Dance and the mind
Peter is a reader in psychology and principle lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire, but his first love was dance. Before entering academia, he trained at the Guildford School of Acting and the Cecchetti Ballet, and worked as a professional dancer. Later, he went to study psychology and computational neuroscience and in 2008, he set up the first Dance Psychology Lab. This has enabled him to combine his twin passions of dance and psychology and, through experimental work, to explore the ways in which dance, and different types of dance, can affect the brain. His most recent work, and the subject of his talk, has involved investigating the effects of dance on people suffering from Parkinson's Disease. Dr Peter Lovatt's talk at TEDxObserver (http://www.guardian.co.uk/tedx) 2010 was cited by many in the audience as one of their highlights of the day.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group.

These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)