All in the Mind - New Exhibition to Uncover Secrets of the Brain

A new exhibition at the Life Science Centre will help us understand what’s going on inside our heads. The Brain Zone, a new exhibition telling the story of the brain and how it works, revealing some of its secrets and exploring the techniques scientists use to study it, has opened at the Life Science Centre. The exhibition was funded by the Wellcome Trust, one of the largest biomedical research charities in the world and was officially opened by its Chair, Baroness Manningham-Buller. She said: “I am delighted that we supported the Brain Zone. It is an excellent exhibition. I learned a lot and I had great fun going round the imaginative and stimulating exhibits.” Exploring everything from how messages are relayed in the brain to the role of emotions, the exhibition uses hands-on exhibits and activities to engage visitors. One of the highlights of the exhibition is a real human brain, donated to Life from the Institute of Plastination in Germany.   Linda Conlon, Chief Executive at Life, said: “It’s timely that we are launching an exhibition all about the brain as only this week, the Wellcome Trust published the results of its Monitor Survey which tell us that three quarters of the public are interested in medical research and how the brain works is one of the top subjects that they are interested in.”   She added: “The brain is seen as one of the last frontiers of scientific mystery. What we do know however, is that everyone’s brains are wired differently and this is what we have set out for visitors to explore for themselves in the Brain Zone.”   Life has worked closely with a Scientific Advisory Board comprised of specialists from Northumbria, Durham, Newcastle and York Universities who advised on the scientific content of the exhibition. Linda Conlon added: “Thanks to our collaboration with the region’s universities, the Brain Zone will not only be an exhibition, but also a working laboratory which is something unique and exciting for a visitor attraction.  Visitors will be able to take part in real research projects and there will be a regular stream of scientists who will be visiting the exhibition to talk about their research and latest findings.” Greta Defeyter, Professor of Psychology and Director of ‘Healthy Living’, at Northumbria University, advised on the psychology aspects within the exhibition. Her main research focusses on children’s understanding of objects and how they reason about their function and identity. She said: “The brain is our most fascinating and essential organ, responsible for every motion, every reaction and every thought”. Anya Hurlbert, Professor of Visual Neuroscience and Director of the Centre for Translational Systems Neuroscience at Newcastle University, said: “We’re only just beginning to understand the complex workings of the human brain. This exhibition will be a valuable educational resource for people of all ages, helping them not only to understand how our brain works but also to have a clearer, more informed understanding of brain-related illnesses and developments in neuroscience research and medicine.”   Rob Barton, Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology at Durham University, said: “This is an exciting time in the development of brain science, with new insights into how brains are organised and how they work coming from a battery of increasingly sophisticated kit for probing neural structure and function. “The amazing images created by researchers using the new technologies also provide a great opportunity for this exhibition to showcase the discoveries being made in neuroscience.” To celebrate the opening of the Brain Zone, Life is running a programme of special events including an event with comedian Robin Ince on 3 May who will be exploring what kind of brain it takes to make a comedian, and whether shouting at people for money is really good for you.  Magician turned psychologist and broadcaster, Professor Richard Wiseman who will be exploring the psychology employed by some of the world’s greatest illusionists, how to detect lies, and looking at why the hand is rarely quicker than the eye on 7September. To book tickets for these events, visit life.org.uk Funding for the Brain Zone was secured through a Capital Award from the Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation which aims to improve health by supporting bright minds in science, the humanities and social sciences, and public engagement.  It is one of the UK's leading funders of public engagement with science activities.