Federal University of Minas Gerais

Our event consists of three different activities: a workshop, a cinema session and an open discussion and our aim was disclosed about neuroscience to the general public. This workshop includes five stands. The first stand is about brain structures and contains a lot of anatomic models. The idea is understand and compare our nervous system with it of other animals. The second stand was about neuromyths and we did a card game with people. It is an interesting idea for change misconception that are disseminate in media. In the third stand, we constructed a lot of kinds of illusions. These are thought with shape for people deconstruct them and perceive that are deceived by the vision. One part of the stand is to you do your own illusion with a picture. The fourth stand consists of three experiments showing how signal happens in nervous system. One of the experiments is a mouse controlled by eye blinks. The other is an equipment used to stimulate the muscle of volunteers and the third is stimulation of a paw of cockroach with music or voice. They possibility the comparison of how different systems work in the same way by electric signals. The place dedicated to kids have a workbook for color and do other activities. We also promoted a cinema session, named “Popcorn and Neuroscience”, where a movie was watched and discussions about Neuroscience were made. The third activity, named “Controversial Coffee” was an open discussion about the use of animals in science and education.

Baw participation benefited my organization and local community facilitating the dialog between brain researchers and society, stimulating new researchers doing a bridge between knowledge of University and the general public. In relation to local community, the event is important to inform and divulge neurosciences, this stimulates an interest about science and can change misconceptions that are divulge in media incorrectly. The immediate outcome was the interest of people to the next event.

If you plan a big event is very important the organization of scales of times with the organizers for permits the same energy and sources during all events. Other suggestions are before the dates of event, search for sponsorship that can help with costs and make the plans possible, but if you don’t have a sponsorship don’t give up you can do a small event with a big importance for your community.

We just start following.