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More than 60 brilliant Year 10 and 11 students from city and country WA are aiming to do more than expand their horizons.  By taking part in the WA final of the third national Australian Brain Bee Challenge held at The University of Western Australia on June 24, they will be "expanding" the hemispheres of their brains as well.

Students from Shenton College, Roleystone District High School, St Mary's Anglican Girls' School, Santa Maria College, Mater Dei College, Goldfields Baptist College and Corpus Christi College will also be in the running to win Zeiss microscopes for their schools, iPods and cash prizes.

The students will take part in a tour of UWA's neuroscience labs as well as have the opportunity to meet researchers and undergraduates.

Brain Bee State coordinator Dr Jennifer Rodger said the Brain Bee gave students a great introduction to the fascinating field of neuroscience.

"It also encourages them to explore science in general.  We hope to motivate young people to learn about the brain, maybe capture their imagination and inspire them to pursue careers in biomedical research," Dr Rodger said.

Coordinated by the Queensland Brain Institute, part of the University of Queensland, the preliminary round attracted more than 10,000 of Australia's and New Zealand's cleverest high school students.  Those who make it through the WA final will take part in national finals at UQ in Brisbane in August, with the national winner travelling to the US to compete in the International finals in November.

The challenge is a quiz about important facts concerning intelligence, memory, emotions, sensations, movement, stress, ageing, sleep, Alzheimer's disease and stoke.  Participants are asked multiple-choice questions such as:  The average human brain loses about what percentage of its weight over a lifetime?

For the answer and for more information, visit:  www.abbc.edu.au

Media references

Dr Jennifer Rodger (+61 8)  6488 2245
Janine MacDonald (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 5563  /  (+61 4) 32 637 716