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Psychologist to address life's big questions

The next talk in the new season of Café Scientifique will take place at 7pm on Tuesday 14 October at Ye Olde Beverlie, St Stephens Green, Canterbury.

The talk, which is titled How do we regulate the awareness of our own mortality? will be given by Dr Arnaud Wisman, Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Kent.

Café Scientifique is a free-of-charge informal gathering where everyone is welcome to explore and debate the latest ideas in science and technology. Accordingly, Dr Wisman's talk will argue that many of life's big questions can be answered by experimental existential psychological theories and the help of rigorous experimental methods derived from cognitive and social psychology.

These 'big questions' include: why is it so hard for people to coexist in peace? Why do people need to feel good about themselves? Why do people want to have children? Why do people try to control their bodies? Why is sex a taboo in most cultures? And finally, what has our awareness of mortality to do with all of this?

Forthcoming talks include The medical mystery of King George III by Martin Warren, Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Kent.

Café Scientifique in Canterbury is organised by Dr Dominique Chu at the Computing Laboratory, University of Kent.

Contact: mediaoffice@kent.ac.uk

Story published at 2:06pm 6 October 2008