Nine of the brightest Year 10 and 11 students from Australia and New Zealand will be competing in their knowledge of neuroscience at UQ’s Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) at St Lucia, Brisbane this weekend.
The national final of the Australia and New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge (ABBC) from August 3-4 includes several multilingual students, a future karate black belt, an Irish Dancing champion, enough musicians to form a band – and one student who is teaching himself Ancient Greek.
The nine finalists, five boys and four girls, have been selected from more than 4212 students who competed in the ABBC this year.
Each finalist can expect a brain-bending two-day series of challenges, including an anatomy test, a patient diagnosis test and a neuron-blasting neuroscience quiz in front of a live audience.
Casey Linton from Somerset College on the Gold Coast will represent Queensland as she and her fellow contestants vie for the chance to win a trip to the USA in 2009 to compete at the International Brain Bee Challenge in Baltimore, Maryland.
Australia and New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge coordinator Associate Professor Linda Richards said the competition aims to increase brain awareness among young people by testing their knowledge of brain function and neurodegenerative conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
“Fundamental research plays such an important role in understanding the brain better and discovering new ways to treat the growing number of Australians with debilitating neurodegenerative diseases and mental illnesses,” Dr Richards said.
“It’s exciting that so many high school students and teachers have taken an interest in the brain and we hope the Brain Bee inspires the next generation of neuroscientists to help tackle these problems.”
Each finalist will also receive a VIP tour of QBI’s recently opened $63 million state-of-the art research facilities.
“For many students, this is their first look inside a research laboratory, so we introduce them to some of the many advanced technologies used in neuroscience and give them a snap-shot of what it's like to be a scientist,” Dr Richards said.
QBI neuroscientists study the fundamental mechanisms that regulate brain function, working towards development of treatments for dementia, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, Motor Neuron Disease, brain/spinal cord injury, schizophrenia and depression.
Last year’s National Brain Bee champion, Quinn McGennisken from Lavala College in Traralgon, Victoria, recently placed fourth in the 2008 International Brain Bee Challenge in Montreal, Canada.
More information about the Australian Brain Bee Challenge can be found online at www.abbc.edu.au
Associate Professor Linda Richards is available for interviews. Media enquiries welcome.
For more information, please call QBI communications on (07) 3346 6414.
Australian–New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge National Final
PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES
WHAT: Student tours of QBI neuroscience labs
WHEN: Monday, 4 August (10.15 am – 11.00 pm)
WHERE: Queensland Brain Institute Auditorium
Level 7, QBI Building No. 79
Upland Road, The University of Queensland
St Lucia
WHAT: Top three students competing in the live ABBC National Final quiz
WHEN: Monday, 4 August (11.30 am – 12.30 pm)
WHERE: (as above)
WHAT: Prize-giving ceremony
WHEN: Monday, 4 August (1.45 pm – 2pm)
WHERE: (as above)
2008 Australian-New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge
National Final Competitors
Australian Capital Territory: Hayden Lee, Canberra Grammar School, Canberra
Queensland: Casey Linton,Somerset College, Gold Coast
New South Wales: Jayson Jeganthan, Baulkham Hills High School, Baulkham Hills
South Australia: Jack Lowe, Christian Brothers College, Adelaide
Tasmania: Katie Dyke, Dominic College, Glenorchy
Victoria: Stephanie Mercuri, Ruyton Girls’ School, Melbourne
Western Australia: Yasmin Soliman, St Mary’s Anglican Girls’ School, Perth
Auckland, New Zealand: Stephen Mackereth, Kings College, Auckland
Otago, New Zealand: Kieran James Bunn, Logan Park High School, Dunedin
