Neuroscientists from local institutions, including Temple, Penn and Jefferson, among volunteers

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The Philadelphia Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience, in conjunction with the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, holds Brain Awareness Week to raise public awareness of brain research.

Activities and exhibits aimed at middle-school students range from increasing understanding of taste, smell and hearing to handling actual human brains. Maria Waselus and Veronica Oropeza, two graduate students from the College of Graduate  Studies at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, helped organize the event.

DATE: Friday, March 18, 2005

TIME: 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

LOCATION:
Harcourt Center, First Floor Science Center
Franklin Institute Science Museum
222 N. 20th Street
Philadelphia

BACKGROUND:
Some of the hands-on activities at a dozen booths include:

• Taste test: Participants hold their nose and then taste a red jellybean to determine whether it is cinnamon or cherry flavor.  Most children can’t identify the taste while holding their nose. The reason is because the smell and taste systems are interconnected. When smell is compromised, it affects taste.
• Hearing Activity: Children wear earmuffs such as those used to protect hearing in loud work environments. They can’t hear the tuning fork when it is held outside of the earmuffs, but when it is placed against the bone behind their ear they can “hear” the tuning fork. Children learn that the ear converts vibrations of the air into sounds.
• Brain Comparison:  Children learn about the brain shape and structure of various animals such as cats, birds, reptiles, and rodents. The children then try to match the appropriate brains to the correct animal based on what they have learned about the anatomy.
• Brain Safety: Children are given a raw egg in a plastic bag and told to drop it on the floor. It smashes. Volunteers then place eggs into Styrofoam “helmets” and dropped. The protected eggs don’t break, teaching children about the importance of using helmets while doing activities such as biking.

There is also a “brain bar” where children can see real preserved human brains and are allowed to examine these specimens.