Funded activities

Bright Club: Bodies

Bright Club is the place where funny meets brains, where researchers perform stand up comedy in front of audiences of members of the public and where content meets comedy. It’s a highly‐successful public engagement project that has won awards for its founders and has received coverage from broadsheet newspapers, BBC TV, the World Service and even BBC 6Music.

The Society has run Bright Club: Bodies at the Brighton and Edinburgh Science Festivals to great success. 12 academics have performed at each gig alongside professional comperes Angela Barnes and Any Zaltzman, including 5 Society Members. You can read a review of the Brighton gig in the Spring 2012 edition of Physiology News, and see photos of the Edinburgh gig here. There's also a recording of our Outreach Manager, Louise Crane, giving The Society a plug at the end of the night here.

Bright Club: Bodies returns at the Cardiff Science Festival in July.

I’m a Scientist, Get Me Out of Here! Sports Zone

I'm A Scientist is an award-winning online engagement event that gets scientists and school students talking. The event takes place over two weeks and covers many topics in the form of "Zones". Five scientists in each zone write profiles, answer student questions, take part in live chats and face eviction based on the votes of up to 400 participants.

The Society spnsored the Sports Zone in March 2012. The winner of this zone was Fiona Hatch from the University of Hull. Fiona wins £500 to spend on a science communication project of her own. You can read her report of what it was like to take part in I'm A Scientist in Physiology News Spring 2012.

I'm A Scientist have produced an evaluation report on the Sports Zone, which you can read here.

Glasgow Science Centre: Bodyworks

Bodyworks is a new £2 million exhibition at Glasgow Science Centre (GSC) that will open in 2013. It's described as, “A unique and inspiring programme exploring the science underpinning health and wellbeing in the 21st century.”

The Society is sponsoring the My Physiology station within the exhibition and will be encouraging its members to take part in GSC's Meet The Scientists events.

Outreach Grants

Details and reports from previous Outreach Grants can be found on our education website, Understanding Life or by clicking on the event titles below.

Wales National Brain Bee

Frank Sengpiel, University of Cardiff

The Wales National Brain Bee was held on 2nd April 2012 as part of Brain Awareness Week and the International Brain Bee. Nearly 60 sixth-form pupils from 5 schools in south Wales were given a booklet of facts published by the Society for Neuroscience in preparation for the competition, which involved multiple choice questions and using models to identify anatomy and common neurological disorders. The top three students won gift vouchers and the ultimate winner, Ann Sebastian, won an engraved trophy. Congratulations to Ann.

The aim of the Brain Bee is to motivate teenagers to learn more about the brain than they would ordinarily do within the biology curriculum and to inspire them to consider a career in neuroscience. There is more information about the competition on the International Brain Bee website.

The Science of Marathon Running

Emma Ross, University of Brighton

This symposium was run by sports an exercise physiologist Emma Ross at the University of Brighton. The aim was to engage with the local running community who participate in the Beachy Head Marathon, their family and friends, and local residents. Emma wanted to give them an insight into the sport and exercise science research being conducted at the university. This symposium created a partnership between the Beachy Head Marathon and the Sport and Exercise Department at the University of Brighton that helps raise awarness about the science of human performance to those participating in and associated with the race, and makes this research available to them.

MedSci Outreach Programme

Kevin Murphy, Imperial College London

MedSci is a programme designed to assist year 12 pupils with the preparation of their UCAS application for a life science or medical degree. It provides work experience and educational opportunities for students from widening participation programmes. MedSci is organised by the Imperial Outreach Office, the Imperial College School of Medicine (ICSM) admissions office and the ICSM Vision scheme. Funding from The Physiological Society is paying for tranport costs of school pupils and Imperial students who take part in the programme.

Meet The Neuroscientist at MOSI

Emily Robinson, University of Manchester

Emily recently won the Society of Biology New Researcher Science Communication award, which recognises her innovative, publicly-focused activities in which she has engaged with many audiences including patients and carers who might be affected by her research.