WASHINGTON – “Which retinal photoreceptor cells are the most sensitive to light?”
The question flashed on the screen and the competitors hastily scribbled their answers onto notecards. After 20 seconds, too short to even look up the answer on my iPhone, a loud buzzer indicated it was time to see who had responded correctly.
This isn’t your average, every-day “bee”; this is the International Brain Bee, a competition that measures the neuroscientific knowledge of high school students from around the world.
Seventeen students from 17 countries gathered Friday at the American Psychological Association Convention to find out which one had the most neural connections (that’s partly what determines intelligence, as we were informed before the competition started).
Students were seated by pairs at each table, with the flag of their country attached to the front. Spectators were seated on the periphery, creating a barrier around the competitors.
For the contestants, the stakes were high: prize money, a trophy, and recognition of course, were on the line. The bee concludes Saturday with the presentation of the trophy.
At one point, a competitor became visibly agitated and was on the verge of tears after answering a few questions in a row wrong — the judges called out her home country along with the incorrect answers.
The next question flashes on the screen. “A common effect of all drugs of abuse is that they stimulate a pleasure pathway that releases what neurotransmitter?”
It’s the only question of the day that I have an answer to (dopamine) and this isn’t even a question that the competitors consider hard.
Founded by Dr. Norbert Myslinski in 1998, the International Brain Bee might seem like a competition for the nerdiest of nerds, but it was started with a noble goal.
“I like to instill in these students the same thing that I like to instill in my two children, and that’s passion and compassion,” said Myslinski. “Passion for the human brain and neuroscience and compassion for their fellow man, so that they have a purpose and reason for doing this.”
In its 15th year, the International Brain Bee spans six continents and has more than 150 chapters. The competition has grown each year and Dr. Myslinski is excited that more and more students are participating.
“The left and right sides of the cerebral cortex are connected by a large fiber tract called what?”
After all the answers to this one have been counted, the judges announce that everyone got it right and the room of spectators, mostly parents and chaperones of contestants, erupts in applause. I’ve never heard of the answer before, and it sounds to me like a villain from a fantasy novel. But if the enthusiasm of the judges and the smile from Dr. Myslinski are any indication, the future of our brains is in good hands.