March 14, 2005 — The unveiling of the new Brain Institute Web site highlights a week of educational efforts and activities in Utah to coincide with Brain Awareness Week worldwide. Millions of adults and children will participate in public lectures, exhibits, school programs, and competitions during Brain Awareness Week March 14-20. The weeklong educational effort in Utah is made possible with the support of the Neuroscience Program and The Brain Institute at The University of Utah, NPS Pharmaceuticals, and Cognetix, Inc.
The new Brain Institute Web site (http://brain.utah.edu) features articles about recent research into illnesses, injuries, and the workings of the brain. It explains how the institute functions and has links to other resources. “The Brain Institute is excited to launch the new portal. Our team is very proud of the great job Jennifer Logan has done to organize the site. As former co-director of the award winning Genetics Science Learning Center, Dr. Logan brings a wealth of web-based science instruction experience to our organization,” said Director of Development Rick Mandahl.
The Brain Institute at The University of Utah is a research endeavor formed to fulfill the University’s commitment to become a leader in the most intriguing and difficult area in biology: the brain. The goal of the institute is to advance knowledge of how normal brain circuits work and how they are perturbed in brain diseases.
Brain Awareness Week begins Monday, March 14 and continues through the week ending Friday, March 18 with a presentation to students at Bonneville Elementary School, located at 1145 S. 1900 E. on Friday, March 18th from 9:00-11:30 a.m. The media is invited to this event where students from the University of Utah will demonstrate how brain cells “talk” to one another, how to keep your brain healthy, anatomy of the brain, and a special emphasis on Bike Safety. The presentation will be very interactive for the students who will even have the opportunity to touch a real brain!
A full listing of activities can be found at:http://www.uen.org/curriculum/brainawareness.shtml