State’s first ‘Brain Week’ to showcase wealth of brain science R&D

PROVIDENCE – A Providence-based national advocacy organization for mental illness research, Cure Alliance for Mental Illness, with support from the Brown Institute for Brain Sciences and the Norman Prince Neurosciences Institute, will host Rhode Island’s first-ever Brain Week, March 12-19.

“Brain Week Rhode Island is an accessible and enjoyable way to raise Rhode Islanders’ awareness of the importance of neuroscience research and its critical role in helping people lead healthier and more productive lives,” said Hakon Heimer, Brain Week Rhode Island’s chair and the alliance’s co-founder, who emphasized that these events are designed for the general population, not neuroscience experts. “We want to get Rhode Islanders excited about the promise of science to increase our knowledge of the nervous system, which … will help us to cure brain and spinal disorders. Brain Week aims to inspire the next generation of neuroscientists here in Rhode Island, and bring attention to our state’s burgeoning brain-related research, development and enterprise sector.”

Brain Week Rhode Island is part of Brain Awareness Week (www.dana.org/baw), a week every March when thousands of organizations and institutions worldwide organize creative learning activities in their communities to excite individuals of all ages about the brain and brain research.

After participating in a Brain Week event in New York a few years ago, we realized that, by knitting together all the events happening in one town, we could create a “Restaurant Week” for brain-themed events, said Heimer, who hopes Brain Week Rhode Island will grow to involve biotech and science equipment companies in future years.

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“The 2016 Rhode Island Innovates report [identifies] neuroscience as among the strongest innovation areas in the biosciences in Rhode Island. There is great opportunity to leverage the existing talent in the state, in brain sciences and neuroscience, to help build the med-tech and biotech sector,” said Dr. Diane Lipscombe, professor of neuroscience at Brown University and interim director at the Brown Institute for Brain Science. “Brain science and neuroscience research depends on the contributions of many disciplines, including biological, physical and theoretical sciences.” It’s exciting, she said, that Rhode Island’s brain science and neuroscience institutes are eager to collaborate, and Brain Week Rhode Island is a great venue for us to work together.

Brain Week Rhode Island includes eight days of family-friendly events, ranging from opportunities to learn about neuroscience research to fun brain-themed activities for all ages. Throughout the week, Brown neuroscientists will visit Rhode Island schools to conduct free presentations and workshops on neuroscience, to inspire the next generation of brain researchers.

Brown Brain Fair is a program highlight

The Brown Brain Fair is designed to make research about the brain accessible to audiences of all ages – from pre-kindergarten age children through adulthood – and backgrounds. Participating labs have been instructed to find creative ways through games, exhibits, displays, surveys, demonstrations and behavioral tasks to present their work, said Victoria Heimer-McGinn, a post-doctoral fellow at Brown. “Each table will introduce visitors to their field of brain science by addressing what is known, what the important mysteries still are and how their lab addresses these unanswered questions.”

According to Heimer-McGinn, the Alliance’s outreach coordinator and Brain Week Rhode Island’s associate chair, hands-on exhibits include microscope stations where visitors observe neurons up close, an EEG station where visitors use electrical stimulation to observe muscle contractions in model organisms and an anatomy station with real human brains on display.

Other tables make use of simple games to explain concepts, said Heimer-McGinn. For instance, one lab will employ behavioral tasks to illustrate how the brain learns and forms memories; another will use optical illusions to explain how vision is processed in the brain; yet another will use trivia as a starting point to talk about the biological basis of mental illness.

A virtual reality station will feature interactive demonstrations explaining how this technology is useful in research. Younger children can draw neurons, make homemade stress balls, enjoy tasty treats and experience brain-themed face painting. Finally, all visitors can experience MindDraw, a real-time digital art canvas controlled by brain waves, a project brought to the community by China Blue, an internationally known artist-in-residence at the Norman Prince Neurosciences Institute at Rhode Island Hospital.

The Brain Fair will enable grade-school students to make connections with researchers who want to promote the STEM disciplines in Rhode Island, added Heimer-McGinn. “Motivating a new generation of brain researchers is one of the central goals of Brain Week Rhode Island and the Brown Brain Fair will cater directly to that aim.”

Although additional events may be added, current scheduled activities are:

  • Saturday, March 12: Open Studio at PeaceLove Studios, Hope Artiste Village, Pawtucket
  • Tuesday, March 15, 6-8 p.m.: Mental Tapas: Stories, Song and Dance about Mental Illness, hosted by the alliance, Everett Theatre, Providence
  • Wednesday, March 16, 8 p.m.: The Story Collider features local storytellers presenting oral tales with a brain theme, AS220, Providence
  • Thursday, March 17, 8 p.m.: Movie Night: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in ‘The Deer Hunter’, Smith-Buonnano 106, Brown University, Providence
  • Friday, March 18, movie and panel discussion on depictions of mental illnesses (time and location to be determined)
  • Saturday, March 19, 9 am – noon: Brown Brain Fair, featuring Brown University’s Virtual Reality Lab and many other labs, Sayles Hall, Brown University, Providence

    Most Brain Week Rhode Island events are free and open to the public; advance reservations strongly advised. For a full schedule of Brain Week events and to reserve event tickets, visit:cwww.brainweekri.org.

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