“Brain Blast,” a half-day of free, hands-on activities for children and adults will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, March 2, at Vanderbilt Health One Hundred Oaks.
Vanderbilt students and neuroscientists will lead activities on the first floor, at Entrance D. Participants will be able to “build a neuron,” experiment with DNA, and touch a real brain.
“Brain Blast” is a highlight of Vanderbilt’s annual Brain Awareness Month, sponsored by the Vanderbilt Brain Institute to raise awareness about brain disorders and neuroscience research.
The public is invited to attend two other free “Brainstorm” events:
• “Enhancing School Performance with Family Training,” the Jeanette J. Norden Outreach Lecture, by Helen Neville, Ph.D., professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Oregon, at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 12, in the Wyatt Center Rotunda of Vanderbilt’s Peabody College.
• “Educational Neuroscience,” a panel discussion featuring Brain Institute director Mark Wallace, Ph.D., and Vanderbilt investigators Bruce McCandliss, Ph.D., Laurie Cutting, Ph.D., and Gavin Price, Ph.D., at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 28, in the Wyatt Center Rotunda.
Five other lectures are aimed at the Vanderbilt community:
• “The Flavor Hypothesis: Did Retronasal Smell Drive Human Evolution?” by Gordon Shepherd, M.D., D.Phil., professor of Neurobiology, Yale University, 3 p.m. Monday, March 4, 1220 MRB III.
• “Experimental, Genetic and Epigenetic Effects on Human Neurocognitive Development,” the Brainstorm Keynote Lecture, by Helen Neville, Ph.D., 4 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, room 241, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, One Magnolia Circle.
• “The Miniature Brain: Activation of the Cortical Microcircuit during Rest, Sensory Stimulation and Top-down Attention,” by Alexander Maier, Ph.D., assistant professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt, 4:10 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, in 1220 MRB III.
• “Remembrances of Things Past: Neural Signals and the Organization of Memory,” by Sean Polyn, Ph.D., assistant professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt, 4:10 p.m. Friday, March 22, room 204, Mayborn Building, Peabody College.
• “Go, No Stop! Cognitive Neuroscience of the Expression and Suppression of Impulsive Motor Actions,” by Wery van den Wildenberg, Ph.D., assistant professor of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, 4:10 p.m. Wednesday, March 27, 208 Light Hall.
For more information, contact Beth Sims at beth.sims@vanderbilt.edu or 936-3705.
