Talks

In June 1609, two judges departed Bordeaux for the French-Spanish border to investigate a growing witchcraft panic. In the French Basque Country, witches were said to abduct children, whisking them away to nocturnal gatherings where they worshipped the devil. Frightening tales of cannibalism, vampirism, and demonic sex terrified their parents. Within four months, the witchcraft commission had executed perhaps as many as 80 women men, and the growing panic spread into Spain. In 1612, one of the judges, Pierre de Lancre, published a sensationalist account of this diabolical underworld, shaping how the sabbat—the black, beating heart of Europe’s witch-hunt—has been imagined ever since. But what really happened at these supposed gatherings of witches? This talk uncovers the hidden truths behind these lurid legends.

Join us for another of our annual multiple speaker events, featuring some people you may have heard talk before (about different subjects), some you will have never heard speak before.

The full schedule is:

• Escaping the Jehovah’s Witness 'cult' - Joe Williams
• BDSM and the law - Emma McClure
• Elon Musk's misinformation - Phil Armstrong
• The Telepathy Tapes and “psychic” children - Michael Marshall
• EMDR Therapy: Is it real or bullshit? - Liz Shaw
• What’s wrong with the NCT - Frankie Spickernell
• Is The Chase rigged? - Tom Williamson
• Distortion of history for political ends - Mark Horne

Religion is unique to humans (as far as we can tell), and universal across cultures. But at the same time, religion clearly isn’t for everyone. How did our species evolve to have religion, and why are so many abandoning it? In this talk, I’ll showcase some of my lab’s work over the years on atheism – how atheists are perceived globally, how stigmatization of atheism distorts our scientific theories, and how understanding atheism can help us form better scientific questions about religion, morality, and human nature.

We see food marketing everywhere – on TV, online, on billboards, bus shelters, sports stadia – but does it really affect what we eat? Nobody wants to believe they are being manipulated by the food industry and their bright and dynamic promotions, but unfortunately the evidence does suggest that ‘advertising works’. In this talk, I’ll share the many different ways in which food marketers grab our attention and persuade us to think positively of their brand and to buy and consume their products. I’ll discuss how our exposure to marketing can differ depending on where we live and how we are personally targeted with content online, as well as how advancing digital technologies are driving changes in our experiences of marketing now and in the future.

Time is running out for the most endangered group of birds on the planet – the vultures. With threats including persecution and poaching, over 70% of the world’s 23 vulture species are facing extinction. But vultures, often referred to as nature’s clean-up crew, are critical to sustaining healthy environments by controlling disease. We must fight desperately to save these maligned birds, starting with changing people’s minds (and hearts) about them.