Brain puzzles, brain teasers and brain pencils were handed out at the WOW Hall on Saturday to kick off Brain Awareness Week in Eugene.
The University-sponsored event began with a Brain Awareness Exposition during the weekend, which included family-friendly exhibits explaining how the brain works. Other events for the week include a Brain Awareness Pub at Cozmic Pizza on Tuesday with a discussion by University psychology professor Michael Wehr@@http://uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Michael%20Wehr/674@@ about how the brain processes music. His lecture is followed by a performance from local band Flapper Dan.@@http://www.reverbnation.com/show/5905214@@
Mandy Hampton Wray,@@http://uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Mandy*Hampton*Wray@@ a research associate at the University Brain Development Lab,@@http://bdl.uoregon.edu/Outreach/outreach.php?page=awareness@@ organized the week. She and Eric Pakulak,@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=staff&d=person&b=name&s=Eric+Pakulak@@ outreach coordinator at the lab and research associate, wanted to bring the internationally celebrated week back to Eugene. Pakulak said it has been about 10 years since Eugene organized events for Brain Awareness Week.
“The Brain Development Lab does a lot of outreach in general throughout the year,” Wray said. “We think it’s really important to be able to share evidence-based research and findings about the brain to the community.”
Both Wray and Pakulak said they wanted the events to appeal to a broader audience, which is why most events are not held on campus.
University graduate student Ryan Giuliano@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Ryan+Giuliano@@ helped organize the brain pub and an ensuing 5K jog at Alton Baker Park on Sunday, Mar. 18th, which will conclude the week. Because the University has a strong psychology and neuroscience program, Giuliano thinks the event will have a good base in Eugene.
“The brain in particular is something that people get really excited about,” he said. “Doing outreach helps people get excited and changes the way they think about science.”
Pakulak hopes to make the week an annual event in Eugene. Wray also wants to continue the event to teach people about the brain.
“It’s important to understand how our brains work so we can understand how to best utilize our brain,” she said. “Plus, it’s really fun.”