Friday Headlines

Fascinating Focus on Brain Day

Sixth Form

11 November 2022

This week, Year 13 Psychology and Biology students enjoyed a Brain Day with neuroscientist, Dr Guy Sutton, from Medical Biology Interactive.

In both sessions we were lucky enough to watch Dr Sutton dissect a sheep’s brain comparing it to a human brain and showing the similarities. It was a unique opportunity to hold the parts of the brain that we learn about in class. Seeing and touching brain tissue was also fascinating.

In the morning, the psychology students also learned how cutting edge neuroscience can influence court cases, and Dr Sutton presented some of the latest research on the organoid, a collection of neurons grown in the lab from skin cells which resembles a brain in the first few weeks of foetal development. He also reinforced the Psychology A-level content, covering brain plasticity and the structure of the brain. 

The afternoon Biology session focused on the molecular side of the neuron and its action potential, giving us a taste of what we are about to learn on our A-level course. Dr Sutton also focused on Alzheimer’s disease and how getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night helps reduce your likelihood of suffering from dementia. This is due to the synapses, the connections between neurons, being cleared when you are sleeping.

After school Dr Sutton delivered an academic lecture open to all years, giving students the chance to have a taste of A-level Psychology and Biology. The talk focused on the changing brain and how teenage brains differ from adult brains. Students learnt about the importance of sleep, diet and exercise for brain function. 

Students who were with Dr Guy Sutton all day were amazed at his presentation style and fascinated by all the new content they were learning even after a full day studying the brain. 

We would like to say thank you to Dr Guy Sutton for coming in and sharing his knowledge of the brain with us and thank you to the Psychology and Biology departments for organising this day.

Georgina Day
Year 12 Psychology Scholar

 

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