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Welcome to the Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter.
In this issue:
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Neuroscience for Kids had several new additions in August including:
A. August Neuroscience for Kids Newsletter was archived
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/news3008.html
B. New Neuroscience in the News
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/inthenews.html
C. Visit or follow my Instagram site with neuroscience facts and trivia:
https://www.instagram.com/ericchudler/
D. Neuro-Cyanotypes
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/neurocyano.html
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The Neuroscience for Kids "Site of the Month" for September is the website of Amirali Banani at:
https://www.amiralibanani.com/
Amirali is an undergraduate neuroscience student at the University of Washington who has created a website to highlight some of his work. I've known Amirali for several years and asked him about why he built his site. Here is his response:
"I've always wanted to create a personal website. For me, it was never a question of when, but how. As a kid, I used to create drafts for it when I got my first computer, at 13. It is imperfect in every sense of the word, but I love adding stuff to it here and there from simple life updates to new achievements and experiences. I created it not just for people to find my work on the internet and be inspired by it in some way, but to also have a sort of "second brain" where I could store my own thoughts and memories in my little corner of the World Wide Web. For me, it's more than just something like a LinkedIn page that shows my work experience and achievements in a structured, rather systematic way. After all, it's designed by myself with the sort of aesthetics and structure that encapsulate me well, also allowing me to add new sections to it as I wish.
"Speaking of sections, two that I would especially recommend checking out on my website are the Experiences and Scientific Work sections! These have a lot of great content and are updated regularly with new things I work on and get involved with."
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Ever since I took a photography class in high school, I have always had a camera. Recently, I have taken an interest in alternative photographic methods. Alternative photography involves nontraditional printmaking and does not even require a camera. One alternative photography method that I use is called a cyanotype.
The cyanotype method was invented by Sir John Herschel in 1842. The technique involves coating paper with iron salts, exposing the paper to the sun and then washing the paper with water. After being exposed to ultraviolet light, the parts of the paper blocked by an object remain white, while the other parts of the paper turn blue. Anna Atkins published the first book with botanical illustrations using cyanotypes in 1843. Making cyanotypes is not too expensive: all you need are some ready-to-use chemicals (about $15), some watercolor paper, brushes and sunshine.
I've found a way to combine my interests in neuroscience with alternative photography in what I call "Neuro-Cyanotypes." Neuro-cyanotypes are cyanotypes of historically important images created by pioneers in the field of neuroscience. For example, in 1543, Andreas Vesalius published detailed images of the brain in his book titled "De Humani Corporis Fabrica." Santiago Ramon y Cajal, a master artist as well as the father of modern neuroscience, also published many images of the brain and its neurons. I've printed some of these images (they are in the "public domain") using the cyanotype method as another way to preserve, appreciate and honor these works.
You can see a few of my neuro-cyanotypes here:
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/neurocyano.html
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If you are in Seattle on September 19, 2026, make sure to drop by the Allen Institute during their open house. This is a rare chance to see inside one of the world's premier research organizations. Tickets for the event are required, but they are free. For tickets and more information about the event, see:
https://alleninstitute.org/events/2026-inside-open-science
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The Regeneron Science Talent Search is now accepting applications from high school seniors for its 2027 science competition. Participating students should have done some research and collected data and results. Many awards are made to students and their schools. Perhaps you or someone you know should enter! For more details about the competition, see:
https://www.societyforscience.org/regeneron-sts/
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A. "Countless Lifeforms Sense, Remember, and Communicate, All Without Brains is the cover story of DISCOVER magazine (Summer, 2026).
B. "Implicating the Brain" and "Hallmarks of Consciousness" (AMERICAN SCIENTIST, July/August, 2026).
C. "What if Freud was Right" (THE ATLANTIC, September, 2026).
D. "Wired for Stories" (SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, September, 2026).
E. "The New Science of Dreaming" (TIME, September 7, 2026).
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A. River Brain is a small river about three miles outside the town of Braintree, England. The town of Braintree has a population of about 43,000 people and is located approximately 40 miles from London, England.
B. Brain Sleep, a company based in Tokyo, Japan, sells a pillow for more than $225. I do not know if you will really get a better night's sleep with the product.
C. Acanthonus armatus is a deep-water, bottom-dwelling fish with the smallest brain to body weight ratio of any fish. In fact, these animals may have the smallest brain to body weight ratio of any vertebrate. A specimen that weighed 2.3 g had a brain that weighed only 6.2 mg; a 180 g fish had a brain that weighed only 48.7 mg (Source: Fine, M.L., et al., Acanthonus armatus, a deep-sea teleost fish with a minute brain and large ears. Proc R Soc Lond B Biol Sci., 230:257-265, 1987).
D. Normal body temperature is usually about 37C (98.6F). However, average brain temperature is 38.5C (101.3F) with some brain areas such as the thalamus and hypothalamus reaching even higher temperatures (Source: Rzechorzek, N.M., A daily temperature rhythm in the human brain predicts survival after brain injury, Brain, 145:2031-2048, 2022).
E. The brains of western hognose snakes (Heterodon nasicus) that live in enriched environments (enclosures with a loose coconut husk substrate, a plastic shelter, a large water dish, a sand dish for burrowing, plastic vine, a damp shelter and straw balls) are significantly larger than the brains of snakes that live in standard environments (paper towel sheets as bedding, a black shelter, a small water dish) (Source: Nagabaskaran, G. et al., Environmental enrichment increases brain volume in snakes, J. Comp. Neurol., 533(3):e70043, 2025).
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Your comments and suggestions about this newsletter and the "Neuroscience for Kids" web site are always welcome. If there are any special topics that you would like to see on the web site, just let me know.
Eric
Eric H. Chudler, Ph.D.