03 > 0:20:07No? No? Really? They're really quite Delicious.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09What about this one? It's got nice legs.
0:20:09 > 0:20:10LAUGHTER
0:20:10 > 0:20:13No? can't tempt you? They're really OK, honestly.
0:20:20 > 0:20:24LAUGHTER AND GROANS
0:20:24 > 0:20:29Mm, delicious. Actually I need something to wash that down.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31No, no, no. Not the toilet.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33LAUGHTER
0:20:33 > 0:20:35These are grasshoppers.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38Grasshoppers are considered a delicacy in some countries.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41They're very nutritious and highly prized.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45They taste a little bit like roasted peanuts.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47However, Westerners generally won't eat insects.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52Our culture has an influence on what we find disgusting.
0:20:52 > 0:20:53One reason disgust evolved
0:20:53 > 0:20:57is it's a useful way of showing others what's safe to eat.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00Humans are omnivores, so we can eat many different things.
0:21:00 > 0:21:05In other words, children are using adults as their food tasters
0:21:05 > 0:21:08by watching their expressions. Emotions aren't all in the mind,
0:21:08 > 0:21:10they can physically affect us too.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14Just look at your reactions to someone doing something disgusting,
0:21:14 > 0:21:16like when I drank out of the toilet.
0:21:16 > 0:21:18Have a look up here.
0:21:18 > 0:21:25LAUGHTER
0:21:28 > 0:21:31It affected your behaviour. Now, let's try a different emotion now.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33Try this out.
0:21:33 > 0:21:37Remember the straws I gave you? OK.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40Now first of all,
0:21:40 > 0:21:44I want you to put the straw in your mouth like this.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46So you're pouting, OK?
0:21:46 > 0:21:50Right, everyone got it? Put your straw in your mouth, sir.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52In the gallery, put your straws like this.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55OK? Now I'm going to play this.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57Listen carefully.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00RECORDED LAUGHTER
0:22:06 > 0:22:08OK, not much.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Take the straw out and put it like this. Ready?
0:22:12 > 0:22:14RECORDED LAUGHTER
0:22:14 > 0:22:16AUDIENCE LAUGHING
0:22:21 > 0:22:26Funnier, isn't it? Why is it funnier when you've got the straw like that?
0:22:26 > 0:22:28Why did you laugh?
0:22:28 > 0:22:32When you have the straw in your mouth like that,
0:22:32 > 0:22:34you're forcing your mouth into a certain posture.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38You're forcing a smile and your brain associates physical actions.
0:22:38 > 0:22:40It's difficult to laugh when you're pouting.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44But when you had it like this, this is the same structure
0:22:44 > 0:22:46that you have when you're smiling.
0:22:46 > 0:22:50Of course, the other thing was I played a laughter track.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Laughter is just one of those contagious emotions.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56When you hear someone laugh, you feel the urge to laugh yourself.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59Emotions communicate information about our environment
0:22:59 > 0:23:04and they bind us together socially. Let's see if we can actually measure
0:23:04 > 0:23:08the physical symptoms of this by measuring our blood flow.
0:23:09 > 0:23:14Now, I'm going to actually have to give my own blood sample here.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17I've got a specialist. Charlotte's coming in.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20- You're going to take a blood sample, are you?- Mm-hm.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23- OK, what shall I do? - Just take your jacket off, please,
0:23:23 > 0:23:24- and sit down for me.- OK.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33If you could just take a seat.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40- Ah, I'm not very good with needles. - It'll be absolutely fine.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44I'm going to put a tourniquet on first, so we can find your veins.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49- What's that smell? - It's just so it's hygienic.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51OK.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54I'm just going to swab you down now.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57I have to say, I'm actually not very good with needles.
0:23:57 > 0:23:59LAUGHTER
0:23:59 > 0:24:03I'm just going to prepare the needle now.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08LAUGHTER
0:24:11 > 0:24:15Right, ready?
0:24:15 > 0:24:17LAUGHTER AND GROANS
0:24:17 > 0:24:19It's just going to be a sharp scratch. Ready?
0:24:19 > 0:24:21No, stop!
0:24:21 > 0:24:23Stop, stop, stop!
0:24:23 > 0:24:27I can't go through with it. Thank you, Charlotte.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31- Round of applause. - APPLAUSE
0:24:33 > 0:24:38Of course, the real purpose of this demo was not to take a blood sample,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41The real purpose was to show how we can literally experience
0:24:41 > 0:24:45someone's suffering by watching and putting ourselves in their shoes.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48A lot of you didn't look happy when you saw that needle.
0:24:48 > 0:24:50We have one person in the audience
0:24:50 > 0:24:53wearing a heart monitor throughout the lecture.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56We can put their heart rate up on the screen above here.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59You can see that up to that point when I mentioned an injection,
0:24:59 > 0:25:03his heart rate has been fine. But as soon as you hear
0:25:03 > 0:25:07the word injection, It's been rising.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10So their anxiety has been increasing watching that,
0:25:10 > 0:25:12even though there was absolutely no risk to them.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14So why did their heart rate go up?
0:25:14 > 0:25:18Well, when you're watching someone else enduring a painful experience,
0:25:18 > 0:25:21you empathise with them both mentally and physically.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25So, who was wearing the heart monitor?
0:25:27 > 0:25:31- Hello, Alex.- Hello.- You don't particularly like needles.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33No, that was quite clear there.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36You can see, if we can put up this thing here.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39Oh, actually your heart rate is going sky high again!
0:25:39 > 0:25:41Is that because we're all looking at you?
0:25:41 > 0:25:43LAUGHTER
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Is it really? As I'm talking to you, your heart rate's climbing.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49Up to 120... Um, wow!
0:25:49 > 0:25:53LAUGHTER
0:25:53 > 0:25:56I'm worried about you!
0:25:56 > 0:26:01I'm worried about you. Well, of course.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04We're social animals, as soon as we become the attention of everyone,
0:26:04 > 0:26:06everyone in the Royal Institution here,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10we get self-conscious. That's very anxiety inducing.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14Thank you for being such a good sport, Alex. Big round of applause.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16APPLAUSE
0:26:19 > 0:26:22Scientists are fascinated by our ability
0:26:22 > 0:26:24to copy emotions and behaviours.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27How does the brain do this? One theory is there is a mechanism,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30the mirror neuron system, that responds to watching
0:26:30 > 0:26:33other people's movements as if we're moving ourselves.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Humans have an amazing capacity to copy and learn by observing.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38It's even present from birth.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42At first this imitation is restricted to emotional expressions
0:26:42 > 0:26:46such as smiling, something most of us do in a social situation.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50If you smile at a baby, there is a very strong likelihood
0:26:50 > 0:26:52they will smile back at you. We got this earlier
0:26:52 > 0:26:54when Finn was in. I'll just show you.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56Here's me interacting with Finn again.
0:26:59 > 0:27:00LAUGHTER
0:27:00 > 0:27:01ALL: Aw!
0:27:01 > 0:27:05Whenever we watch other people we're doing things,
0:27:05 > 0:27:07our neurons resonate with their activity.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10In effect, our brains become synchronized.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13One way we express this is through movement.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15Look at this pattern on the screen now.
0:27:15 > 0:27:16It's a series of dots.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19Can you see anything among those dots?
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Can you see the invisible person?
0:27:21 > 0:27:25Well, watch this. Can we have them move?
0:27:27 > 0:27:30Isn't that remarkable?
0:27:30 > 0:27:34With just a few dots, you can read and see someone there immediately.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37For example, what sex do you think this person might be?
0:27:37 > 0:27:39ALL: Male.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41Hands up for male.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45Well, that's pretty clear. Very good. OK, so this is a man.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47Let's see if he's going to be a happy man.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Can we have a happy man please?
0:27:50 > 0:27:52LAUGHTER
0:27:52 > 0:27:55He's in a good mood, isn't he?
0:27:55 > 0:27:58What's going to happen now, I wonder?
0:27:58 > 0:28:01Shall we get someone else to come along maybe?
0:28:03 > 0:28:04They're shaking hands.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10- AUDIENCE MEMBER: Lady. - It's a lady?
0:28:10 > 0:28:12Who thinks it's a lady?
0:28:12 > 0:28:16That's right. Let's have some fun, get them to do different actions.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18Shall we get them to clap? Let's see clapping.
0:28:18 > 0:28:22There we go, clapping.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25How about... Can you pat your head and rub your tummy?
0:28:29 > 0:28:31OK. Let's have a bit of dance moves.
0:28:31 > 0:28:32Can you do a John Travolta?
0:28:34 > 0:28:37You see, with just a few dots you can read incredibly things.
0:28:37 > 0:28:41The brain can extract surprisingly complex social information
0:28:41 > 0:28:44from just movement alone. From a few dots, our brains
0:28:44 > 0:28:48can work out the gender and even state of mind of someone.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51Let's get these guys in, just to prove that they're not dots,
0:28:51 > 0:28:53but real humans. Can we bring in the team
0:28:53 > 0:28:57from London Southbank University? Come on in, guys.
0:28:57 > 0:28:59Big round of applause please.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01APPLAUSE
0:29:05 > 0:29:08- Here we go. This is...- Will
0:29:08 > 0:29:11- Lex.- Lex.- Darren.- And Darren. Let's look at what they're wearing.
0:29:11 > 0:29:15They're wearing these light spots. This is what you saw on the screen.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18They're reflective and their images in the cameras were being captured
0:29:18 > 0:29:21and this movement produced all this rich information.
0:29:21 > 0:29:24So, Darren, tell us a little bit about why you use this?
0:29:24 > 0:29:26What's going on with this?
0:29:26 > 0:29:29This is the kind of technology major computer game developers
0:29:29 > 0:29:33use for animation. I'm sure you know the football games.
0:29:33 > 0:29:36This is the exact technology used.
0:29:36 > 0:29:39Great. Research and development as well?
0:29:39 > 0:29:42Yeah, we've got three themes of research, so we have sports,
0:29:42 > 0:29:46we've got clinical and commercial. So if you take our sports angle,
0:29:46 > 0:29:50we've got two focus sports - tae kwon do and basketball.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53By analysing our athletes' movements,
0:29:53 > 0:29:57we can pick the important parts out and improve their performance.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00Great. Well, thank you, Lex. Thank you, Will.
0:30:00 > 0:30:02Good luck with the research, everyone.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04Big round of applause for London Southbank.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06APPLAUSE
0:30:10 > 0:30:14What might surprise you is that babies as young as four months old
0:30:14 > 0:30:16can also see moving spots of light as people.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18Not only do they see movement as people,
0:30:18 > 0:30:22but they also start to use movement to work out what someone is like.
0:30:22 > 0:30:25Have a look at this clip of this video here.
0:30:25 > 0:30:29This is an animation, but see if you can think about it another way.
0:30:39 > 0:30:40There we go.
0:30:40 > 0:30:43Which do you think is the more friendly object?
0:30:43 > 0:30:45Hands up for green?
0:30:47 > 0:30:49Hands up for the yellow square?
0:30:49 > 0:30:52It's amazing, really. It's just an animation,
0:30:52 > 0:30:55yet we think of these things as having personalities.
0:30:55 > 0:30:57In fact, babies, when they watched this,
0:30:57 > 0:30:59were given a choice of a square and a triangle.
0:30:59 > 0:31:02And when they saw the square being helpful,
0:31:02 > 0:31:04they preferred to play with a square object.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07So these babies are giving them personalities.
0:31:07 > 0:31:10From the very beginning, we see the world as populated with others
0:31:10 > 0:31:12who act with goals and intentions.
0:31:12 > 0:31:15We even apply that reasoning to inanimate objects.
0:31:15 > 0:31:16Do you speak to your toys?
0:31:16 > 0:31:19Or if you have a computer, do you get frustrated
0:31:19 > 0:31:21and shout at it when it crashes and say,
0:31:21 > 0:31:23"Don't crash, I haven't saved my homework"?
0:31:23 > 0:31:27This is what we do. We give inanimate objects these qualities
0:31:27 > 0:31:29to make it easier to interact with them.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32It's a way our brain is making assumptions about the world
0:31:32 > 0:31:34and adding extra information. Movement provides
0:31:34 > 0:31:37not only a rich source of what someone is like,
0:31:37 > 0:31:39but a channel of communication
0:31:39 > 0:31:42where no words are exchanged. Synchrony is essential
0:31:42 > 0:31:44to many human activities,
0:31:44 > 0:31:47such as dancing to music. Whilst some pets can be trained
0:31:47 > 0:31:50to dance, others can do this spontaneously.
0:31:50 > 0:31:54Take a look at this cockatoo called Snowball.
0:31:54 > 0:31:57ROCK MUSIC PLAYS
0:32:10 > 0:32:13Cockatoos are social birds that bond for life,
0:32:13 > 0:32:16which is maybe one reason they'll copy another person's movements.
0:32:16 > 0:32:20Obviously, Snowball is copying his owner.
0:32:20 > 0:32:22Sociable birds spend longer as fledglings,
0:32:22 > 0:32:26so they have long childhoods in the bird kingdom,
0:32:26 > 0:32:28and they're more intelligent generally
0:32:28 > 0:32:30and actually have bigger brains.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33So I want to try out some copying with you.
0:32:33 > 0:32:37But for that, I'm going to need a volunteer to be a pirate.
0:32:37 > 0:32:40Let's see, who's going to be a pirate?
0:32:40 > 0:32:42I think we could have...
0:32:42 > 0:32:46Let's have the lady there. Would you mind coming down?
0:32:46 > 0:32:48- Yeah? - APPLAUSE
0:32:51 > 0:32:54- What's your name?- Olivia. - OK, Olivia.
0:32:54 > 0:32:56I'm Captain Bruce Hook.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59We're on this ship, and I'm the worst captain on the seven seas.
0:32:59 > 0:33:01And I reckon you're going to mutiny,
0:33:01 > 0:33:04so I've got to teach you some discipline.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06I'm going to make you walk the plank.
0:33:06 > 0:33:08This is my cockatoo. So get on the plank,
0:33:08 > 0:33:10and see if you can walk in a straight line.
0:33:10 > 0:33:13Just balance with your two legs. OK, hold it there.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16Get yourself stable, girl. There you go.
0:33:16 > 0:33:20Put your hands out if you wish. Are you stable? Good.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22Now look what happens.
0:33:22 > 0:33:23Avoid the sharks.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30Oh, it's really hard to keep the balance!
0:33:30 > 0:33:33You're doing very well. Can we make her tip over?
0:33:33 > 0:33:35Yes, I think so.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38Over into the ocean to Davy Jones' locker!
0:33:38 > 0:33:41Are you finding that harder?
0:33:41 > 0:33:44Thank you. Was that much harder? Round of applause.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51That was pretty good balance. Well done.
0:33:51 > 0:33:55When we watch other people, we copy their behaviours and movements.
0:33:55 > 0:33:59It's difficult to maintain balance, when watching someone else wobble.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03As a social animal, we prefer to be in synchrony with others.
0:34:03 > 0:34:06Synchronisation is useful for picking up information from others.
0:34:06 > 0:34:10One very powerful form of synchrony is called joint attention.
0:34:10 > 0:34:11Whenever humans interact,
0:34:11 > 0:34:15they have to coordinate their focus of attention. Imagine a conversation
0:34:15 > 0:34:17without looking at someone in the eyes.
0:34:17 > 0:34:22Not only is it difficult to do, but the experience would be very odd.
0:34:31 > 0:34:33Now, I didn't tell you to look up, did I?
0:34:33 > 0:34:36But you instinctively followed my direction of gaze.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38That's called joint attention.
0:34:39 > 0:34:42This is because you interpreted my behaviour
0:34:42 > 0:34:45to indicate that there was something of interest worth looking at.
0:34:45 > 0:34:49Joint attention first appears in babies before they have language.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52Pointing to objects of interest is also uniquely human.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55Chimps and monkeys will point to food if they want it,
0:34:55 > 0:34:59but they don't point to things just to share the sheer joy of interest.
0:34:59 > 0:35:01Now, this human bias to share our attention
0:35:01 > 0:35:05with others can be manipulated and controlled by magicians
0:35:05 > 0:35:08who don't want us to see everything all of the time.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11Would anyone like to see some magic?
0:35:11 > 0:35:13Do you want to see some magic?
0:35:13 > 0:35:14ALL: Yes!
0:35:14 > 0:35:16OK. Ladies and gentlemen,
0:35:16 > 0:35:21I would like you to give a warm welcome to the amazing Billy Kidd.
0:35:27 > 0:35:30- Billy, you're always full of surprises.- I know.
0:35:30 > 0:35:32What are you going to show us?
0:35:32 > 0:35:34Today, I'm going to show you guys
0:35:34 > 0:35:38one of the oldest magic tricks in the world, simply known
0:35:38 > 0:35:43as the cups and the balls.
0:35:43 > 0:35:47We use three cups in this trick,
0:35:47 > 0:35:50and three balls as well -
0:35:50 > 0:35:53ball number one, ball number two
0:35:53 > 0:35:57and, if I can find it, ball number three.
0:35:57 > 0:36:02- Bruce, your job is to watch very close.- OK.- Really close.
0:36:02 > 0:36:10What we do is, we take ball number one. And we vanish it, like this.
0:36:10 > 0:36:13Bruce, I'll do it again. You're all paying close attention now.
0:36:13 > 0:36:19Ball number two, see if you can catch me. We do it like this. And...
0:36:21 > 0:36:22You caught that, didn't you?
0:36:22 > 0:36:24Yeah, I saw that.
0:36:24 > 0:36:29All right, I'll do the real magic. Ball number two goes like this.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32It's easy, you just need a magic wand.
0:36:32 > 0:36:37- Ball number three goes my favourite way, actually. Watching close?- Yeah.
0:36:40 > 0:36:44MUMBLES: And that ball...is gone.
0:36:49 > 0:36:51LAUGHTER Some of you are shocked, I know.
0:36:51 > 0:36:56I'll tell you what. Just like that,
0:36:56 > 0:36:59the balls...come back.
0:36:59 > 0:37:04Now, Bruce, I can tell this is
0:37:04 > 0:37:06- somewhat melting your brain a little bit.- It is indeed.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09Being a scientist and all, so I'll make it simpler for you.
0:37:09 > 0:37:12I'll take ball number one, and eliminate it,
0:37:12 > 0:37:14which would leave how many balls?
0:37:14 > 0:37:18- There's two there.- Very good. He's a scientist.
0:37:18 > 0:37:21Bruce, if I take a second ball and eliminate it from the game,
0:37:21 > 0:37:24how many balls would we have under the middle cup?
0:37:24 > 0:37:29- There's one, definitely. - But why does that one come back?
0:37:29 > 0:37:31- Not so sure.- Magic.- Ah.
0:37:31 > 0:37:36This one goes away, and if I tap this one...
0:37:36 > 0:37:38OK, I'll put this one away as well.
0:37:38 > 0:37:40This one comes...
0:37:40 > 0:37:44You know what? Let's make it simple. How many in the middle cup?
0:37:44 > 0:37:47I think there's one.
0:37:47 > 0:37:49- Oh, there's two.- Try again.
0:37:49 > 0:37:54- How many in the middle cup?- Two.- No, it's three.- Oh!- Listen to the kids.
0:37:56 > 0:38:01Even simpler, for Mr Science Man. Three balls, going in as a group.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03- How many here now? - There's nothing there.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05No, you see, that's...a big one.
0:38:05 > 0:38:07But...
0:38:07 > 0:38:11I'll make it even more difficult for you,
0:38:11 > 0:38:13because I know you like a challenge.
0:38:13 > 0:38:18- Watch close.- I am.- Watch the hat. Nothing in the hat, OK?
0:38:18 > 0:38:21Watch this ball, because in a moment,
0:38:21 > 0:38:25I'm going to make this ball vanish from the hat.
0:38:26 > 0:38:30With the power of the magic stick, we do this.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33And like that, the ball's vanished.
0:38:36 > 0:38:40- You don't believe me, do you?- No. - All right, sceptic.
0:38:40 > 0:38:41I'll bring it back.
0:38:43 > 0:38:46That's not fair. Come on.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48All right, we'll do it for real. Ready?
0:38:48 > 0:38:51- How many under the hat?- One.
0:38:51 > 0:38:55- Very good. How many now? Shh! - I can see three.
0:38:55 > 0:38:57- How many? Just Bruce.- I saw three.
0:38:57 > 0:39:00You caught me that time, they were rolling around.
0:39:00 > 0:39:04The thing is, you shouldn't be watching the balls.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06You should be watching the cups.
0:39:12 > 0:39:13Wait for it.
0:39:15 > 0:39:16Oh, round of applause!
0:39:20 > 0:39:22I have no idea.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25Billy, I have no idea.
0:39:25 > 0:39:28I think I'll need a volunteer to watch you a bit closer.
0:39:28 > 0:39:29Can we have a volunteer?
0:39:29 > 0:39:32Let's choose someone from...
0:39:32 > 0:39:33Let's choose...
0:39:33 > 0:39:35Sir, why don't you come down?
0:39:39 > 0:39:42- This way. What's your name?- Eric.
0:39:42 > 0:39:44OK, Billy's going to show you a routine.
0:39:44 > 0:39:46- Hello, Eric. You all right?- Yeah.
0:39:46 > 0:39:48Stand right here.
0:39:48 > 0:39:52I'm going to show you something, but do you know what this is?
0:39:52 > 0:39:55- A red spongy thing. - Very observant.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59We'll call it a sponge ball for now. It's not just any sponge ball,
0:39:59 > 0:40:02it's two, OK? Now, if you hold your hands out like this,
0:40:02 > 0:40:06straight in front of you, I'll put one in your hand here
0:40:06 > 0:40:10and one in your hand here, so you can feel them. Regular balls, yes?
0:40:10 > 0:40:13I'll take one and put it in my hand.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17You hang on to this one and squeeze nice and tight, OK?
0:40:17 > 0:40:21Put your other hand on top as well. Watch close.
0:40:21 > 0:40:26When I squeeze mine, it vanishes. And when you squeeze yours,
0:40:26 > 0:40:29open them up slowly... you have two again.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32OK.
0:40:33 > 0:40:37OK. Round of applause.
0:40:40 > 0:40:44So what magicians like Billy are doing is using
0:40:44 > 0:40:47- the power of the gaze to misdirect attention, right?- Yeah.
0:40:47 > 0:40:50This is why you don't notice them performing manoeuvres.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53Now that you know how it's done, watch it one more time.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56- Billy will explain. - So what I actually did,
0:40:56 > 0:41:00when I take this ball, I put it in my hand, and I look over here.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02My body and eyes are looking at this hand,
0:41:02 > 0:41:04which makes you guys look at this hand,
0:41:04 > 0:41:06but in reality I have it over here.
0:41:06 > 0:41:09So I took this ball, right,
0:41:09 > 0:41:12and I made you close your hands nice and tight together.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15- I felt that.- You felt it this time.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18You see, mine vanished, right, like before,
0:41:18 > 0:41:21- so how many did you have in your hand?- Two.
0:41:21 > 0:41:23Three.
0:41:23 > 0:41:25Round of applause, well done.
0:41:25 > 0:41:27Thank you very much.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37OK, Billy. I suppose you're going to disappear again, aren't you?
0:41:37 > 0:41:40- Of course.- Let's see it.- Ready?
0:41:41 > 0:41:43See you.
0:41:43 > 0:41:45Billy Kidd.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47APPLAUSE
0:41:52 > 0:41:54Billy showed us how she can manipulate others
0:41:54 > 0:41:57by using misdirection, and the eyes are very powerful.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00Direct gaze is a powerful social cue that explains
0:42:00 > 0:42:04why strangers don't look at each other when standing close,
0:42:04 > 0:42:06because it could be seen as a threat.
0:42:06 > 0:42:08You can try that the next time you're in an elevator.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11If you see someone close, look them in the eyes
0:42:11 > 0:42:15and they might be a bit surprised. Of course, it's all right to do this
0:42:15 > 0:42:18in some Mediterranean cultures. Staring at each other's acceptable.
0:42:18 > 0:42:21Now, when someone starts staring at you,
0:42:21 > 0:42:23this triggers brain activation
0:42:23 > 0:42:26as you're processing the faces.
0:42:26 > 0:42:29Let's see if this works. I want you to see two pictures of me.
0:42:29 > 0:42:33OK, have a look at these. Hands up if you prefer picture A.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38And hands up if you prefer picture B.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41Well, that seems to work. That's pretty good.
0:42:41 > 0:42:44I think picture B is the winner. Who preferred picture B?
0:42:44 > 0:42:45Put your hand up.
0:42:45 > 0:42:49Young lady, why did you prefer picture B, do you think?
0:42:49 > 0:42:51Do you know? Not sure?
0:42:51 > 0:42:55Anyone else? Did you prefer picture B?
0:42:55 > 0:42:58- Yeah, because you're smiling. - You think I'm smiling.
0:42:58 > 0:42:59Anyone here?
0:42:59 > 0:43:02- Why did you prefer picture B? - Your eyes are less kind of...
0:43:02 > 0:43:04They're less kind of...?
0:43:04 > 0:43:07That's right. Actually, look at the pupils and you'll see
0:43:07 > 0:43:11that in fact, the eyes are very dilated. The pupils are much larger
0:43:11 > 0:43:13in picture B than they are in picture A.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15And when you show people pictures
0:43:15 > 0:43:18which are identical except for the eyes,
0:43:18 > 0:43:21the tendency is to prefer the one where the pupils are larger.
0:43:21 > 0:43:22When someone looks at us,
0:43:22 > 0:43:27this creates activity and arousal and our eyes dilate,
0:43:27 > 0:43:30which is why we usually prefer images with larger pupils.
0:43:30 > 0:43:33This signals that they're interested in us,
0:43:33 > 0:43:36and of course, we like people who like us.
0:43:36 > 0:43:38All of the these cues are just some of the ways
0:43:38 > 0:43:40humans read each other's behaviour.
0:43:40 > 0:43:42When you interact with another person,
0:43:42 > 0:43:46one of the most important things is to work out what they're thinking.
0:43:46 > 0:43:48Before you can know what someone's thinking,
0:43:48 > 0:43:50you have to have a sense of your own self.
0:43:50 > 0:43:53How do we develop this? Well, meet Simon,
0:43:53 > 0:43:55the Siamese fighting fish.
0:43:55 > 0:43:58Siamese fighting fish are very territorial.
0:43:58 > 0:44:02The males will attack any male which encroaches on their territory.
0:44:02 > 0:44:05So let's see if Simon has a sense of self.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08He seems quite placid at the moment,
0:44:08 > 0:44:10but let's put a mirror against his tank.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12I'll put this behind him
0:44:12 > 0:44:15and see if he notices that there's another fish.
0:44:17 > 0:44:20So when he turns round, let's see if he spots himself.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23You should see that he will swim directly towards it,
0:44:23 > 0:44:25and the gills will flare out
0:44:25 > 0:44:29as a territorial display. Let's see if he spots himself.
0:44:29 > 0:44:32There he goes. Ah! See how fast that was?
0:44:32 > 0:44:36He's fluttering his gills and trying to attack the other fish.
0:44:36 > 0:44:41He'll keep bouncing on the glass, swimming backwards and forwards,
0:44:41 > 0:44:44until this predator, this interloper disappears.
0:44:44 > 0:44:46See how remarkable that is?
0:44:46 > 0:44:50LAUGHTER
0:44:50 > 0:44:55He's not giving up. He's quite a toughie, our Simon. There we go.
0:44:55 > 0:44:57Because he doesn't have a sense of self,
0:44:57 > 0:45:01he doesn't recognise that it's his own reflection.
0:45:01 > 0:45:04And this is a technique that scientists use to determine
0:45:04 > 0:45:06whether children and animals have a sense of self.
0:45:06 > 0:45:09If a baby looks in the mirror when they're very young,
0:45:09 > 0:45:12they just treat the reflected baby as another baby.
0:45:12 > 0:45:14But when they get to about 18 months,
0:45:14 > 0:45:16if you put a little dab of red marker
0:45:16 > 0:45:19on the front of their forehead and they look in the mirror,
0:45:19 > 0:45:22they realise that their reflection must be their own self.
0:45:22 > 0:45:24This is a technique we use
0:45:24 > 0:45:27to study the sense of self in other animals. For example,
0:45:27 > 0:45:31here's an elephant called Happy. She's in the Bronx Zoo in New York.
0:45:31 > 0:45:33We haven't put rouge on her forehead,
0:45:33 > 0:45:35but we put a little mark.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37And she's spotted herself in the reflection
0:45:37 > 0:45:42and is trying to remove the tapes on the side.
0:45:42 > 0:45:46So she knows that that image is her, and that mark must be on her head.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49Elephants, dolphins and other social animals
0:45:49 > 0:45:52have this idea of self-recognition.
0:45:52 > 0:45:55But back to us humans again. As you grow up, you develop
0:45:55 > 0:45:56a sense of who you are.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59By the end of infancy, you start to consider others.
0:45:59 > 0:46:01You're becoming more social,
0:46:01 > 0:46:03helping others and feeling their feelings.
0:46:03 > 0:46:07Very young children think that everyone around them
0:46:07 > 0:46:09shares the same thoughts as them.
0:46:09 > 0:46:11But between three and four, they begin to understand
0:46:11 > 0:46:15that others have different points of view. Now we'll try something
0:46:15 > 0:46:18to see if you can predict what someone else is thinking.
0:46:18 > 0:46:20I'll need two volunteers for this.
0:46:20 > 0:46:25So I am going to choose one from...someone at the back...
0:46:25 > 0:46:28Oh, green-handed man there, come on down.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30Sorry, green top there.
0:46:30 > 0:46:32And I'll choose someone from this section.
0:46:32 > 0:46:36Could you get down there, lady? Yes, that's you. Come on down.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39There we go. Can you go that way?
0:46:39 > 0:46:42Round of applause for both of our volunteers.
0:46:49 > 0:46:51- OK. So, what's your name?- Mark.
0:46:51 > 0:46:53This is Mark. And what's your name?
0:46:53 > 0:46:56- Olivia.- Olivia, is that right?
0:46:56 > 0:46:59I need one of you to go outside for the moment.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01Olivia, would you go outside for the moment?
0:47:01 > 0:47:04He'll take you outside.
0:47:04 > 0:47:06Mark, you're going to help me with my next demonstration.
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Let me just move this cabinet forward.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13This is the cabinet where I keep my brain.
0:47:13 > 0:47:15Could you just check that they're empty?
0:47:15 > 0:47:17Are you happy with that?
0:47:17 > 0:47:20OK, so this is my brain that we're going to use.
0:47:20 > 0:47:23Would you put the brain in the brown box for me?
0:47:23 > 0:47:26Put it in there, and put the lid on it.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28OK, good.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31I was just telling... Just wait a minute.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34I was telling the audience about how we use our social brain,
0:47:34 > 0:47:35it helps us to predict what people
0:47:35 > 0:47:38will do based on what they think is true.
0:47:38 > 0:47:41Yeah? And... Actually, can I have the brain, Mark?
0:47:41 > 0:47:43You see, when we're thinking about the brain, it's...
0:47:43 > 0:47:46It's just... Mark, can I have my...?
0:47:47 > 0:47:50- LAUGHTER - How did that happen?
0:47:50 > 0:47:56I don't know. Maybe there's a secret trap door in the bottom of the box.
0:47:56 > 0:47:59You reckon? Must be something like that. But why did you search here?
0:47:59 > 0:48:02- Because I put it in there originally.- Come round here.
0:48:02 > 0:48:04I'm going to show you something, Mark. Come here.
0:48:04 > 0:48:08The reason you couldn't see or didn't know the box was over there
0:48:08 > 0:48:12was because what you didn't know... You kind of guessed it somewhat,
0:48:12 > 0:48:15but the audience didn't know, is...
0:48:15 > 0:48:18HE KNOCKS ON THE BOX
0:48:18 > 0:48:22It's Billy Kid again. Thank you very much. Come here.
0:48:22 > 0:48:25OK. So you looked in the brown box because that's where you put it,
0:48:25 > 0:48:28- so you believed it was in the brown box.- Yes.- OK.
0:48:28 > 0:48:32- But you didn't know how it got there, to the blue box.- No.
0:48:32 > 0:48:35So your belief was false, wasn't it?
0:48:35 > 0:48:39So can you can work out what someone else'll do if we do the same thing?
0:48:39 > 0:48:42- OK.- So it was Olivia. Wasn't our guest...?- Yes.
0:48:42 > 0:48:45What do you think Olivia will do if I put the box...
0:48:45 > 0:48:49If I put the brain in the brown box, where will she look?
0:48:49 > 0:48:51She'll look in the...brown box.
0:48:51 > 0:48:53Yes, because she believes it's in the brown box.
0:48:53 > 0:48:57- But we know that Billy always moves it, doesn't she?- Mmm.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00- So where will it really be? - In the blue box.- That's right.
0:49:00 > 0:49:03You realise you've just done something very clever, haven't you?
0:49:03 > 0:49:06You've worked out what Olivia will do.
0:49:06 > 0:49:09You've been able to put yourself in her shoes.
0:49:09 > 0:49:12That's quite a unique ability. We'll have a bit of fun with that.
0:49:12 > 0:49:15- We'll get her back in, see if we can pull the same trick.- OK.
0:49:15 > 0:49:17No-one give away the secret, OK?
0:49:17 > 0:49:19You stand back and watch what's going to happen.
0:49:19 > 0:49:21So quiet, everyone.
0:49:23 > 0:49:25I'm going to go and get Olivia now, OK?
0:49:29 > 0:49:34- Hello, Olivia. It's Olivia, is it? - Yeah.- Come on. Just come here.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37I was just explaining to Mark about this experiment we're doing.
0:49:37 > 0:49:40This is where I keep my brains and these are the...
0:49:40 > 0:49:44You can have a look in there. It's empty.
0:49:44 > 0:49:47Look in there. It's empty, too. We keep the brains here. This is mine.
0:49:47 > 0:49:50So, Olivia, would you put the brain in that box,
0:49:50 > 0:49:54because I'm going to talk to the audience about the social brain.
0:49:54 > 0:49:56The thing about the social brain
0:49:56 > 0:49:58is that it's one of the most remarkable things
0:49:58 > 0:50:03cos we can predict what people will do based on their beliefs.
0:50:03 > 0:50:06Erm, Olivia, can I have my...brain, please?
0:50:08 > 0:50:10- It's not in there. - LAUGHTER
0:50:10 > 0:50:12- Where is it, do you think? There are two...- In this box.
0:50:12 > 0:50:13You want to look for it?
0:50:13 > 0:50:17SHE GASPS LAUGHTER
0:50:17 > 0:50:18APPLAUSE
0:50:18 > 0:50:20Well done. Come on, I'll show you.
0:50:22 > 0:50:25It's Billy again!
0:50:25 > 0:50:29Big round of applause. Both of you back to your seats. Thank you.
0:50:29 > 0:50:31APPLAUSE
0:50:33 > 0:50:37That was a bit of fun but this is a recreation of a famous experiment
0:50:37 > 0:50:40for a core component of human nature called Theory of Mind.
0:50:40 > 0:50:44You see, once you knew that Billy was hiding underneath,
0:50:44 > 0:50:48you knew Olivia was in for a surprise, that's why it was funny.
0:50:48 > 0:50:50You understood she could not know what was coming up
0:50:50 > 0:50:53and she had a false belief. When you think about it,
0:50:53 > 0:50:56comedy, drama and many aspects of human storytelling
0:50:56 > 0:50:59requires us understanding a Theory of Mind.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01People who have difficulty
0:51:01 > 0:51:03understanding others' points of view,
0:51:03 > 0:51:06such as very young children or children with autism,
0:51:06 > 0:51:08would typically fail this type of task.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11They cannot see things from someone else's perspective.
0:51:11 > 0:51:15They do not understand that others can have false beliefs.
0:51:15 > 0:51:16When we develop a Theory of Mind,
0:51:16 > 0:51:19we start to care about what others think of us.
0:51:19 > 0:51:21As children develop a sense of their self-identity,
0:51:21 > 0:51:23independently of their family,
0:51:23 > 0:51:26they seek out the approval of all their friends.
0:51:26 > 0:51:30However, one problem is they feel they're constantly being judged,
0:51:30 > 0:51:32which shows up as activation in parts of the brain
0:51:32 > 0:51:35that monitor social interactions. So it's tough
0:51:35 > 0:51:39being a teenager. We all know how horrible it feels to be left out.
0:51:39 > 0:51:42Of course, brain imaging studies have shown that when this happens,
0:51:42 > 0:51:44this sort of rejection lights up
0:51:44 > 0:51:47those parts of the brain which respond to physical pain.
0:51:47 > 0:51:51So this social rejection pain is real.
0:51:51 > 0:51:52Maybe this need to belong
0:51:52 > 0:51:55explains why social networking has become so popular.
0:51:55 > 0:51:58Hands up if you're on Facebook or Twitter.
0:51:58 > 0:52:01That seems just about everybody. That's really good.
0:52:01 > 0:52:04Can I ask you, you're on Facebook. Why do you like being on Facebook?
0:52:04 > 0:52:07I keep in touch with friends from primary school.
0:52:07 > 0:52:09Keep in touch with friends. Anybody else? Hands up.
0:52:09 > 0:52:12Why do you like being on Facebook?
0:52:12 > 0:52:15- Yes, sir, what do you like? - It's just easy to contact people.
0:52:15 > 0:52:17It's easy to contact people. Any others?
0:52:17 > 0:52:19You can show people what you're doing.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22You can show people what you're doing. Anybody else?
0:52:22 > 0:52:23One at the back there.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27It's just nice to talk to people you haven't talked to for a while.
0:52:27 > 0:52:29So you can increase the communication
0:52:29 > 0:52:33and the physical boundaries which make difficult social interactions
0:52:33 > 0:52:36are that much easier when done electronically, isn't it?
0:52:36 > 0:52:41In fact, do any of you have friends in different countries on Facebook?
0:52:41 > 0:52:42See how easy it is
0:52:42 > 0:52:44when you can start talking to people across the globe.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46I think this is a really interesting part
0:52:46 > 0:52:48of our development as a society.
0:52:48 > 0:52:51We now have the technologies to speak to anyone
0:52:51 > 0:52:53around the world at any time,
0:52:53 > 0:52:56so the boundaries of physical space are no longer a problem.
0:52:56 > 0:52:58I sent out a tweet on Twitter.
0:52:58 > 0:53:01I'm not sure if anyone's on Twitter but a lot of people ask,
0:53:01 > 0:53:04"What's the point of Twitter? It seems to be for gossiping."
0:53:04 > 0:53:07But let's look at some of the responses we got.
0:53:07 > 0:53:11Here we go. We've got Nicola said, "Depending on how often you tweet,
0:53:11 > 0:53:14"Twitter can help us feel closer to each other."
0:53:14 > 0:53:16And I like this one. This is Tim. He says,
0:53:16 > 0:53:19"I would not have met my lovely, fantastic, smart girlfriend
0:53:19 > 0:53:21"if it were not for Twitter."
0:53:21 > 0:53:24The bottom one I really like as this is someone who's clever,
0:53:24 > 0:53:26who's thought about how we can communicate.
0:53:26 > 0:53:29He thinks Twitter's a little bit like a virtual brain.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32"Users are like neurons and the followers are like dendrites.
0:53:32 > 0:53:34"These are the connections,
0:53:34 > 0:53:37"and the whole network's greater than the sum of the parts."
0:53:37 > 0:53:40So this technology and the future is unknown but it is exciting
0:53:40 > 0:53:43and you guys are right at the prime, about to find out.
0:53:43 > 0:53:45Throughout these lectures,
0:53:45 > 0:53:48we've been considering the workings of the human brain
0:53:48 > 0:53:50very much from an engineering perspective.
0:53:50 > 0:53:52A biological computer, if you like.
0:53:52 > 0:53:55This has been a dream of science - to build an artificial brain
0:53:55 > 0:53:59that can perform the same skills and think like a human brain.
0:53:59 > 0:54:03When we started building machines to copy what human brains can do,
0:54:03 > 0:54:05the skills we thought would be really difficult,
0:54:05 > 0:54:08such as playing chess, turned out to be easy for computers.
0:54:08 > 0:54:12In fact, our best grandmaster chess players can be beaten
0:54:12 > 0:54:13by machines today.
0:54:13 > 0:54:17But the things that are trivially easy and effortless for humans,
0:54:17 > 0:54:19such as picking up a chess piece,
0:54:19 > 0:54:22turn out to be actually really difficult for computers.
0:54:22 > 0:54:24Robotics is developing at a rapid pace
0:54:24 > 0:54:27but could we really ever build a robot
0:54:27 > 0:54:31that thinks and feels like a human? Could a robot ever feel empathy?
0:54:33 > 0:54:37Things like computers, they can do things like voice recognition
0:54:37 > 0:54:40but getting a computer to understand a joke or a story
0:54:40 > 0:54:42is still a long way off.
0:54:43 > 0:54:45ROBOT: 'Is that so?'
0:54:45 > 0:54:48Well, yes, robots can seem very human and life-like,
0:54:48 > 0:54:51but that's because we programme you to behave like that.
0:54:52 > 0:54:55But you can't really understand what I'm saying.
0:54:56 > 0:55:00'If I cannot understand what you're saying
0:55:00 > 0:55:02'then how can I answer you back?'
0:55:02 > 0:55:04You've been programmed to. Look over there.
0:55:04 > 0:55:08'Doctor Dahl is operating me from his laptop.
0:55:08 > 0:55:10'Hello, Doctor Dahl.
0:55:10 > 0:55:13'But I can recognise your face,
0:55:13 > 0:55:16'so if you move yours, I will move mine.'
0:55:16 > 0:55:19Really? OK, let's try that out.
0:55:22 > 0:55:23Ah.
0:55:24 > 0:55:26Not unlike baby Finn.
0:55:26 > 0:55:29'And I can also be programmed to recognise special voice commands.
0:55:29 > 0:55:33'I also have movement and touch sensors,
0:55:33 > 0:55:36'so I can learn. How do humans learn to talk?'
0:55:36 > 0:55:39We're also programmed to learn language from others
0:55:39 > 0:55:41when we're very young.
0:55:41 > 0:55:44'If I am programmed and you are programmed, what is the difference?
0:55:44 > 0:55:48'Are not humans complex machines as well?'
0:55:48 > 0:55:49I guess we are in a way,
0:55:49 > 0:55:52but at the moment computers cannot understand human language
0:55:52 > 0:55:55because it's really just too complex.
0:55:55 > 0:55:58- 'We could learn, couldn't we?' - I guess so.
0:55:58 > 0:56:01But for the moment, you can only do what we tell you.
0:56:01 > 0:56:03So let's leave it at that, shall we?
0:56:03 > 0:56:05Who's presenting this lecture anyway?
0:56:05 > 0:56:08I'll finish by saying how clever the human brain is.
0:56:08 > 0:56:11So turn yourself off and go to sleep mode, would you?
0:56:11 > 0:56:13'Just you wait.'
0:56:14 > 0:56:16All right. Applause for Nao.
0:56:26 > 0:56:29Nao's right. There are robots learning from their experience
0:56:29 > 0:56:31and reprogramming themselves.
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Achieving the flexibility and creativity of the human brain,
0:56:34 > 0:56:35however, is a long way off
0:56:35 > 0:56:38but in principle it's not impossible.
0:56:38 > 0:56:41In the first lecture, we looked at what the human brain is.
0:56:41 > 0:56:46In the second lecture, we thought of the things it can do.
0:56:46 > 0:56:47And in tonight's lecture,
0:56:47 > 0:56:49we've discovered how it's evolved skills
0:56:49 > 0:56:52to learn from and pay attention to others.
0:56:52 > 0:56:55But why is it so important?
0:56:55 > 0:56:57Take a look at that clock.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01That's the estimated population of the world.
0:57:01 > 0:57:04There are currently nearly seven billion human brains
0:57:04 > 0:57:05living on this planet.
0:57:05 > 0:57:09In the past hour or so, the world's population has already risen
0:57:09 > 0:57:11by almost another 10,000 brains.
0:57:12 > 0:57:15Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
0:57:15 > 0:57:17Somehow we're all going to have to get along
0:57:17 > 0:57:19if we're going to survive as a species.
0:57:19 > 0:57:21It's a challenge but luckily
0:57:21 > 0:57:25we have brains especially evolved for interacting with others
0:57:25 > 0:57:28and really this is one of the main joys of life.
0:57:28 > 0:57:31So good night and look after your brain.
0:57:32 > 0:57:35APPLAUSE
0:57:35 > 0:57:38Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:57:38 > 0:57:42E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk