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More than 100 brainy Year 10 students from WA are preparing to compete in the State championships at the Australian Brain Bee Challenge to be held on Tuesday 23 June at The University of Western Australia.

The Australian Brain Bee Challenge is the country’s only neuroscience competition for high school students designed to test knowledge about a range of topics, including intelligence, memory, emotions, sleep, Alzheimer’s disease and stroke.

The students come from 13 WA schools and were selected from more than 800 competitors across 23 schools.

They will complete a brain-teasing team challenge and a neuroscience quiz at the State championships and will also tour UWA’s world-class Neuroscience facilities and meet with renowned scientific researchers.

State Coordinator and UWA Associate Professor Jenny Rodger said it was pleasing to see the level of neuroscience understanding the young students were displaying at such an early age.

‘The knowledge these students have is exceptional and I’m really looking forward to hosting this year’s competition which will no doubt prove to be another nail biting challenge,” she said.

“The Brain Bee Challenge is a great way for students to further develop their knowledge and test their skills, in a friendly learning environment.”

Australian Brain Bee Challenge (ABBC) National competition instigator Professor Linda Richards said the competition gave students the opportunity to explore neuroscience and see if they may be interested in studying the field after school.

“Neuroscience is an important field of study, enabling us to continue to develop vital research and understanding of neurological illnesses to better treat patients,” she said.

“Attracting bright students that have an interest and passion in the field is therefore crucial.”

The first round of the competition saw 5550 students from 300 schools take part across Australia and New Zealand.

The student who wins Tuesday’s challenge will go on to compete in the Australian Brain Bee Challenge National Final, to be held in Sydney in December and the  national winner from that competition will compete at the international challenge next year.

ABBC is supported by major sponsors, University of Western Sydney, along with the Australian Neuroscience Society, UWA and the Neurotrauma Research Program in WA.

Schools participating in the State Final at UWA on Tuesday 23 June 2015 are:

• Austin Cove Baptist College
• Geraldton Grammar school
• Goldfields Baptist College
• Guildford Grammar School
• John Paul College
• Lake Joondalup Baptist College
• Newton Moore Senior High School
• Santa Maria College
• Shenton College
• St Georges Anglican Grammar School
• St Hilda's Anglican School for Girls
• St Mark's Anglican Community School
• St Mary's Anglican Girls' School
• Woodvale Secondary College

Media references

Associate Professor Jenny Rodger (State Coordinator /NHMRC Senior Research Fellow) (+61 4) 11 844 103
Jess Reid (UWA Media)                                                                                                     (+61 8) 6488 6876