NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS NEWSLETTER
Volume 18, Issue 11 (November, 2014)

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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. Neuroscience for Kids Drawing Contest
4. Neuroscience in India
5. Nobels for Neuroscientists
6. Brainy Gifts Ideas
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 October including:

A. October Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news1810.html

B. 2015 Neuroscience for Kids Drawing Contest
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/contest15.html
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2. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS "SITE OF THE MONTH"

The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for November is "Grey Matters" at:

https://greymattersjournal.org/

Grey Matters is a new quarterly journal written and produced by undergraduate students at the University of Washington. Two issues of the journal are available and can be read online. The current issue of Grey Matters includes articles about dreaming, head injury, transcranial magnetic stimulation, synesthesia, brain evolution, brain computer interfaces, and cognitive enhancement. There is even a neuroscience-related crossword puzzle for you to try.

Earlier this year, Grey Matters hosted "An Evening with Neuroscience" that brought the public together with a group of neuroscientists. You can hear the entire event on the Grey Matters web site.
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3. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS DRAWING CONTEST

Get out your pencils, pens and markers! The NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS DRAWING CONTEST is now open to students in kindergarten through high school, teachers and parents. Use your imagination to draw a picture about the nervous system 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/contest15.html

Here is a brief description of the drawing contest rules:

A. Drawings must be done by hand using pencils, pens, markers, and/or crayons and submitted on an official entry form (or copy of the form).

B. Entries will be divided into five categories based on age. Complete one of the following sentences and draw a picture to illustrate the sentence; if you are in:

Kindergarten to Grade 2: "My brain helps me ________________."

Grade 3 to Grade 5: "Brain Fitness: I keep my brain healthy by _________."

Grade 6 to Grade 8: "My brain is like a _________ because___________."

Grade 9 to Grade 12: "My favorite part of the brain is ________ because _____."

College students, teachers (all grades) and parents: "My favorite neuroscientist is ______ because _______."

Web sites for teacher and parent drawing ideas:

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

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

SPECIAL HINT TO NEWSLETTER READERS: if you are in grade 6 to 8, do NOT draw a picture that compares the brain to a computer, a book, a sponge or a robot. These comparisons are very common and are unlikely to win. Be creative!

C. To enter the drawing contest, mail your completed entry form to the address listed on the entry form.

D. Entries must be received by February 1, 2015, and will not be returned. Winners will be announced no later than March 1, 2015.

E. Drawings will be judged by the staff of Neuroscience for Kids or by other individuals designated by Dr. Eric H. Chudler. Drawings will be judged on the basis of originality, scientific accuracy and overall design.

F. There will be several winners in each age group. Winners will be awarded a neuroscience book or other prize related to the brain.

Good luck to everyone!
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4. NEUROSCIENCE IN INDIA

Last month I spent two weeks in Dharamsala, India, teaching neuroscience to a group of Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns. Read about my experience on my trip blog at:

http://neuroinindia.blogspot.com
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5. NOBELS FOR NEUROSCIENTISTS

Neuroscientists were the winners of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. John O'Keefe, May-Britt Moser and Edvard I. Moser were recognized by the Nobel Prize committee "for their discoveries of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain". Read about their work on the Nobel Prize web site at:

http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2014/
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6. 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, ties 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 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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7. MEDIA ALERT

A. "The Neuroscience of Meditation" is the cover story in the November, 2014, issue of SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN magazine.

B. Several neuroscience-related articles in the November, 2014, issue of SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND including "Cyborg Confidential" by Sandra Upson, "When Two Brains Connect" by Rajesh P. N. Rao and Andrea Stocco, "Decoding the Brain" by Larry Greenemeier, "Your Electric Pharmacy" by Marom Bikson and Peter Toshev and "Let There Be Light" by Edward S. Boyden.
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8. THE TREASURE TROVE OF BRAIN TRIVIA

A. "Deli bal" is a honey found in Turkey that contains grayanotoxin, a neurotoxin from the rhododendron plant. Consuming deli bal can make someone feel light-headed and may even produce hallucinations.

B. Each year, the United States performs 102.7 MRI exams/1,000 people and Greece performs 320.4 CT exams/1,000 people (Source: OECD Health Statistics 2013, OECD, http://www.oecd.org/health/healthdata)

C. Stimulus thresholds for taste:
Sour, using hydrochloric acid = 0.0009N
Salty, using sodium chloride = 0.01M
Sweet, using sucrose = 0.01M
Bitter, using quinine = 0.000008M
(Reference: Guyton, A.C. and Hall, J.E., Textbook of Medical Physiology, 11th Edition, Philadelphia: Elsevier Saunders, 2006.)

D. Venom from the Chinese red-headed centipede may produce an effective pain reliever (Source: Yang S, Xiao Y, Kang D, Liu J, Li Y, Undheim EA, Klint JK, Rong M, Lai R, King GF. Discovery of a selective NaV1.7 inhibitor from centipede venom with analgesic efficacy exceeding morphine in rodent pain models. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2013 Sep 30.)

E. Canadian neurosurgeon Dr. Wilder Penfield (born 1891; died 1976) received his undergraduate degree in literature from Princeton University in 1913.
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9. 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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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)