NW NOGGIN: Neuroscience outreach group (growing in networks)

Noggin to Lexington, OR
2018-02-20 | CA
WHAT: Outreach to Heppner Junior/Senior High School and Ione School
We did it!
Braving snow and ice in the Columbia Gorge, we made it to the Fletcher Farm Tuesday night. We worked with 160 enthusiastic 7th – 12th graders at Heppner Junior & Senior High School on Wednesday, and another 80 4th – 12th graders at Ione School on Thursday! Details at the link…
High Desert Noggins: Brains & baby goats!

WHERE: Fletcher Farm in Lexington, Oregon (details coming soon)
WHEN: Arrival Tuesday night, February 20; Departure Thursday, February 22

“If you want to find my place
get out of town any way you can.
Find the Cascades in early morning.”
–George Venn (from Directions for Visitors)
NW Noggin is invited to present brain research and make art in Oregon’s Morrow County, with students at Heppner Junior/Senior High School on Wednesday, February 21 and Ione School District on Thursday, February 22. Innovative science communicators from Portland State University and OHSU will arrive in Lexington on Tuesday afternoon/evening…

Wednesday, February 21: Noggin @ Heppner High

Thursday, February 22: Noggins @ Ione School District

PARTICIPANTS

Sam Carpenter, OHSU
Joey Seuferling, NW Noggin Resource Council
Angela Hendrix, NW Noggin Resource Council
Jacob Schoen, OHSU Primate Center/PSU
Leota Wolford, PSU
Ashley Keating, PSU
Jade Osilla, PSU

Noggin @ Shahala Middle School!
2018-02-15 07:45 - 12:15 (America/Los_Angeles) | Shahala Middle School, 601 SE 192nd Avenue, Vancouver, WA, 98683, United States
What: We will be visiting Shahala Middle School in Vancouver (Evergreen Public Schools) for two days in February to talk about (and look at) brains and make pipe cleaner neurons with over 400 students!
We did it! TERRIFIC questions. Learn more @ the link!
Trickster Brains @ Shahala

See what we did last week!
Are brains edible?

See what we did last year!
Synapses @ Shahala!

Where: Shahala Middle School, 601 SE 192nd Ave., Vancouver, WA; meet at school office, sessions will take place in the school media center
When: Tuesday Feb 6th, and Thursday Feb 15th, 7:45am – 12:15pm
Make brain lobe hats, brain cells, and hold real brains! Ask questions and learn..!
Please RSVP to Bill (griesar@pdx.edu), Jeff (jleake@pdx.edu) and Jessica (jpatchingbunch@gmail.com) to join in!
Committed participants
McKenzie Figuracion, PSU
Ashley Keates, PSU
Krystal Nguyen, PSU
Jade Osilla, PSU
Austin Lewis, PSU
Denesa Oberbeck, OHSU

Noggin @ Siletz Valley!
2018-02-13 | Siletz Valley Early College Academy, 245 NW James Franks Ave, Siletz, 97380, United States
WHAT: Noggin visit to Siletz Valley School Health Professions class
WHERE: Siletz Valley Early College Academy, 245 NW James Franks Ave, Siletz, OR 97380
WHEN: Tuesday, February 13, 9:00 – 10:00am, classroom; 10:00 – 11:00am, meeting with principal

We did this!
We headed towards the wooded Siletz Valley near coastal Newport to discuss brains and art and answer questions about music, stories, sleep and hemispheric asymmetry with high school students in Oregon Pacific Area Health Education Center Coordinator Joanne Trczinski’s Health Professions club…

We also met with Siletz Valley Schools Principal and Superintendent Sam Tupou to discuss the Native Storytelling and the Brain project, and start initial planning for a longer series of visits in the fall…

LEARN MORE: Synapses & Stories – Coyote, Grizzly & their Brains!

NW Noggin @ Wy'East Middle School!
2018-02-08 09:30 - 14:30 | Wy’East Middle School, 1112 SE 136th Ave., Vancouver, WA, 98683, United States
WHAT: NW Noggin visit to Wy’East Middle School
We did it! Check out our visit with 400 6th graders! Questions on everything from memory to migraines, football concussions to the health benefits of community engagement…
White Matter on Wy’East

WHERE: Wy’East Middle School, 1112 SE 136th Ave., Vancouver, WA 98683
WHEN: Thursday, March 8, 2018, 9:45am – 2:30pm
Contact: Aubrey Wilson, 6th Grade Science
Noggin volunteers from Portland State University, OHSU and other area campuses will meet with students at Wy’East, introducing them to neuroscience research and art projects related to understanding the brain. We’ll have three 80 minute classes with up to 120 students in each!

Period 3: 10:00-11:20 (120 students)
Lunch: 11:20-11:55 Whew!
Period 4: 11:55-1:10 (120 students)
Period 5: 1:15-2:30 (90 students)
Please RSVP to Bill (griesar@pdx.edu), Jeff (jleake@pdx.edu) and Jessica (jpatchingbunch@gmail.com) to join in!
COMMITTED PARTICIPANTS
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Kayla Townsley, PSU/OHSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Aliese Poole, PSU
Deza’Rae Collins, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Austin Lewis, PSU
Jade Osilla, PSU, 9:45am – 11:20am
Shawna Erickson, PSU, 11:00am – 2:30pm
Jeehoon Jung, WSU, 12:30 – 2:30pm

Noggin @ Shahala Middle School!
2018-02-06 07:45 - 12:30 | Shahala Middle School, 601 SE 192nd Avenue, Vancouver, WA, 98683, United States
What: We will be visiting Shahala Middle School in Vancouver (Evergreen Public Schools) for two days in February to talk about (and look at) brains and make pipe cleaner neurons with over 400 students!
We did it! Find out if brains can be eaten at the link below… 🙂
Are brains edible?

See what we did last year!
Synapses @ Shahala!

Where: Shahala Middle School, 601 SE 192nd Ave., Vancouver, WA; meet at school office, sessions will take place in the school media center
When: Tuesday Feb 6th, and Thursday Feb 15th, 7:45am – 12:15pm
Make brain lobe hats, brain cells, and hold real brains! Ask questions and learn..!
Please RSVP to Bill (griesar@pdx.edu), Jeff (jleake@pdx.edu) and Jessica (jpatchingbunch@gmail.com) to join in!
Committed participants
Denessa Oberbeck, OHSU
Mackenzie Figuracion, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Jade Osilla, PSU
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Krystal Nguyen, PSU, 7:45am – 10:30am
Iris Guttierez, WSU, 7:45am – 10:00am

Noggin joins Reclaiming Identity @ Portland Art Museum
2018-02-02 16:30 - 19:30 | Portland Art Museum
WHAT: Power Up – Reclaiming Identity
WHERE: Portland Art Museum, 1219 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97205
WHEN: Friday, February 2, 2018, 4:30 – 7:30pm; set up from 3:00pm on
Your brain is filled with a diverse assortment of brain cells, called neurons, each with a critical role to play. Some are exceptionally tiny (10,000 might fit in a space the size of a grain of rice!), while others stretch out several feet! Make your own out of colorful pipe cleaners, and learn about the dynamic neural networks that generate our perceptual, cognitive and behavioral responses to the world…

The Portland Art Museum is hosting the fourth annual event for LGBTQIA+ youth and allies! Meet new people. Take part in a drag workshop. Create with artists and designers. Explore the exhibitions Animating Life: The Art, Science, and Wonder of LAIKA, Kingdom Animalia, and so much more. See films made by Northwest teens. Make art, make friends, and have fun!

Admission is FREE! Refreshments provided. Middle school, high school, and college-age are all welcome. GSA/QSA advisors and teachers are welcome, too.
“Heterosexuality is not normal, it’s just common.”
–Dorothy Parker
Diversity of gender identity and sexual orientation has roots in the brain, including exposure to critical hormones (e.g., testosterone, estrogen) in the womb. Yet there are multiple development steps, both early ones that significantly shape our bodies, and later ones which substantially change our brains. Hormones don’t tell the whole story, either, as additional genetic and environmental factors can contribute to the morphological, physiological and behavioral differences that contribute to who we are.

Detail from Pleasure Communism exhibit, Vera Rubin (at the White Gallery through 2/2)
LEARN MORE: Sexual differentiation of the human brain
LEARN MORE: A Review of the Status of Brain Structure Research in Transsexualism
LEARN MORE: Sexual Orientation Related Differences in Cortical Thickness in Male Individuals
Noggin participants
Jesse Hamlin, PSU
Alyssa Villmann, PSU
LEARN MORE: Noggin @ Portland Art Museum

POWER UP: Reclaiming Identity

Check in and get your Bingo card!

Hoffman Lobby
4:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Art-Making with NW Noggin
Kinney Room
4:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Short Films Made by Teens presented by the Northwest Film Center
Whitsell Auditorium
4:30 – 6 p.m.
POWER UP Photobooth
Stevens Room
4:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Welcome to Clown Town: A Drag Workshop with Carla Rossi
Stevens Room
5 – 6 p.m.

Carla Rossi, ME, MYSELF & IT @ Littman Gallery, Portland State University
Open Mic Performance Space with Clay Muwin River and Fyre
WE. Exhibition, Contemporary Wing, 4th floor
6 – 7:30 p.m.

NW Noggin Art + Science panel @ Littman Gallery
2018-01-31 18:00 - 20:00 | Littman Gallery, Portland State University, 1825 SW Broadway Smith Center #250, Portland, OR, 97201, United States
WHAT: Art + Science panel with NW Noggin
WHERE: Littman Gallery, Portland State University Smith Center, Room 250, 1825 SW Broadway, Portland, Oregon 97207-0751
WHEN: Wednesday, January 31, 6:00 – 8:00pm

For the panel on Art + Science, Kindra Crick will speak with her collaborator at WSU, memory researcher Dr. Harkness, and the arts-integrated neuroscience outreach group NWNoggin, consisting of Portland State University neuroscientist Dr. Bill Griesar and PSU professor Jeff Leake.
Come for an enlightening discussion about the exhibit, the intersection of art and science, current memory research and sleep
***
Kindra Crick’s multimedia exhibition explores the intersection between the ‘two cultures’ of science and art that share a common wonder at the creative possibilities which emerge from the cross-pollination of the material and imagined worlds.

Audiences will find themselves enveloped in, and invited to navigate through, an imagined wilderness of the brain within a space filled with LED-illuminated ‘neurons.’ Dendritic arms made of fabric-wrapped wire reach out to create an immersive experience of neuroplasticity. Corseted around each neuron is netted fabric that shimmers in its embrace of the memories held within each synaptic connection. This work was initiated during a NW Noggin collaboration with WSU neuroscientist Dr. John Harkness.

Reflecting on our need for sleep and attempts to capture fleeting sensory experiences is a series of memory-inspired collections and etchings created during Crick’s Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Residency at the The Sitka Center for Art & Ecology. As a tactile extension of attempting to preserve an ephemeral experience, she includes field journal notes, a collection of woodland material, and captured smells of the Oregon coastal wilderness and Salmon River estuary nearby.
In all her art, Crick wishes to ignite our sense of wonder through immersion, close examination, and exploration.
***
Exhibition runs January 8 to February 2 with extended hours on February 1st and 2nd for the Portland Winter Light Festival.
The ‘Illuminated Wilderness’ exhibit was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
***
SLIDES (Part 1): Art Science at Littman PART 1 (ppt)
SLIDES (Part 1): Art Science at Littman PART 1 (pdf)
SLIDES (Part 2): Art Science at Littman PART 2 (ppt)
SLIDES (Part 2): Art Science at Littman PART 2 (pdf)

LEARN MORE: Noggins in Nod: The science of sleep

More on the NW Noggin collaboration between Kindra Crick and Dr. John Harkness:
Your brain is plastic @ Velo!

From Exploring the Cerebral Wilderness @ Gallery 114 (December, 2016)

Noggin @ OSU: The art of brain education, outreach & research
2018-01-29 16:00 - 17:00 | Oregon State University, Reed Lodge 226, 2950 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR, 97331, United States
WHAT: Noggin @ Oregon State University winter colloquia in Psychology
WHERE: Oregon State University, Reed Lodge 226, 2950 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR 97331
WHEN: Monday, January 29, 4:00 – 5:00pm
“From classrooms to Congress: The art of brain education, outreach & research”

COLLOQUIA SLIDES (ppt): OSU Slides 2018
COLLOQUIA SLIDES (pdf): OSU Slides 2018 FINAL

LEARN MORE: SPS_Flier_Winter18

VELO CULT: Binyam Nardos & Teressa Raiford on Race, Bias & Brain
2018-01-24 18:00 - 20:00 | Velo Cult Bike Shop, 1969 NE 42nd, Portland, OR
WE DID IT!!!
Powerful and compelling night of neuroscience research, art, action and activism! Learn more at the link below…
Race, Bias & Brain: You Can’t Control Art

WHAT: Race, Bias & the Brain with Binyam Nardos (Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU) & Teressa Raiford (Don’t Shoot Portland)
WHERE: Velo Cult, 1969 NE 42nd Ave, Portland, OR 97213
WHEN: Wednesday, January 24, 6 – 8pm
FACEBOOK EVENT LINK

BINYAM NARDOS: Unofficial reports by some media outlets and community outreach organizations that track and document police violence demonstrate that more than any other demographic group, young black males are at a particularly heightened risk for fatal police encounters.
LEARN MORE: A Multi-Level Bayesian Analysis of Racial Bias in Police Shootings at the County-Level in the United States, 2011–2014
There are many possible underlying causes for the reported violent interactions between police and black individuals. To shed light on the issue, one approach taken by psychologists and neuroscientists has been to investigate potential behavioral and intrinsic brain-based biases when perceiving black versus white faces. One notable study (B. Keith Payne, 2001) reports that brief presentation of black vs white faces as racial cues can actually “prime” a quicker response to weapons or items of danger. The same manipulation increases misidentification of tools as weapons for black, relative to white, face cues. This occurs even if the face cue was flashed so quickly that the participant doesn’t even know it was there.
LEARN MORE: Split-Second Decisions and Unintended Stereotyping
The above and similar findings point to race as an important construct that drives perception, which may, at least in part, drive the actions taken by law enforcement. Binyam’s research in Damien Fair’s Neuroimaging Lab in Behavioral Neuroscience at OHSU, which is funded by the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Law and Neuroscience asks an additional question. Are these types of relationships dependent, or even enhanced, based on the emotional state of the subject making quick decisions?

To investigate the effects of race and emotional context on face perception, our study used black and white faces as stimuli in a functional MRI task (emotional go/no-go task) designed to study impulse control in black and white young adults. Three emotional contexts were induced in participants: rewarding, threatening, or neutral contexts. Behaviorally, participants exhibited greater impulsive actions (more false alarms) to black faces, which was enhanced in threat contexts. This finding was paralleled in the brain. Brain patterns revealed increased functional MRI activity for black faces in threatening contexts, as opposed to few face differences in neutral and rewarding contexts. Our results demonstrate the importance of emotional context as an important factor that influences race perception, and subsequent decision-making. Such findings should assist in ongoing efforts to increase awareness of race disparities in law enforcement and ultimately a reduction in preventable violent encounters.

TERESSA RAIFORD: The founder of Don’t Shoot Portland, Teressa creates and contributes to community art to engage people in seeking and achieving social justice. From Teressa: “Non Violent Direct Actions are engineered by tools we have inherited from our individual life experiences, and real influence from elders and history. Using education has been the key to our consistency and evolution of tactics. History, Art and Educations combined institutional access powers up our Artistic medium to engage community.” Enjoy the opportunity to create powerful collages that reflect and make visible all people who contribute to this place we call home.
Don’t Shoot Portland SLIDES: Velo Slide Show

NW Noggin Velo Cult events are always free, open to the public, child friendly, and feature access to amazing beer (scroll here for current tap list), wine, coffee, tea, sodas and sandwiches…

Family STEAM Night at Irvington School
2018-01-22 17:30 - 20:00 | Irvington Elementary, 1320 NE Brazee St, Portland, OR, 97212, United States
WHAT: Family STEAM Night at Irvington School
WE DID IT! Learn more at the link below…
STEAM Ahead @ Ionotropic Irvington

WHERE: Irvington School, 1320 NE Brazee St, Portland, OR 97212
WHEN: Monday, January 22, 2017, 5:30 – 8:00pm
5:30 – 6:00 – Setup
6:00 – 7:30 – Event
7:30 – 8:00 – Cleanup

Come join us! Please RSVP to Bill (griesar@pdx.edu), Jeff (jleake@pdx.edu) and Jessica (jpatchingbunch@gmail.com)…
COMMITTED PARTICIPANTS
Leota Wolford, PSU
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Erin McConnell, PSU/NW Noggin Resource Council
Sara Moreno, PSU
Thomas Madison, PSU
Mars Correa, PSU
Kateryna Bondarenko, WSU

Noggin @ Liberty High Health Fair!
2018-01-18 08:00 - 12:00 | Liberty High School, 21945 NW Wagon Way, Hillsboro, OR, 97124, United States
WHAT: Visit to Liberty High School Health Fair, Hillsboro, Oregon
WHERE: Liberty High School, 21945 NW Wagon Way, Hillsboro, OR 97124
WHEN: Thursday, January 18, 8:00am – 12:00pm
We did it! Check out pictures and a detailed report of our visit from Jacob Schoen, NW Noggin Resource Council member for Portland State University!
Lab Coats & Lobes @ Liberty!

PLUS: See what we’ve done at Liberty in the past..!
Brain Lessons at Liberty

A BioGift of Brains

CONFIRMED PARTICIPANTS
Austin Lewis, PSU
Jordan Ray, PSU
Madeleine Opie, PSU
Ashley Keates, PSU
Alyona Kurelenkova, PSU
Jacob Schoen, OHSU Primate Center/PSU
Jade Catherine Osilla, PSU
Krystal Harrel, PSU

Illuminated Wilderness: Memory @ Littman Gallery
2018-01-17 17:00 - 21:00 | Littman Gallery, Portland State University, 1825 SW Broadway Smith Center #250, Portland, OR, 97201, United States
LITTMAN GALLERY at Portland State University
1825 SW Broadway #250
Portland, OR 97201

Illuminated Wilderness: Memory
January 8 – February 2, 2018
Exhibition reception: Wednesday, January 17th, 5pm – 9pm

Art & Science Panel w/NW Noggin: Wednesday, January 31st, 6-8pm

“Has it ever struck you… that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quickly you hardly catch it going?” – Eric Kandel
Kindra Crick’s multimedia exhibition explores the intersection between the ‘two cultures’ of science and art that share a common wonder at the creative possibilities which emerge from the cross-pollination of the material and natural worlds. Audiences will find themselves enveloped in, and invited to navigate through, an imagined wilderness of the brain within a space filled with LED-illuminated ‘neurons.’ Dendritic arms made of fabric-wrapped wire reach out to create an immersive experience of neuroplasticity. Corseted around each neuron is netted fabric that shimmers in its embrace of the memories held within each synaptic connection. This work was initiated during a NW Noggin collaboration with WSU neuroscientist Dr. John Harkness.
Reflecting on our need for sleep and attempts to capture fleeting sensory experiences is a series of memory-inspired collections and etchings created during Crick’s Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Residency at the The Sitka Center for Art & Ecology. As a tactile extension of attempting to preserve an ephemeral experience, she includes field journal notes, a collection of woodland material, and captured smells of the Oregon coastal wilderness and Salmon River estuary nearby.
In all her art, Crick wishes to ignite our sense of wonder through immersion, close examination, and exploration.
Exhibition runs January 8 to February 2 with extended hours on February 1st and 2nd for the Portland Winter Light Festival. There will be an Art & Science Panel discussion on January 31st.
** This exhibit was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

Spirit Mountain Community Fund Award Ceremony!
2017-12-13 13:30 - 15:30 | Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon Campus, Governance Building, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR, 97347, United States
NW Noggin is thrilled and honored to receive a grant from the Confederated Tribes of Grande Ronde, a sovereign Native American nation in north-central Oregon, for our art and neuroscience outreach proposal “Synapses & Stories: Coyote, Grizzly and their Brains!”
We are invited to the Grande Ronde Tribal campus for a grant presentation ceremony with the Board of Trustees and Tribal Council on Wednesday, December 13.
UPDATE: Learn more at the link!
Synapses & Stories

WHAT: Spirit Mountain Community grant presentation ceremony
WHERE: Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon Campus, Governance Building, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347
WHEN: Wednesday, December 13, 2017, 1:30 – 3:00pm

LEARN MORE: The Grand Ronde Story
LEARN MORE: Oregon Encyclopedia; the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde
LEARN MORE: Grande Ronde Lesson Plan on Stories & Myths
The Grande Ronde seal, representing 27 confederated tribes (including the Umpqua, Molalla, Rogue River, Kalapuya, and Shasta), reminded us of a neuron’s cell body (or soma) with vivid feather dendrites, embodying a shared human drive to synapse and connect.

We crafted a neuron in the seal’s colors as a gift and thank you…

We will bring 12 Portland/Vancouver area undergraduates and graduates studying neuroscience and art to the Lincoln County School District this spring (potentially Toledo Elementary and Siletz Valley) for a series of three, day long visits aimed at making connections between figures in Grande Ronde tribal stories (including Coyote, Crow and Grizzly) and their relevant neuroanatomy…

Corvus Callosum by Sienna Morris
Many students struggle with academic achievement, and become disenchanted with school. There is tremendous regional and national need to develop academic programs and approaches that successfully engage “academic priority” students, and offer access to the social and economic benefits of further education. Our efforts to bring together “near peers,” including undergraduates in science and art, to collaborate with graduate students on creating novel, innovative, multidisciplinary methods of explaining complex ideas in neuroscience, exposes these students to scientists and artists at various stages of their careers.

Our volunteers will bring real brains, both animal and human, into the classroom, ask students what they know already about what parts of the brain do, participate in storytelling, and consider how various skills and characteristics relate to developing networks of neurons. We’ll engage in multiple art projects, including neuron building and brain maps, to allow students to explore these ideas further.

LEARN MORE: Birds have primate-like numbers of neurons in the forebrain
We have done this before, successfully – see Noggin Bloggin for details. Students will learn structure/function relationships, discover educational and career options in neuroscience and art, and get engaged in big questions about how our brains work and make us who we are.
Attending the ceremony
Bill Griesar, PSU/OHSU/NW Noggin Neuroscience Coordinator
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council member
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO/Noggin Resource Council member

Noggin @ Minter Bridge Elementary!
2017-12-07 08:00 - 11:30 | Minter Bridge Elementary, 1750 SE Jacquelin Dr, Hillsboro, OR, 97123, United States
WHAT: Noggin visit to Minter Bridge Elementary w/90 4th & 5th graders
WHERE: Minter Bridge Elementary, 1750 SE Jacquelin Dr, Hillsboro, OR 97123
WHEN: Thursday, December 7, 2017, 8:00am – 11:30am
Two sessions, first one beginning at 8:30am
The last school visit of the season! Come join us and see our brand new donated brain too!

Please RSVP to bgriesar@nwnoggin.org and jleake@nwnoggin.org
COMMITTED PARTICIPANTS
Jessica Patching-Bunch, OHSU/Noggin Resource Council
Jesse Hamlin, PSU/Noggin Resource Council
Gaile Parker, PSU/Noggin Resource Council
Angela Hendrix, Noggin Resource Council
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/BUILD EXITO/Noggin Resource Council
Deza’Rae Collins, PSU/BUILD EXITO
Meet at the school office

Save Grad Education Rally @ OHSU!
2017-12-06 12:00 - 12:30 | OHSU, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR, 97239-3098, United States
WHAT: Rally to support grad students, and oppose the grad student tax
WHERE: Courtyard outside MacKenzie Hall, OHSU, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97238
WHEN: Wednesday, December 6, 2017, 12:00 – 12:30pm

Republicans in Congress have targeted graduate education, threatening to tax tuition waivers to pay for tax cuts for wealthy donors and corporations, making it difficult for innovative biomedical research to continue in the United States. Join grad students and supporters to defend research, education and outreach…
LEARN MORE: Scientists Press Senate to Preserve Higher Education Tax Provisions
LEARN MORE: OHSU Letter to the Conference Committee
LEARN MORE: Feeling stressed?

More from the graduate students at OHSU, many of whom contribute their time, expertise and energy in our public schools and community venues as outreach volunteers…
The Senate recently passed its tax reform bill meaning that the House and Senate will now work together on a conference committee to combine the two versions of the tax bill into a single bill designed to be passed by both houses of Congress. The House’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act contains a repeal of Section 117 (d), which makes graduate tuition tax-free, although the Senate version does not. If the tuition waivers that graduate students currently receive are considered taxable income, as they are in the House version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, graduate school would become unattainable for many, if not most, students.
The current average annual stipend for graduate students at OHSU is $30,000. If tuition waivers are classified as taxable income, graduate students will see their taxes increase by at least 100%, and likely substantially more. Treating graduate student income as if it were $60-90,000 by removing the waiver would increase the tax burden so significantly that many students would be forced to drop out. Additionally, based on their higher tax bracket, students would be ineligible for need-based aid. But the impact of this policy change is even further reaching. Without Section 117 (d), the ability to attract new students into Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers would be severely compromised and groundbreaking research interrupted.
The reconciliation of the tax bills begins this week, meaning that nothing is finalized yet. There is still a chance that the final bill could include the repeal of Section 117 (d), which is where we come in.

Five things you can do right now!

Attend the rally!
Call and email Rep. Greg Walden* (southeastern Oregon). He is a member of the Republican leadership, chair of the most powerful committee (Energy & Commerce), and also has the potential to be on the conference committee that will reconcile the two versions of the bill.
Call and email your U.S. Senator to ask that they continue to advocate for Section 117 (d)
Call and email your U.S. Representative
Sign our letter to the conference committee: OHSU Letter to the Conference Committee

NOTE: Our graduate students brought brain research and art projects to students from SIX eastern Oregon counties last spring in La Grande, in Greg Walden’s congressional district, on an entirely volunteer basis. Learn more…

Blue Mountain Brains!

TAKE MORE ACTION: Register to vote in Oregon and Washington
LEARN MORE: What Calling Congress Achieves

Noggin @ Portland Art Museum
2017-11-30 17:30 - 19:30 | Portland Art Museum
WHAT: Noggin Smell, Memory & Place at the Poster Project for K-12 teachers
WHERE: Portland Art Museum, 1219 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97205
WHEN: Thursday, November 30, 2017, 5:30 – 7:30pm
See what we did – and smelled, and experienced earlier this month
One landscape contains the other…

Join NW Noggin on another olfactory trek through art at the museum!
Bridging the Museum and the Classroom
With generous support from the PGE Foundation, the Portland Art Museum has expanded the popular Poster Project and created eight, new, free posters this fall. Posters feature art across the Museum’s permanent collection by artists from Argentina, Syria, India, Oregon, and beyond. Deepen your knowledge of the original works. Make connections to school tours. Learn strategies for teaching writing, science, critical thinking, and more through art. Take away activities, lessons, and posters—available free to all educators.
What is smell?
Take a deep breath. Stuff is made of smaller pieces, and you just inhaled them through your nose. These pieces are molecules, and they are released from foods, surfaces, plants, trees, dogs, bodies, and that delicious pint of beer in your hands.

Up your nose is a hidden cavity, where special cells called odor receptors grab specific molecules and respond by sending electricity directly into your brain! These odor receptors stick these hair-like processes through the ceiling of the nasal cavity to bind molecules, and send more wire-like projections through holes in the bone below your brain to carry the currents.
LEARN MORE: Olfactory booklet

Noggin @ Fort Vancouver!
2017-11-30 07:25 - 14:05 | Fort Vancouver High School, 5700 E 18th St, Vancouver, WA, 98661, United States
WHAT: Noggin visit to Fort Vancouver High
WHERE: Fort Vancouver High School, 5700 E 18th St, Vancouver, WA 98661
WHEN: Thursday, November 30, 2017, 7:25am – 2:05pm
Join us at Fort Vancouver High School to talk brains and make art!

Please RSVP to griesar@pdx.edu and jleake@pdx.edu…
See what we’ve done previously at the Home of the Trappers…
Brains, biofeedback & SLEEP

Ventricles in Vancouver!

CONFIRMED PARTICIPANTS
Jeff Leake, NW Noggin, 7:25am – 1:00pm
Bill Griesar, NW Noggin, 10:0am – 2:05pm
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council member, 7:25am – 2:05pm
Ruth Marigomen, Noggin Resource Council member, 8:00am – 10:00am
Saray Farias, WSUV, 8:00am – 10:00am
Iris Gutierrez, WSUV, 7:25am – 1:00pm
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/Noggin Resource Council member, 7:25am – 11:00am
Gaile Parker, PSU, 7:25am – 2:05pm
Jordan Ray, PSU, 7:25am – 2:05pm
Elsa Gomez, WSU, 8:00am – 10:00am

Velo Cult: Eileen Ruth Torres (OHSU) + Joshua Abraham (PNCA)
2017-11-29 18:00 - 20:00 | Velo Cult Bike Shop, 1969 NE 42nd, Portland, OR
WHAT: The Stressed Brain – The Good, the Bad, and the Fat with Eileen Ruth Torres (Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU) and Joshua Abraham (PNCA)
WHERE: Velo Cult, 1969 NE 42nd Ave, Portland, OR 97213
WHEN: Wednesday, November 29, 6 – 8pm
UPDATE: See what we did!
Feeling stressed?

Nothing seems to bring people the joy–and the stress–the same way that the holiday season does. How does your brain respond to stressful times? What happens when the stress is chronic, or extreme? And why does cholesterol matter? Come find out with speakers Eileen and Joshua as they present the art and science of a stressed brain.
Eileen Torres, a graduate student at OHSU, shares her research on how the apolipoprotein E gene, involved in cholesterol metabolism, affects the brain’s response to stress, like that in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Joshua Abraham relates how his own exploration of art started in an almost scientific manner. There existed a few guesses on how it might all work. And through a series of experiments we find ourselves here, to discuss and evaluate expressions of art and science.
NW Noggin Velo Cult events are always free, open to the public, child friendly, and feature access to amazing beer (scroll here for current tap list), wine, coffee, tea, sodas and sandwiches…

NIH Cajal Exhibit tour!
2017-11-16 10:00 - 12:00 | Medical Center Metro stop
WHAT: Noggin visit to Ramon y Cajal exhibit at the NIH
We did it! Learn more at the links below..!
From classrooms to Congress!

Cajal + Creativity @ the NIH

WHERE: John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center, National Institutes of Health, 35 Convent Dr, Bethesda, MD 20892
WHEN: Thursday, November 16, 2017, 10:00am
Meet at the Medical Center Metro stop in Bethesda, MD at 9:45am. Go up the Metro escalator straight into NIH. Allow at least 45 minutes for a metro ride from DC…

The NIH is composed of 27 Institutes and Centers, each with its own research focus on particular diseases and/or body systems. Many of our graduate students work in labs funded by specific NIH agencies, including the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Many benefited from NIH graduate training grants, and received individual National Research Service Awards (NRSA’s) to pursue our pre-doctoral research.

We’re excited to visit the Cajal Exhibit, along with a compelling gallery of donated brain-related art on view at the John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center, curated by neuroscientists Chris Thomas and Jeff Diamond, and inspired by federal investment in understanding the structure and function of the human brain…

LEARN MORE: Cajal + Creativity @ the NIH

LEARN MORE: The John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center

NOGGINS IN CONGRESS: A Briefing w/Brains, Art & Ice Cream!
2017-11-15 13:00 - 15:00 | Cannon House Office Building, Room 122, 27 Independence Ave SE, Washington, DC, 20003, United States
WHAT: Briefing with Brains, Art & Ice Cream for the House Neuroscience/STEAM caucuses
WHERE:

Cannon House Office Building, Room 122, 27 Independence Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003
TRANSIT: Capitol South Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is closest
WHEN: Wednesday, November 15, 2017, 1 – 3pm
Meet EARLY: we are planning to gather at noon to get through security in time…

Brains (white/gray matter) courtesy of Portland 3D Printing Lab, MRI data courtesy of Fair Neuroimaging Lab @ OHSU
Join NW Noggin for an afternoon of ice cream, brains and art! We’ll discuss the importance of basic research, public outreach, and an arts integrated approach to STEM (STEAM) that brings knowledge, insight and inspiration to diverse K-12 students and the public at large.

Northwest Noggin is invited to offer a second Congressional briefing to the House Neuroscience and STEAM caucuses, along with the American Brain Coalition – and this time we’re making art! Enjoy ice cream, touch real human brains courtesy of Dr. Paul Aravich from Eastern Virginia Medical School, and hear from talented graduate and undergraduate STEAM outreach volunteers…

Our volunteers pursue federally funded research on Parkinson’s, methamphetamine, caffeine, alcohol, opioids, social relationships, implicit bias, and development of the adolescent brain. Ask them questions, eat ice cream, bring home a new brain cell, hold and ponder human cerebrums, and learn about exciting new discoveries about our brains!

1:00 – 1:15pm: Members of Congress
1:15 – 1:18pm: Bill Griesar, Ph.D. and Jeff Leake, M.F.A.
NW Noggin: How do you grow in networks?
1:18 – 1:22pm: Sulema Rodriguez, Heather Hamilton, Kayla Townsley
NIH BUILD EXITO: Building diversity in research through outreach and art, how do we assess student progress and attainment through art projects?
1:22 – 1:26pm: Reena Clements, Rebecca Hood, Binyam Nardos
OHSU Behavioral Neuroscience: Graduates go places! Outreach to rural areas, multicultural nonprofits, homeless youth centers,…
1:26 – 1:30pm: Alex Kunz, Ali Mack, Aliese Poole, Rebekah Hough, Jobe Ritchie, Thomas Madison, Andrea Anaya
Portland State University: Undergraduates in action, “Let knowledge serve the City”
1:30 – 1:34pm: Jessica Patching-Bunch, Christina Williams, Joey Seuferling, Jesse Hamlin
NW Noggin Resource Council: The power of art, music and brains
1:34 – 1:40pm: What is a brain cell? How can we make our own? Jeff Leake, NW Noggin
1:40 – 3:00pm: Art making, brains, questions and ice cream!

BRIEFING SLIDES: Neuro STEAM caucus SLIDES 2017 FINAL (ppt)
BRIEFING SLIDES: Neuro STEAM caucus SLIDES 2017 FINAL (pdf)

This briefing is co-sponsored by exceptional Northwest supporters of innovative #sciart and neuroscience research, education and outreach: Portland State University (both the Department of Psychologyand the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences), OHSU (Behavioral Neuroscience), p:ear and the Portland Art Museum!

LEARN MORE: NW Noggin briefing invitation – 11-15-17
See what we did last year in Washington…
STEAMing to DC!

SfN Presidential reception
2017-11-14 20:00 - 22:30 | Marriott Marquis Hotel, 901 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States
WHAT: Society for Neuroscience Presidential reception
WHERE: Marriott Marquis Hotel Ballroom, 901 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20001
WHEN: Tuesday, November 14, 8:00 – 10:30pm

Noggin participants
Bill Griesar, NW Noggin

Thank you for this opportunity! Through nwnoggin.org, our graduate and undergraduate #sciart outreach volunteers are dedicated to informing and engaging K-12 students and the public about what neuroscience research is revealing about our brains and behavior.

Women in Neuroscience Luncheon
2017-11-14 12:00 - 14:00 | Renaissance Washington Hotel, 999 9th St NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States
WHAT: Celebration of Women in Neuroscience Luncheon
WHERE: Renaissance Washington Hotel, 999 9th St NW, Washington, DC 20001
WHEN: Tuesday, November 14, 12:00 – 2:00pm
From Mark Rutledge-Gorman, Portland Alcohol Research Center, OHSU: “For a number of years the PARC has provided support and materials for NWNoggin staff and events…because of your dedicated efforts to further neuroscience, I would like to invite you to an award luncheon this year at SfN.”
Noggin participants

Christina Williams, Noggin Resource Council
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO/Noggin Resource Council
Heather Hamilton, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Aliese Poole, PSU
Jennifer Jensen, PSU
Alex Kunz, PSU
Alison Mack, PSU
Andrea Anaya, PSU
Rebekah Hough, PSU
Rebecca Hood, OHSU

Noggin @ Turner Elementary!
2017-11-14 08:00 - 15:15 | Turner Elementary, 3264 Stanton Rd. SE, Washington, DC, 20032, United States
WHAT: Visit to Turner Elementary
WHERE: Turner Elementary, 3264 Stanton Rd. SE, Washington DC 20032
WHEN: Tuesday, November 15, 2017, 8:00am – 3:15pm
Our NW Noggin outreach volunteers – along with Dr. Paul Aravich (“The Brain Guy“) from Eastern Virginia Medical School, and Emma Lindberg, Outreach Assistant for the Society for Neuroscience – will visit with over 500 Turner students and their 24 teachers (!), discuss (and hold) brains and MAKE ART at Turner Elementary School in Washington DC!

We’ll enjoy a number of brain-related activities, including:
1. Introductions and questions: Who are we? What do you already know about the brain? What would you like to know?
2. Different brain areas do different things: cortical lobes, subcortical amygdala, hippocampus, brainstem, cerebellum
3. Parts of a brain cell (or neuron): dendrites, soma, axon

4. Make your own brain cells! Pipe cleaners galore!
5. Build a brain map: Draw what each brain region does – directly on the brain!

6. Want to hold and examine an actual human brain? (Nobody HAS to, but it’s pretty cool 🙂

We are indebted to Rachel Goldberg of the Phillips Collection, who not only set up this visit, but is also bringing all of the art supplies, nitrile gloves for brain handling, and lunch for our volunteers! We are very excited to return to the enthusiastic Home of the Rockets – see what we did last year!
Brains in DC: Inspired Teaching at Turner and ITS

Participants
Rebecca Hood, OHSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Reena Clements, OHSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Andrea Anaya, PSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Jennifer Jensen, PSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Rebekah Hough, PSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Aliese Poole, PSU (8:00 – 11:00am)
Alex Kunz, PSU Neuroscience Club President (8:00 – 11:00am)
Alison Mack, PSU Psychology Club President (8:00 – 11:00am)
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO (8:00 – 11:00am)
Jessica Patching-Bunch, OHSU/Noggin Resource Council (8:00 – 11:00am)
Kayla Townsley, PSU/OHSU/NIH BUILD EXITO (8:00 – 11:00am)
Christina Williams, Noggin Resource Council
Angela Hendrix, Noggin
Binyam Nardos, OHSU/Noggin Resource Council
Scott Jones, OHSU
Jesse Hamlin, PSU
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Jobe Ritchie, PSU
Thomas Madison, PSU
Alfredo Zuñiga, OHSU
Andre Walcott, OHSU
Note: The Women in Neuroscience luncheon is scheduled at the Society for Neuroscience noon – 2:00pm, so we’ll lose a number of our volunteers at that time 🙂

Awards and Prizes Reception @ SfN
2017-11-13 19:00 - 20:00 | Marriott Marquis Hotel, 901 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States
WHAT: SfN Awards & Prizes Reception
WHERE: Independence DE room, Marriott Marquis Hotel, 901 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20001
WHEN: Monday, November 13, 2017, 7:00 – 8:00pm

The Awards and Prizes Reception is a time to honor all individuals being recognized for their scientific achievements at Neuroscience 2017…
A limited opportunity for the following invited Noggin participants:
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Jesse Hamlin, PSU
Alison Mack, PSU
Kayla Townsley, PSU/OHSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Bill Griesar, PSU/OHSU/NW Noggin
Jeff Leake, PSU/NW Noggin

Noggins @ Sidwell Friends
2017-11-13 15:00 - 16:30 | Sidwell Friends School, 3825 Wisconsin Ave, Washington, DC, 20016, United States
WHAT: Outreach visit to the BRAIN Club at Sidwell Friends School
WHERE: Sidwell Friends School, 3825 Wisconsin Ave, Washington, DC 20016
WHEN: Monday, November 13, 3:00 – 4:30pm (please arrive on time)

Closest METRO station: Tenleytown/American University Red Line station (0.7 mile walk)

Noggin has been invited to talk brains, brain research and art with student members of the BRAIN (Biological Research and Investigations in Neuroscience) Club at the Sidwell Friends School from 3:25 – 4:30pm. There is a parking garage off of Wisconsin, and we’ll meet in the Upper School, Room 200 by the elevator.

We’ll bring our volunteers pursuing federally funded research on Parkinson’s, caffeine, alcohol, social relationships, implicit bias, and adolescent brain development. We’ll bring real human brains to examine, courtesy of Paul Aravich from Eastern Virginia Medical School, and Sidwell is providing pipe cleaners for a chance to make our own brain cells, and learn about the value of arts-based instruction firsthand…

The Club is also presenting their own poster at the Society for Neuroscience conference, in the Teaching of Neuroscience Poster Session; VV36 from 3-4 pm on Sunday, November 12…
Participants
Binyam Nardos, OHSU
Alfredo Zuñiga, OHSU
Andre Walcott, OHSU
Reena Clements, OHSU
Rebecca Hood, OHSU
Scott Jones, OHSU
Andrea Anaya, PSU
Jennifer Jensen, PSU
Rebekah Hough, PSU
Aliese Poole, PSU
Alex Kunz, PSU Neuroscience Club President
Alison Mack, PSU Psychology Club President
Sulema Rodriguez, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Jessica Patching-Bunch, OHSU/Noggin Resource Council
Heather Hamilton, PSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Kayla Townsley, PSU/OHSU/NIH BUILD EXITO
Christina Williams, PSU
Jesse Hamlin, PSU
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Jobe Ritchie, PSU
Thomas Madison, PSU
Gaile Parker, PSU
Angela Hendrix, Noggin

Noggins on the Hill: Earl Blumenauer
2017-11-13 11:15 - 12:00 | Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC, 20515, United States
WHAT: Meeting with Kristen Donheffner, Legislative Assistant, Representative Earl Blumenauer
WHERE:

Room 1111, Longworth House Office Building, South of the U.S. Capitol, bounded by Independence Ave., New Jersey Ave., South Capitol St., and C St., S.E
TRANSIT: Capitol South Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is closest…
WHEN: Monday, November 13, 11:15 – 11:45am

Representative Earl Blumenauer is the Democratic co-Chair of the House Neuroscience caucus. Both his office and that of Representative Cathy McMorris-Rogers, the Republican co-Chair, invited our Noggin volunteers to present a briefing in Congress last spring, and a new Neuroscience briefing later this week…

Participants
Bill Griesar, PSU/OHSU/NW Noggin
Jeff Leake, PSU/NW Noggin
Rebecca Hood, OHSU
Aliese Poole, PSU
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Christina Williams, Noggin Resource Council
Alfredo Zuñiga, OHSU
Gaile Parker, PSU
Heather Hamilton, NIH BUILD EXITO

Noggins on the Hill: Cathy McMorris-Rogers
2017-11-13 10:30 - 11:00 | Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC, 20515, United States
WHAT: Meeting with Megan Perez, Legislative Assistant to Cathy McMorris-Rogers
WHERE:

Room B-245, Longworth House Office Building, South of the U.S. Capitol, bounded by Independence Ave., New Jersey Ave., South Capitol St., and C St., S.E
TRANSIT: Capitol South Metro Station on the Blue and Orange Lines is closest…
WHEN: Monday, November 13, 10:30 – 11:00am
Meet inside the building: please arrive early to get through security in time
Noggin spent several days last spring in Davenport, Washington, meeting with every kindergartener through 9th grader in town! We joined one day by Jessie Laughery, the Manager for Constituent & Community Relations for Representative Cathy McMorris-Rogers, Republican co-Chair of the House Neuroscience caucus. Both her office and that of Representative Earl Blumenauer, the Democratic co-Chair, invited our Noggin volunteers to present a briefing in Congress last spring, and a new Neuroscience briefing later this week…

LEARN MORE: Dopamine in Davenport
We’re excited to discuss federal support for brain research and arts integration in neuroscience education and outreach throughout the Northwest and the country with Megan Perez, the Chief Legislative Assistant to the Congresswoman.

Participants
Bill Griesar, PSU/OHSU/NW Noggin
Jeff Leake, PSU/NW Noggin
Rebecca Hood, OHSU
Aliese Poole, PSU
Joey Seuferling, Noggin Resource Council
Christina Williams, Noggin Resource Council
Alfredo Zuñiga, OHSU
Gaile Parker, PSU
Heather Hamilton, NIH BUILD EXITO

“Taste of Neuroscience” Pub Dance + Science competition!
2017-11-12 18:30 - 21:00 | Bier Baron Tavern, 1523 22nd St NW, Washington, 20037, United States
WHAT: “Taste of Neuroscience” Competition!
From OHSU/PSU: “Pac Man Fever: Texting, Mutations & Brains!”
WHERE: Bier Baron Tavern, 1523 22nd St NW, Washington, DC 20037
WHEN: Sunday, November 12, 2017, 6:30 – 9:00pm
BUY TICKETS ($5): taste of neuroscience

The nonprofit Taste of Science invited researchers at this year’s Society for Neuroscience meeting to step away from their PowerPoints and onto the dance floor for a sci-comm dance off! Teams from all over will show off their moves and cutting edge research on the Bier Baron Tavern stage. Winners of this epic dance battle will be chosen by the audience!
Rebekah Hough from PSU, and Allie Clark, Sami Friedrich and Reena Clements from OHSU are participating – to dance and talk about genes and mutations (and Pac Man!) and how these might impact your brain..!

Noggin Undergrad Outreach Poster!
2017-11-12 10:00 - 11:00 | Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States
Abstract Control Number: 16448
Abstract Title: Bridging the gap: Understanding neuroscience through symbiotic learning and community outreach
Session Title: Neuroscience Outreach Activities II*
Session Time: 11/12/2017 8:00:00 AM – 11/12/2017 12:00:00 PM*
Session Number: 027

LEARN MORE: PSU Neuro Club Neuroscience Poster SfN 2017
Bridging the gap: Understanding neuroscience through symbiotic learning and community outreach
AUTHOR BLOCK *C. A. WILLIAMS1, A. R. KUNZ2, S. RODRIGUEZ6, H. A. HAMILTON7, J. L. JENSEN3, A. L. POOLE3, A. ANAYA4, J. M. HAMLIN3, J. J. SCHOEN5, J. L. RITCHIE3;
1Washington State Univ., Vancouver, WA; 2Biochem., 3Portland State Univ., Portland, OR; 4Portland State Univ., Clackamas, OR; 5Psychology, Portland State Univ., Portland, OR; 7Biol., 6PSU/NIH Build Exito, Portland, OR
Abstract:
NW Noggin is a nonprofit integrative art and neuroscience organization that takes an innovative approach to education for people of all ages. Noggin operates through the combined effort of students, scientists, and artists from Oregon and Washington State. This approach provides volunteers with opportunities for involvement that include: outreach, teaching experience, public speaking experience, networking, and much more. This multi-institutional outreach facilitates collaboration between the community and institutions of higher education which can often be a difficult gap to bridge. In our efforts to teach the public, we are also teaching ourselves. As future scientists and educators in the making, we relish the opportunity to share our knowledge with a thirsty and curious public. During the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) Brain Fair in March 2017, Noggin hosted a table where members of the community approached us with questions that challenged and inspired us to think critically, and creatively, which further solidified our understanding of neuroscience. By the end of the day, we had gone through over 1200 gloves, which were utilized to hold real brains. Ultimately, we were stunned by the sheer volume of people who attended this event. Contributing to public understanding of neuroscience and psychology generates a sense of altruism within us because we value the contributions, and personal connections we make within our community. This was especially evident at Shahala Middle School in February of 2017 when Noggin provided brain demonstrations, and led students through the construction of pipe cleaner neurons. The students were attentive, respectful, and most importantly, engaged in the educational process. It was uplifting to see the eyes of our future generation light up with excitement as they got a closer look at real human brains. We believe that these experiences will remain with them as they continue on their academic journey. Whether that journey leads them to explore the sciences, or otherwise, is a prospect that makes doing outreach so rewarding. If we want to begin solving problems in the world, it starts with outreach. It’s through collaboration, and the proliferation of knowledge, that issues can be resolved. The work we do as volunteers fuels our own drive for scientific knowledge, and we hope to inspire the same in community members we interact with throughout our NW Noggin outreach.
Presentation Number: 027.15SU
Poster Board Number: WW46
Presentation Time: 10:00am – 11:00am
Location: Walter E. Washington Convention Center: Halls A-C *
*Theme J posters should be mounted Saturday, November 11, 1 p.m. EST through Sunday, Nov. 12, 5 p.m. EST for casual viewing over the weekend. You are responsible for removing your poster from the board at 5 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 12. Theme J posters remaining after November 12, 5 p.m. EST will be discarded.

SfN Trainee Professional Development Awards Poster Session
2017-11-11 18:30 - 20:30 | Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States
WHAT: SfN Trainee Professional Development Awards Recipients Poster Session
WHERE: Hall E, Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC 20001
WHEN: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11th, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

This SfN poster session is open to all and offers visiting volunteers the opportunity to learn about projects selected for Professional Development Awards, and to meet some reviewers who may be evaluating future applications.
