Our class watched the rugby final at the Stade de France! It was an unforgettable experience, as I have never attended a rugby game before. As I was walking to the rugby game, I got lost in large, loud crowds. Even though I was having trouble finding exactly where I was going, I could not help but reflect on all the enthusiasm and excitement within the crowd. Furthermore, at the rugby game, everyone was yelling for their team. In fact, the brain plays a very important part in our hearing process. The brain actually perceives these  signals through a very interesting pathway. For example, hair cells in our inner ear send electrical signals to the auditory nerve. This signal is then processed in the auditory center of the brain. I never really thought about auditory processing before, but the loud rugby game definitely made me look into it!

Musée des Arts et Métiers had a collection of radios. Radio technology became widely used as a form of delivery of information to the masses in form of radio news. This technology became prevalent at the turn of the century in the beginning of the 1900’s. During this time of war, lack of civil rights, and economic hardship people wanted knowledge, a voice to share the opinions through, and a sense of faith in belonging to a community. In many ways the radio offered a solution to these culture needs. Similarly, technology like MindRider and digital psychiatricy neurotechnology is offering a way for our bodies and minds to communicate to us and allow u to know when we need help or how we feel physically. These methods of communication respond to the culture desires to want to understand our subconscious, or the information our neurological functioning can relay to us about our health and mental health.

 

Many of us got sick, which allowed for cross examination between French and American medicines. I got Humex/ cold medication form the pharmacy. Humex provides a day pill containing Pseudoephedrine. American decongestants also contain this chemical. Pseudoephedrine contains properties that allow it to act as a stimulant to promote wakefulness. This chemical demonstrates that people who are sick often desire a mental boost. When people feel vulnerable, such as being sick, they might desire a cognitive enhancer. Better cognitive operating can provide security in many systems that rely on mental ability to function, such as work places and precise, cautious work.

Luckily, while the NBB program was taking place, simultaneously so were Rugby matches at Stad de France. We were lucky enough to attend a very important match, that even included a performance by a world renowned rockstar, MIKA. The sport was similar to American football, but there was no head padding involved. The plays were tactful and fast, and included a wrestling-like component when competing in direct contact for the ball. I was amazed by the level of injury these players endured. They never seemed to stop playing, even after being knocked to the ground, falling on their backs, getting hit in the head or body. They were extremely impervious players. We went to count how many potential concussions were endured by a single player. The numbers were dangerously high. The recurrent concussions sustained by professional rugby player may actually play a role in longterm depression and other cognitive disorders. A growing concern around neurological disorders and contacts sports has lead neuroscience research on this topic

I was really excited to visit the Musée de l’Homme, especially after having taken the NBB 201 class combining both neuroscience and anthropology! In the museum, I listened to an audio that mimicked the vowel and consonant sounds of Neanderthals and then compared them to humans. I also learned that Neanderthals had a similarly sized Broca/Wernicke’s area to humans! It was fascinating to look at everything in the museum. I usually don’t try to read every word at a museum, but I was particularly interested in this one so that I could learn about the distinct differences and similarities in humans and Neanderthals.

During my stay in Paris, the NBB class took a field trip to a foumagerie. We learned about the history of cheese-making, many types of which originate in France. We tasted various cheeses, including goat and bleu.  We were able to identify various scents used in cheese-making from vanilla to pine. In addition, they talked about different techniques used. They explained the outside of cheese are treated with fungus to make the skins, one of the explanations for the strong taste and smell often associated with some cheeses. A few of the cheeses presented were slightly difficult to stomach! Many of us developed a better understanding of how cheese tasting involves the smell before eating and the actual flavor while eating. Another fun aspect of the trip was that NBB class related these techniques used in fermentation to our understanding of dairy consumption and cognition. Apparently certain types of bacteria produce a compound, DHE, during the fermentation process. DHE has been shown to have anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective effects and may help in cognitive aging  to prevent dementia.

One of my favorite parts of Paris was getting to live 1.5 miles from the Eiffel Tower. Every time I walked back to my apartment, I tried to spot the Eiffel Tower, as the entire NBB class only had one month to take in all of Paris. In fact, the first time I saw the Eiffel Tower was around midnight. I cannot describe how magnificent the flickering of the lights looked. I took several pictures of the tower, but I do not think anything could do the Eiffel Tower any justice. I could not believe what I was seeing, and later on, after thinking about how tall and detailed the tower looked, I thought about how our brains reconstruct our visual world. Our rods and cones actually process the signals they receive and then interpret this information. I wondered if I took in all the detail of the tower!

John O’Keefe recently discovered cells in our hippocampus responsible for our sense of direction, termed “place cells” (Makin, 2015). The cells are activated when we move locations, so a groups of them can a form map of an area in our brain. With so much to look at in Paris, it was hard to always pay attention to where we were going and activate those place cells. Here are some pics of my roommates and I lost in Paris. They don’t capture the most emotional distressing times or the countless times we started walking down the wrong street and turned around a few moments later. Even if we didn’t get to where we wanted quickly, we got to see a lot of Paris.

Makin, S. (2015, May). The Brain Cells behind a Sense of Direction. Scientific American Mind. Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-brain-cells-behind-a-sense-of-direction/