Where is NW Noggin?
Our innovative graduate and undergraduate art and neuroscience volunteers are Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) Juice award-winning developing experts in science communication, synapsing for science, and teaching in schools, theaters, museums, urban and rural communities, homeless youth centers, breweries, correctional facilities, Congress and bike shop pubs! For more information see NOGGIN BLOGGIN.NW Noggin is a locally sourced, 501(c)(3) ALL-VOLUNTEER shoestring nonprofit organization. Your tax-deductible contribution supports the purchase of sheep brains, pipe cleaners, electrodes and clay for innovative, arts-integrated outreach, and helps send volunteers from local universities (including Portland State University, OHSU, and other area institutions) to public school classrooms, conferences and free community events.
DONATE HERE!
LEARN MORE: Community Neuroscience: How to Build an Outreach Organization
NW Noggin: Art + Brains
Washington congressional staff use their brains!
Memories @ MedCure
Join us in Chile in *2027*!
In 2027 we'll return to Valparaíso, Chile, home of the Humboldt squid! 🦑⚡️🧠🎨😃 Just like in 2025, and 2023, we'll explore how neurons carry information, and how research in Chile (involving the squid’s giant fused axons) informed our understanding of the electrical signaling that links our experiences to the world. We’ll visit laboratories to examine the rich history and exciting present of research at the Universidad de Chile en Valparaíso, make art (including arpilleras, woven depictions of experience that help people express challenging memories and preserve them for accountability), and contribute to community engagement with Ciencia al Tiro, a local STEAM (STEM + Arts) outreach nonprofit.
LEARN MORE: LAS NEURONAS SON BACANES. LEARN MORE: Valparaiso - Arte y Cerebros en Chile LEARN MORE: ARTS AND BRAINS IN CHILE
Protected: Break A Bone, Retrain A Brain
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Empathy in the Research Space
Post by Emma Marshall, who is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience at Portland State University. Emma is a Research Assistant in the Healthy Balance Lab at PSU, led by Dr. Jensine Paoletti-Hatcher. The work that brought me here One afternoon in my first semester of high school,…
Noggin Bonks and Neurogenesis
Post by Kirby Kahl, undergraduate in Psychology with a minor in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience at Portland State University. Kirby is a research intern in the Moss Lab at Oregon Health & Science University studying the consequences of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). She is supported by the McNair and URISE Scholarship Programs…
Protected: Scaffolding for research
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Crickets to Collaboration: Five Skills I Gained While Finding a Lab
Post by Morgan Motsinger, undergraduate in Psychology and Interdisciplinary Neuroscience at Portland State University. Morgan works in the research lab of Amanda Chiapa, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at Oregon Health and Science University. “We currently don’t have any openings.” “Unfortunately, my research projects have ended or will be terminated by the government.”…
Children Are Sponges
Post by Berlyn Bankhardt, a senior at Portland State University, graduating in June 2026 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology and a minor in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience. Berlyn has worked with children for 6 years, and is fascinated by human development. They hope to pursue a Masters in Speech and…
Protected: Code Switching and the Bilingual Brain
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
I Wanna Touch a Uterus!
Post by Danica Helms, a post-baccalaureate student with a degree in Biology. Danica is completing a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology with a minor in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience at Portland State University. She is passionate about women’s health, the psychological implications of societal pressures, and how gendered stereotypes negatively impact women’s…
“Buildings mysteriously collapse” at SfN
Northwest Noggin has joined the annual Society for Neuroscience conference with our undergraduate and graduate volunteers since 2013 in New Orleans – a city they no longer visit because (we’ve been told) so many failed to show up for morning sessions! But we’ve always been there! We’ve not only presented…
The Brain Behind the Lens
Post, photographs and illustrations by Hana Haley, a Portland based artist + undergraduate in Psychology completing her minor in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience at Portland State University. You can find Hana’s recent film photography at: hanahaley.tumblr.com. Over fall term I visited K-12 schools (including Sunnyside Environmental School, MLK Elementary, Astoria and Knappa…
What is outreach like?
“I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.” ―Maya Angelou
Our Northwest Noggin undergraduate and graduate outreach volunteers are enthusiastic and informed, and regularly let knowledge serve by going places, making art, exploring brain research, sharing stories and listening to community questions and interests in urban and rural K-12 public schools, coffee shops, museums, correctional facilities, houseless youth nonprofits, research conferences, Congress and more! LEARN MORE @ What is outreach like?.