University of California Davis Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience

The UC Davis Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience and the UC Davis Center for Neuroscience sponsored two different types of outreach activities to celebrate 2017 Brain Awareness Week. First, a series of four public lectures were presented at the UC Davis Center for Neuroscience along with fun and interactive booths and research posters in the lobby to teach the public about the brain and brain research before and after the talks. Second, a group of graduate students and postdocs visited a local elementary school and a local high school to teach the students about brain anatomy and how the brain works. Event 1: A series of public lectures on “Mental Function and Dysfunction throughout Life” was presented at the Center for Neuroscience.by four prominent UC Davis scientists: Dr. Randi Hagerman on “Treatment Advances in Fragile X Syndrome and FXTAS”, Dr. Alex Nord on “Advances in Our Understanding of the Genetics of Intellectual Disability”, Dr. Arne Ekstrom on “Navigating Human Memory”, and Dr. Ladson Hinton on “Brain Health and Connections to Mental Health”. Interactive booths with brain anatomy, visual illusions, and brain puzzles were set up in the lobby. Over 150 members of the public participated. Event 2: Groups of graduate students and postdocs visited one local elementary school and one local high school to teach the students about the brain and the excitement of brain research. Presentations included a display of comparative animal brains, what is a neuron, visual and auditory illusions, neurological diseases, and neuroscience in pop culture. We estimate that around 150 students participated.