Psychopaths and a science festival: the October events to book now

Why Do Some People Become Psychopaths? 

Royal Society, London, 19th October

Scientists will tell you that psychopathy, characterised by the lack of empathy and guilt, is a developmental disorder. While few would now subscribe to the idea of people being “born bad,” individuals with such temperaments may well have a genetic vulnerability. As they mature, they become unable to respond to the distress or emotional cues of others. Join Essi Viding, Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at the UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences, as she delivers the 2017 Rosalind Franklin lecture on the origins of this darkly fascinating condition—and asks whether it can be prevented.

Manchester Science Festival

Various venues, Manchester, 19th to 29th October

An impressive headliner at this festival, which bills itself as the largest in the country: the city’s Museum of Science and Industry will host Robots, the blockbuster exhibition on humanoid robots that wowed visitors to its sister museum in London earlier this year. There will be conversations on the future of reproduction, how Manchester can become a “smart city,” and whether burgers are causing an environmental apocalypse. There are sessions for all ages, including ones on meteorites and a killer fungus. Because, as you already know, mushrooms aren’t always fun, guys.