On Saturday, March 1, high school students from around the state will gather on The University of New Mexico Health Sciences campus for the 10th annual Brain Bee, a competition similar to spelling bees that tests teens for their knowledge of brain facts.
Since the first Brain Bee was held in 1998 the competition has grown into a national and international phenomenon. High school students compete for prizes within their state, with the winner advancing to a national competition. The national winner further advances to the international competition involving students from around the world.
The day-long event encompasses educational demonstrations, allowing students to tour laboratory facilities and gain insight into how scientists collect neuroscience data. Students also gain information to help when they are completing the lab practical, a written exam with components of “real” medical histories or pathology specimens to simulate real-life scientific exploration, as well as during the written and oral portions of the Brain Bee.
“I wish this existed when I was in high school. If I had had this opportunity in high school, I might have found research sooner.”
Each year, a special speaker is invited to present on neuroscience while students and their chaperones enjoy a complimentary lunch. The New Mexico Brain Bee is sponsored by the UNM Health Sciences Center, the Center for Brain Recovery and Repair and the Brain and Behavioral Health Institute.
In New Mexico, a small but determined group of neuroscience trainees and faculty have been committed to hosting a Brain Bee for over a decade, reaching out to teens living in the far-flung corners of a sparsely populated state that has historically lacked education accessibility, and often ranks below the national average in science education.
It began in 2014, when the late Donald Partridge, PhD, and Jonathan Brigman, PhD, both professors in the UNM Department of Neurosciences, heard about the Brain Bee program and decided to start a local chapter to further their commitment to expanding science education opportunities across the region.
“Our first winner went on to graduate in a neuroscience major,” Brigman said. “I think beyond the competition, the most exciting thing about the Brain Bee is watching the students see real biomedical research happening and see them learn about what they might one day want to do themselves.”
The pair designed the contests so that people who knew nothing of neuroscience could come and have a good time, he said. Though he is less involved these days, this spirit of science accessibility continues through the leadership of Neuroscience trainees and their supportive faculty.
Russell Morton, PhD, now an assistant professor of Neurosciences, was a postdoctoral researcher when the first New Mexico Brain Bee was held in 12015. “I was actually the emcee for the first one,” he said. “I think we did everything that first year – practical, written and oral exam. I think we had on the order of 10 to 15 kids, some coming from as far away as Farmington.”
In 2022 Morton gave a “zombie talk” he and some colleagues had developed using fictional zombies as a model system to understand the basics of neurobiology. “They took normal MRI scans and then purposefully manipulated certain regions of the brain that would make sense for a zombie,” he said. “We had the jump between fast and slow zombies explained by the anatomical difference that the fast zombies maintain their cerebellums, whereas slow zombies lost theirs.”
The organizers hope that fostering an interaction between neuroscience trainees and high school students will help bridge a gap in representation for high schoolers in the state interested in pursuing a career in science.
UNM is home to a diverse student body comprised of in- and out-of-state students, as well as international students, many of whom come from low-income backgrounds and are the first in their family to hold a college degree. The New Mexico Brain Bee not only offers the opportunity for high school students to have fun while learning about their brains, but also provides a chance to interact with Neurosciences trainees.
“I wish this existed when I was in high school,” said postdoctoral researcher Nikki Maphis, PhD, who has been involved with the Brain Bee since 2016, “If I had had this opportunity in high school, I might have found research sooner.” The competition “is a way for us to talk to community members without gatekeeping. It can instill excitement in the community about what is happening in research through broad science communication.”
Morton said he would like to grow the annual event. “There is no reason why we can’t have 50-plus kids participate.” To this end, every year students and faculty reach out to high schools across New Mexico. Any student 18 years old or younger who is affiliated with a high school can participate.
This year’s event starts at 10 a.m. For additional information, please visit www.nmbrainbee.com.