University Open Days
Every year, we participate in University of Birmingham Open Days. With roller banner posters, plasma screen videos of life in the lab and science using the fruit-fly Drosophila, and we bring displays of microscopes, and fruit-flies. Prospective students can look at the flies, and ask questions about teaching and learning, and also about what it is like to do final year project in the lab, the opportunities for summer placement. And most importantly, the thrill, excitement and endless rewards of life in science!
Events at the Science ThinkTank Museum: Meet the Scientist and Museum Lates, night in the museum
Community Day
The University of Birmingham hosts regular community days. We present for families about genes, DNA, RNA, cells, yeast, flies and brains. We have microscopes, genetic markers, flies with neurodegeneration, and models of brains. Children who stopped by were most intrigued by the distinct modules of the fly brain, and they went home with plasticine models of the brain. And of course, all the important things, like that flies learn, remember, and can get brain disease, so we can use them to study things relevant to us.
British Science Festival
The British Science Festival is Europe’s longest standing science Festival, travelling to a different place in the United Kingdom each year. In 2014, it was held in the Birmingham Library, where we had displays with microscopes, roller banner posters, fly and brain models, and a video we purposely made, on a plasma screen. We spoke about why we use fruit-flies in research, and how they help us address questions like how cell number is regulated in development and regeneration, how genes are expressed and translated, how the brain is made and works.
Brain Awareness Week
Each year, the School of Psychology, School of Biosciences and Medical School celebrate together the International Brain Awareness Week: evening lectures, educational videos, science in the pub, and more activities at the Think Tank Museum.
We explain to people young and old our research: why study the brain, why work with fruit-flies, how things are done and the wonders and excitements of science, research and discovery.