NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS NEWSLETTER
Volume 19, Issue 1 (January, 2015)

____________________________________________________________
HAPPY NEW YEAR from Neuroscience for Kids

____________________________________________________________
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. University of Washington Brain Awareness Week Open House
5. New Paper
6. Bloomin' Brains Summer Camp
7. Neuroseeds Teacher Workshop
8. Summer Research for High School Students/Teacher and Undergraduates
9. Media Alert
10. Treasure Trove of Brain Trivia
11. Support Neuroscience for Kids
12. How to Stop Your Subscription
____________________________________________________________

1. WHAT'S NEW AT NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS

Neuroscience for Kids had several new additions in December including:

A. December Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news1812.html
B. Red or Green Fire Trucks: Which are Safer?
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/redgreen.html
C. Bicycle Helmets Recalled
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/helmetr.html

In December, 18 new figures were added and 28 pages were modified.
__________________________________________________________

2. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS "SITE OF THE MONTH"

The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for January is "Neurology Now" at:

http://journals.lww.com/neurologynow/pages/default.aspx

Neurology Now is an official publication of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). The magazine is written for patients and caregivers, but anyone interested in research and treatment of neurological disorders will find the information useful. In addition to an online version of the current issue magazine, the web site has an archive to past issues, links to other AAN resources, podcasts and videos.
__________________________________________________________

3. NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS DRAWING CONTEST

The deadline to enter the NEUROSCIENCE FOR KIDS DRAWING CONTEST is one month away! Students, teachers and parents are all welcome to participate. 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

The deadline to receive entries is February 1, 2015. Good luck to everyone!
__________________________________________________________

4. 2015 UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON BRAIN AWARENESS WEEK OPEN HOUSE

Brain Awareness Week (BAW) is a yearly event to promote the public and personal benefits of brain research. As part of international BAW at the University of Washington, you are invited to an Open House on Tuesday, March 3, 2015.

The Brain Awareness Week Open House will include an interactive group assembly about the brain and hands-on exhibits that highlight different aspects of brain research. The Open House is scheduled for Tuesday, March 3, 2015, in the University of Washington Husky Union Building (Seattle, WA). Because of the high interest in the Open House and limited space available, we must restrict the number of people who can attend. Additional information (parking instructions, etc.) will be sent to the classes that are selected to attend.

For more information about UW BAW Open House, contact Dr. Eric H. Chudler (e-mail: chudler@u.washington.edu) or visit the UW BAW web page at:

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

If you would like to attend the Open House, please complete the online application located at:

https://catalyst.uw.edu/webq/survey/chudler/253585

Those teachers and classes selected to attend the Open House will be notified no later than February 1, 2015. Register early - space fills up quickly!
__________________________________________________________

5. NEW PAPER

"Explain the Brain: Websites to Help Scientists Teach Neuroscience to the General Public" is the title of a paper I wrote with Kristen Bergsman that was published last month in the journal CBE-Life Sciences Education (LSE). The paper describes resources that people can use when they talk to audiences of all ages. I hope people will make use of the ideas in the paper, especially when they are doing presentations during Brain Awareness Week. You can read the entire paper here:

http://www.lifescied.org/content/13/4/577.full
__________________________________________________________

6. BLOOMIN' BRAINS SUMMER CAMP

Middle school students are encouraged to apply to the Bloomin' Brains Summer Camp that will be held on the University of Washington campus in Seattle from July 13 to July 15, 2015. This will be the third year of the summer camp and I am sure students will enjoy the experience.

For more information about the camp and online registration, see:

https://sites.google.com/site/neuroseeds/bloomin-brains-summer-camp

This camp is sponsored by my Sowing the Seeds of Neuroscience program.
__________________________________________________________

7. NEUROSEEDS TEACHER WORKSHOP

You can call it a summer camp for teachers! Here at the University of Washington, we will hold a workshop for teachers August 3-7, 2014. During the workshop, teachers will work through the Sowing the Seeds of Neuroscience curriculum. Teachers who complete the workshop will be able to check out Neuroseeds kits for use in their classrooms during the school year. For more information and workshop registration, see:

https://sites.google.com/site/neuroseeds/neuroseeds-teacher-workshop

This workshop is sponsored by my Sowing the Seeds of Neuroscience program.
__________________________________________________________

8. SUMMER RESEARCH FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS/TEACHERS AND UNDERGRADUATES

The Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE) is a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center with the mission "to develop innovative ways to connect a deep mathematical understanding of how biological systems acquire and process information with the design of effective devices that interact seamlessly with human beings."

As part of the CSNE education program, where I am the Executive Director, high school students, high school teachers, and undergraduate students have the opportunity to join research laboratories during the summer of 2015 on the Seattle campus of the University of Washington. For more information, including requirements and application materials, please visit:

http://www.csne-erc.org/education
__________________________________________________________

9. MEDIA ALERT

A. "Why We Have Free Will" by Eddy Nahmias (SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, January, 2015).

B. "The Acoustic World of Harbor Porpoises" by Magnus Wahlberg, Meike Linnenschmidt, Peter Madsen, Danuta Wisniewska, and Lee Miller (AMERICAN SCIENTIST, January-February, 2015).

C. "When the Cause of Stroke Is Cryptic" by David Kent and David Thaler (AMERICAN SCIENTIST, January-February, 2015).

D. Many neuroscientific discoveries made the top 100 stories of 2014 selected by DISCOVER magazine including: Schizophrenia Study Finds New Genetic Links (#11), Stem Cells Make Insulin, Restore Retinas (#12), Building the Mouse Brain Mega Map (#18) The Best Brain Model Yet (#22), A Sensitive Advance in Prosthetics (#40), How Was My Childhood? I Forget (#52), Can Vitamin D Prevent Alzheimer's Disease? (#65), The Brain's Consciousness Kill Switch (#68), Elephants Recognize Humans By Voice (#70), From the Mouths of Babes (#75), Plotting the Pattern of Emotion (#78), Fly Inspires Better Hearing Aids (#79), Want a Better Brain? Sleep On It (#83), A Jolt for Dull Thoughts (#92), The Nose Knows More Than We Thought (#99).

E. The new issue of SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND (January/February 2015 Issue) has articles about burnout, autism, addiction, happiness, eye tracking and women in science.

F. Last month, Science Centre Singapore opened a new exhibit titled "Tuning in: Brain and Body." The exhibit uses art, imaging and interactive activities to help visitors explore the brain. See:

http://www.science.edu.sg/exhibitions/Pages/TuninginBrainBody.aspx

The Franklin Institute (Philadelphia, PA) also has a new exhibit titled "Your Brain"; see:

https://www.fi.edu/exhibit/your-brain

G. Free Coursera courses: i. "Medical Neuroscience" taught by Dr. Leonard E. White starts on January 5, 2015; join here:

https://www.coursera.org/course/medicalneuro

ii. "Visual Perception and the Brain" taught by Dr. Dale Purves starts on January 7, 2015; join here:

https://www.coursera.org/course/visualpercepbrain
__________________________________________________________

10. THE TREASURE TROVE OF BRAIN TRIVIA

A. The National Institutes of Health National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) has been renamed as the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).

B. Pioneering neuroscientist and Nobel Prize winner Santiago Ramon y Cajal wrote science fiction books using the name "Dr. Bacteria." (Source: Otis, L., Ramon y Cajal, a pioneer in science fiction, Int. Microbiol., 4:175-178, 2001.)

C. The term "brainwashing" emerged during the Korean War. The word comes from the Chinese phrase "xi nao" that means "to wash the brain." (Source: Steinmetz, S., There's A Word for It. New York: Harmony Books, 2010.)

D. The olfactory bulb of a shark makes up to 3-14% of its total brain mass. (Source: Helfman, G. and Burgess, G.H., Sharks. The Animal Answer Guide. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014.)

E. 2014 Nobel Prize winning neuroscientist May-Britt Moser wore a dress with a grid cell pattern to the award ceremony. See the dress at: http://www.matthewhubble.com/Nobel_Laureate_May-Britt_Mosers_Dress.html


_________________________________________________________

11. 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
_________________________________________________________

12. 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
_________________________________________________________

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)