NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS NEWSLETTER
Volume 12, Issue 2 (February, 2008)

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Welcome to the Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter.

Here is what you will find in this issue:

1. What's New at Neuroscience for Kids
2. Neuroscience for Kids Site of the Month
3. Neuroscience for Kids Writing Contest - Closed
4. Adventures in Japan
5. Radio Interview
6. BAW Message from the DANA Alliance for Brain Initiatives
7. Media Alert
8. Treasure Trove of Brain Trivia
9. Support Neuroscience for Kids
10. 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 January including:

A. January Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news121.html
B. Squirrels Stay Safe with Snake Smell
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/ssnake.html

In January, 2 new figures were added and 27 pages were modified.
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2. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS "SITE OF THE MONTH"

The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for February is "The New Science of Addiction: Genetics and the Brain" at:

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/units/addiction/index.cfm

How do genes affect a person's risk to become addicted to drugs? What role does the environment play in addiction? What is the pathway for reward in the brain and how can drugs change it? These are some of the questions answered by researchers and educators at the University of Utah who created "The New Science of Addiction" Web site.

Start your exploration of the Web site by learning about the natural reward pathways in the brain (click on "Natural Reward Pathways Exist in the Brain"). There are games, slideshows and animations that explain how neurons work and how the brain is wired to reinforce behavior. Return to the main page and select "Drugs Alter the Brain's Reward Pathway" to see how specific drugs affect the brain. Again, there are interactive activities to help you learn. Additional sections of the Web site discuss how genetics and the environment (e.g., when and how drugs are used) influence addiction. The final section of the Web site discusses the many ethical, legal and social issues of addiction.

The Web site is very easy to use and there are many colorful pictures that help explain the material. The site was created with a Science Education Drug Abuse Partnership Award (SEDAPA) from The National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health.
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3. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS WRITING CONTEST - CLOSED

The NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS WRITING CONTEST is now closed and judging has begun. Winners will be notified by email and their prizes will be mailed within the next few weeks. Some of the winning entries will be posted on the Neuroscience for Kids web site and highlighted in next month's newsletter.
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4. ADVENTURES IN JAPAN

One of the enjoyable parts of being a scientist is discussing your research with other people. This often means that scientists travel to other cities for conferences and meetings. Last month I had the opportunity to go to Japan to present my research in Tokyo and Hamamatsu. While in Japan, I was also able to visit two schools to share my interest in neuroscience.

My first presentations were at Nihon University and Tokyo Women's Medical University. I toured laboratories at these places and then spoke with researchers. The following day I traveled by the Shinkansen (some people call it the "bullet train") to Hamamatsu. Early in the day, I visited a fourth grade class at Bancho Elementary School in Shizuoka. In the afternoon, I participated in a medical photonics meeting at Hamamatsu University.

I then traveled to Kobe. You might remember that Kobe suffered a huge earthquake in 1995. While in Kobe, I visited the Canadian Academy, an international school on the man-made Rokko Island, and spoke with students in an eighth grade science class. Then it was back to Hamamatsu on the Shinkansen where I spoke at the Japan Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery annual meeting.
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5. RADIO INTERVIEW

The Seattle National Public Radio station, KUOW, aired a 10-minute interview I did with them last month on their program called "Sound Focus." They wanted to know why I thought it was important for kids to know about the brain. The interview is archived on the KUOW web site and your can hear it by searching the "Sound Focus" page at:

http://www.kuow.org/program.php?current=SF

To find the interview enter -- neuroscience -- in the search box. You can fast forward to the interview that starts 44 minutes into the program.
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6. BAW MESSAGE FROM THE DANA ALLIANCE FOR BRAIN INITIATIVES

The DANA Alliance for Brain Initiatives sent me this special Brain Awareness Week (BAW) announcement for Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter readers:

"Get involved in Brain Awareness Week, March 10-16, 2008, the annual campaign to increase public awareness about the progress and benefits of brain research. Coordinated by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, Brain Awareness Week unites the efforts of universities, hospitals, patient advocacy groups, professional associations, government agencies, service organizations, and K-12 schools around the world in a week-long celebration of the brain. Now entering its thirteenth year, the Brain Awareness Week campaign includes more than 2,000 partners in 69 countries and benefits from the participation of key stakeholders such as the Society for Neuroscience and Pilot International.

During Brain Awareness Week, campaign partners convey the wonders of the brain and nervous system and the far-reaching influences and outcomes of neuroscience research to the public through exciting and innovative events. These include open houses at neuroscience laboratories, museum exhibits on the brain, lectures on an array of brain-related topics, and classroom workshops where students get a close-up view of real brain specimens. To find out how you can participate, visit the official campaign Web site at www.dana.org/brainweek."
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7. MEDIA ALERT

A. "Mind Reading is Now Possible" by Sharon Begley (NEWSWEEK magazine, January 21, 2008) discusses using brain activity to read thoughts.

B. "My Nose, My Brain, My Faith" by David Van Biema (TIME magazine, January 21, 2008) discusses using brain imaging to understand religious faith.

C. "The Science of Romance" is the cover story in TIME magazine (January 28, 2008). The articles discuss how our brains, bodies and senses are involved with romance.
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8. THE TREASURE TROVE OF BRAIN TRIVIA

A. In the 1800s, photographs called "Daguereotypes" used mercury in the development process. Unfortunately, this led to mercury poisoning in some people who used the method. (Source: Roberts, R.M., Serendipity. Accidental Discoveries in Science, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1989.)

B. The melody for the song "Yesterday" came to Paul McCartney in a dream. (Source: Miles, B., Paul McCartney. Many Years from Now, New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1997.)

C. 737 doctoral degrees in neuroscience were awarded in the US in 2006 (Source: Hoffer, T.B., M. Hess, V. Welch, Jr., and K. Williams. 2007. Doctorate Recipients from United States Universities: Summary Report 2006. Chicago: National Opinion Research Center.)

D. In 2002, the total annual cost (direct and indirect costs) of schizophrenia was $62.7 billion. (Source: Harding, A., A very expensive disease, The Scientist, December, 2007 supplement.)

E. The last words of writer Louisa M. Alcott (died in 1888) were: "Is it not meningitis?" Meningitis is an infection that leads to inflammation of the meninges, the coverings of the brain.
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9. SUPPORT NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS

To insure that Neuroscience for Kids stays available, we need your help. If you would like to contribute to the funding of Neuroscience for Kids, please visit:

Help Neuroscience for Kids
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10. 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)