NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS NEWSLETTER
Volume 17, Issue 12 (December, 2013)

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Welcome to the Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter.

In this issue:

1. What's New at Neuroscience for Kids
2. Neuroscience for Kids Site of the Month
3. 2014 Neuroscience for Kids Writing Contest
4. Neuroscience for Monks
5. Brainy Gift Ideas
6. Media Alert
7. Treasure Trove of Brain Trivia
8. Support Neuroscience for Kids
9. How to Stop Your Subscription
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1. WHAT'S NEW AT NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS

Neuroscience for Kids had several new additions in November including:

A. November Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news1711.html

In November, 1 new figures were added and 5 pages were modified.
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2. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS "SITE OF THE MONTH"

The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for December is "Frontiers for Young Minds" at:

http://kids.frontiersin.org/

"Frontiers for Young Minds" calls itself "a web-based scientific journal with an editorial board of kids." All of the articles are about neuroscience, so the web site is a great place to learn about new research in the field.

Articles published in Frontiers for Young Minds are written by scientists, but are then reviewed by kids between the ages of 8 and 18 years old. This process ensures that the material is scientifically accurate and also readable by a younger audience. The titles of some of the new articles on the site include:

A. Our brain enjoys making friends
B. Why sleep?
C. The truth about a birds eye view
D. Going to school to sculpt the brain

The developers of Frontiers for Young Minds are looking for more young reviewers so if you are interested in participating in this project, contact the Frontiers editorial office.
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3. 2014 NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS POETRY WRITING CONTEST

The 2014 NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS POETRY WRITING CONTEST is now open to students in kindergarten through high school, college students, teachers and parents. Use your imagination to create a poem, limerick or haiku about the brain and you might win a prize. The complete set of rules and the official entry form for the contest are available at:

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/contest14.html

Entries must be received by February 1, 2014!
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4. NEUROSCIENCE FOR MONKS

Last month I took my third trip to India to teach neuroscience to a group of Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns. For this trip, I spent two weeks at the Songsten Library in the north India city of Dehradun. To read about my trip, please see my blog at:

http://neuroinindia.blogspot.com
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5. BRAINY GIFT IDEAS

Are you looking for a special gift to give to a friend, teacher, or relative? Can't decide what to get? Why not give something brainy? Brainy gifts are great to say "Happy Holidays,", "Happy New Year" and "Congratulations!" Here are some suggestions:

A. Brainy T-shirts, mugs and other items from NEURO4KIDS.COM:

http://www.neuro4kids.com

B. Books about the brain: for suggestions, see the Neuroscience for Kids Book Review page at:

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/bookreview.html

C. Crafts: spend little or no money on a gift and create your own "brainy gift." The Neuroscience for Kids web site has many craft projects that you can turn into gifts. See:

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/experi.html
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6. MEDIA ALERT

A. "The confounding Debate over Lyme Disease in the South" by Wendy Orent (DISCOVER magazine, December, 2013).

B. "Insects Recognize Faces Using Processing Mechanism Similar to That of Humans" by Elizabeth A. Tibbetts and Adrian G. Dyer (SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, December, 2013).

C. As part of the new NeuroTalks public lecture series, the University of Washington (UW) Graduate Program in Neurobiology & Behavior is excited to present Dr. Tom Reh, who will speak about 'Restoring Sight to the Blind: the Future Looks Bright' at 7PM on Tuesday Dec 10, 2013 in the UW Foege Hall Auditorium (3720 15th Ave NE).

Please join us for a fun evening of neuroscience, geared for the curious non-expert. Dr. Tom Reh will discuss newly discovered ways to use stem cells to restore vision. After the talk, enjoy drinks, light snacks and conversation with a group of vision experts, faculty and student members of our Neuroscience community. Free registration is required at http://tinyurl.com/Neuro-Dec10-2013.
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7. THE TREASURE TROVE OF BRAIN TRIVIA

A few statistics from last month's annual Society for Neuroscience conference in San Diego, CA.

A. More than 30,000 neuroscientists attended.

B. This conference is the world's largest meeting focused on scientific discovery related to the brain and nervous system.

C. 15,000 scientific presentations were developed.

D. 34 professional development workshops were held.

E. 600 exhibitors attended.

Next year's annual SfN meeting will be held November 15-19, 2014, in Washington, DC. (Statistics: Society for Neuroscience, http://www.sfn.org)
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8. SUPPORT NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS

To ensure that Neuroscience for Kids stays available, we need your help. All contributions to Neuroscience for Kids are tax deductible (subject to IRS regulations). If you would like to donate to Neuroscience for Kids, please visit:

Help Neuroscience for Kids
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9. HOW TO STOP RECEIVING THIS NEWSLETTER

To remove yourself from this mailing list and stop your subscription to the Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter, send e-mail to Dr. Eric H. Chudler at: chudler@u.washington.edu
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Your comments and suggestions about this newsletter and the "Neuroscience for Kids" web site are always welcome. If there are any special topics that you would like to see on the web site, just let me know.

Eric

Eric H. Chudler, Ph.D.
(e-mail: chudler@u.washington.edu)
(URL: http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/neurok.html)