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Welcome to the Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter.
In this issue:
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Neuroscience for Kids had several new additions in July including:
A. July Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news2307.html
B. New Neuroscience in the News
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/inthenews.html
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The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for August is "Seeing Data" at:
After scientists collect data, they must show their data to other people. For example, scientists will share their data when they publish papers in journals, give talks at meetings and present posters at conferences. The accurate and clear displays of data are essential to express the meaning of experimental results. This is where this month's Site of the Month, "Seeing Data," comes in: making sense of data visualization.
I suggest that you concentrate your exploration of "Seeing Data" on material within the Developing Visualisation Literacy section of the web site. This section provides the basics including key terms to help understand data visualisation, things to look for when you see a graph or chart, tips to create your own visualisations and examples of different displays. Although the site is not specifically related to neuroscience, it contains information that can be used by anyone who needs to display data.
Whether you are a student, teacher, or scientist, "Seeing Data" will give you something to think about the next time you want to share your data with others.
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Last month, Consumer Reports reported on an investigation concerning the potential dangers of bicycle helmets sold online.
Bike helmets sold in the United States are supposed to meet safety standards set by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Helmets must pass tests to demonstrate that they provide a certain level of protection from skull fracture. Helmets that pass these tests include a label showing that they comply with the standards. However, according to Consumer Reports, if you buy a bike helmet online, you may not be getting a helmet that passes these tests.
Shopping online from places such as Amazon.com, Sears.com, Aliexpress.com and LightInTheBox.com, Consumer Reports workers were able to buy 13 bike helmets that did not have labels indicating that they passed CPSC tests. Because the helmets did not have a label, they may not have been tested and therefore, there is no way to determine whether the helmets passed any safety tests. One helmet purchased by Consumer Reports had a label that did not have all of the information required by the CPSC. Some helmets may even have fake labels.
So, what can you do to make sure your bike helmet has been properly testing? Consumer Reports suggests:
More information: " Bike Helmets That Don't Meet Safety Standards Are Widely Available, Consumer Reports Finds" by Kevin Loria, July 1, 2019.
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A. "What are Animals Thinking When They Face Off?" by Gareth Arnott and Robert W. Elwood (SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, August, 2019).
B. "Mirror Image: How the mind reflects on reality" is the cover story in the July-August 2019 issue of AMERICAN SCIENTIST magazine. Also, this magazine has "Seeing the 'Sixth Sense'"by Robert Frederick and "On the Scent Trail of Parkinson's Disease" by Katie L. Burke.
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The month's brain trivia all come from "The Soul of an Octopus. A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness" by Sy Montgomery (New York: Atria Paperback, 2015).
A. Three fifths of the neurons in an octopus are found in its arms, not in its brain.
B. An octopus brain has 50 to 75 different lobes.
C. An octopus eye can detect polarized light.
D. An octopus can see only about eight feet away.
E. An octopus has only one visual pigment in its eye; it may be able to "see" color using its skin.
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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)