braincamp

The course runs over 5 days, with the students split into two separate groups, divided based on their age ranging from 14 to 18-years old.

The itinerary written for the course is set up so that the topics remain the same for both groups, but the teaching is adjusted based on the students’ needs. These topics range from brain areas and their function, different cell types and their purpose, how the brain communicates, to artificial intelligence. Each year the schedule is slightly different but with the core topics always present. Also included is one day where the students can challenge their teachers for a change and have them answer questions about the brain.

The culmination of BrainCamp Kosovo is always on the last day, which we dedicate to our quiz. The first part of the quiz consists of true/false questions, multiple choice questions or open-ended questions designed by the four teachers.

The second part, the students have the chance to come up with their own research question and give a short presentation. They are judged by their teachers on different categories like: relevance of the question, methods of research, hypothesis and implications. The winners receive a BrainCamp trophy and eternal bragging rights.

Some students' questions:

Why do we sleepwalk?
What is synaesthesia?
What happens when we have anxiety or panic attacks?
What happens when we experience adrenaline?
How plastic is the mature brain? Where do memories get stored and how are they retrieved?
Are there differences between an average person’s brain and Einstein’s brain?
How does the brain represent the passing of time?
How does the mouse brain compute?

schedule*

MONDAY

the brain as an organ
implications of neuroscience
computational neuroscience
neural networks
neuroanatomy
neurons
cells

TUESDAY

communication in the brain
senses in the brain
neuroprosthetics
engineering in neuroscience
daily responses
senses
history of neuroscience

WEDNESDAY

debates
brain health
interactive day: microbit

THURSDAY

interesting cases
related professions
data analysis
coding in neuroscience
use of animal models
neuroscience and disease
AI and neuroscience
neuroethics

FRIDAY

game day

*a schedule detailing all topics ever covered during BrainCamp since its creation in 2018

teachers

Lisa Bauer

PhD student Max Planck Institute Neurobiology

Ali Haydaroglu

PhD student Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL

Peter Vincent

PhD student Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL

Edmund Chong

Post-doctoral fellow Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL

Isobel Parkes

PhD student University College London

Flora Takacs

Phd student Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL

Max Matuszweski

Master's student in Neuroscience, UCL

Sofia Lima da Silva Soares

Post-doctoral candidate in Neuroscience, Harvard University

Sarah Olesen

PhD student Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, UCL

Tizibt Bogale

MD and MSc in Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute