Of evil mice and men: Can we blame crime on our genes?

This week, a number of newspapers announced an intriguing scientific discovery. The Telegraph reported the discovery of a psychological “root of all evil”, while The Express announced the possibility of a cure for said evil. Villainishness solved on a prescription: what a time to be alive!

If you haven’t already guessed, these headlines are a touch hyperbolic. For starters, we’re talking about evil MICE, and as Eddie Izzard might suggest, it’s quite hard to picture what a truly evil mouse looks like.

Whether or not the findings can be replicated in humans, what the research actually highlights is fascinating nonetheless. As a quick summary, male mice were trained to act like jerks, fighting and bullying smaller, weaker mice. The scientists tracked brain activity within their tiny mousey skulls, and discovered that the ventrolateral part of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMHvl) activated before they committed a violent act – even when they were just travelling to another compartment to assault a fellow rodent, and before they could see or smell their victim. Their mouse crimes...