Thalamostriatal projections revisited - British Neuroscience ...

SCIENCE AND COMMUNICATIONand (3) in the dialogue between the audience and discussionpanelists David Clarke (music theorist), Elaine Perry (aneuropathologists with a deep interest in consciousnessand the effects of medicinal plants), and Sinead Murphy(philosopher). Visual images of brain rhythms, fluorescentdyedneurons, neurosurgical procedures, and kaleidoscopicmemories from Susan’s exhibition helped the participants tocross the disciplinary divide and understand whatconsciousness means to others.The symposium helped to draw out a commonunderstanding of what consciousness is and how it isexpressed, and to explore common beliefs aboutBrain Awareness Weekin SouthamptonJoannne Bailey (far right) with Deji Asuni and Tracy Newmanconsciousness as an entity, whether it is physical,psychological, or elusive. As well as these two main events,a public lecture by Mark Lythgoe on the search for Einstein’sbrain was also scheduled for this week. Unfortunately thiswas cancelled at the last minute when power failure on theEast Coast rail line left Mark stranded for eight hours withdwindling lap top batteries and supplies of refreshment.Perhaps for Mark and his fellow travelers, this also provideda moment to reflect on the way the world can impact on ourconsciousness. Many thanks Network Rail.By Colin Ingram, Institute of Neuroscience, University ofNewcastleIn early March this year, a group of enthusiastic volunteersfrom Southampton University took on the task of promotingneuroscience to the general public, from junior schoolchildren to grandparents. Our aim was to strike up a passionfor neuroscience in the potential researchers of tomorrow –not a completely straightforward task! For many people, thebrain is a mysterious structure that is needed for life andoccasionally malfunctions leading to neurodegeneration,such as Alzheimer’s or Huntington’s Disease.To promote the brain as an exciting structure that can bestudied and understood, we designed various interactivegames all with brain related prizes. One game, ‘label yourown brain cap’, used silicon swimming caps with all themajor brain regions printed on it; The children had to nameeach region and describe its function and, in so doing,helped raise their awareness of where each brain region is intheir heads. All the answers were available on posters on thesurrounding display along with information about what aneuroscientist does and what cells the brain is comprised of.The diligence and precision with which some of the childrenlabelled their brain hats was outstanding, truly a verymotivating sight, but whether they were motivated by thethought of winning a walking brain, a brain mould, or agrowing brain I cannot be sure! The hat task also providedmuch amusement throughout the day as various helpersmodelled the hats and helped to promote our cause.Agarose and jelly brains made from brain moulds were usedto illustrate what a whole brain looks like. The agarose braininjected with red food colouring produced a fantastic slimybrain that almost lasted the whole day despite being pokedand prodded by small children eager to put their hand all theway through it to see what it feels like.Manipulating ‘play doh’ into the shape of either an astrocyteor a neuron proved to be another popular interactive gamefor the visitors. Children and parents first viewed the cellsunder a light microscope before being set the task ofmoulding the play doh in a Petri dish into one of the twodifferent cell types. I have never seen so many pink, brown,green and blue neurons perfectly sculpted with a myelinsheath encased axon and tiny little sausage roll shapeddendrites! 150 neurons and astrocytes were carefullyformed and handed over with great pride to be displayed onthe boards behind the stand.Overall the day was a great success; maximum fun was hadby both participants and helpers alike. The children wereinvolved in the tasks and consequently appeared to be reallyenthused and interested in the function, structure and healthof the brain. We hope that some will be inspired to pursueneuroscientific research and help us to progress in ourlearning and understanding of brain function anddysfunction and tackle the increasing problems ofneurodegeneration.Many thanks all the people that supported and helped tomake the day fun, interesting and successful, in particularTracy Newman, Deji Asuni and Catherine Cowen, and toeveryone that helped out on the stand during the day.By Joanne Bailey, University of Southampton25