Psychologist logo
Brain

An energising reminder

The New Scientist Live’s second edition featured two stands from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience. Alina Ivan – exhibitor and postgraduate research assistant – shares nuggets of her experience at the event.

04 October 2018

Last September, the ExCeL centre once again opened its doors to the New Scientist Live. From learning how to land on a comet to finding ways to expand consciousness, enthusiasts delved into new advances in science and technology for four full days. The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London had two stands, where people live-streamed their heart rate, pedalled a ‘smoothie bike’ in the pursuit of growing brain cells and experienced virtual reality used for psychosis.  

At the RADAR-CNS stand which I was part of, visitors could stream their heartbeats and sweat (we call the latter "skin conductance" and it's funnier to see than you might expect). They tried on different devices used in the RADAR-CNS study, while kids played gamified cognitive tests. We use cognitive tests in the study to assess how emotions affect attention, memory and planning ahead in people with depression, with the hope that we could help people better manage their symptoms. RADAR-CNS, which stands for Remote Assessment of Disease and Relapse in Central Nervous System disorders, is an international project which explores the use of smartphones and wearable technologies to monitor depression, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. 

Bringing RADAR-CNS to the New Scientist Live was inspirational, not only because it allowed me and my colleagues to share our passion, but also because it gave us the chance to have key conversations about what the future of healthcare could hold with people from all ages and walks of life. 

Stepping away from the stand, as a keen cyclist I couldn't help but spot the stationary bike. It had a blender attached to its front wheel which delivered a smoothie. Of course, no sweat, no treats! Edina Silajdzic, postdoctoral research fellow at the IoPPN, explained that unlike previously thought, the adult brain can grow new nerve cells; certain nutrients found in berries and seeds (which the smoothie contained) and exercise can accelerate this process. “It's called neurogenesis and it takes place in the hippocampus, where nerve cells are involved in learning, memory and mood”, Edina explained. I earned my smoothie, and I can tell you, it was bursting with flavour! Edina then invited me to take a seat at a computer and test my cognition, just the way participants do it in the research.  

The following day, I met Dan Stanyon, a Research Assistant on the REACH study. REACH stands for Resilience, Ethnicity, and AdolesCent mental Health. While adjusting the virtual reality headset on one of the volunteers, he explained that the headset immerses people into a classroom environment. “Some adolescents with psychosis may feel threatened by particular social situations they encounter at school, for example if someone says ‘you can’t sit here’ and put their bag on the neighbour chair or if there is background laughter. They may take these ambiguous situations personally and this could correlate with poorer mental health outcomes. In the future, virtual reality could provide a safe environment to explore these contexts with a therapist and build up social confidence”, he added. The REACH study explores how virtual reality can further our understanding of how symptoms of psychosis develop and how they can be better managed. 

Dan invited us to contribute to the ’Resilience Tree’, a half-meter tree with coloured paper leaves hanging off its branches, where the different guests had jotted down thoughts or actions that helped them in stressful situations. "One way to engage kids with science is to make them realise that they can contribute through their own experience and their contribution is valuable”, he fondly explained. He believes that public engagement activities can “break down the idea that science isn’t fun” and help to shatter the perception that “science is divorced from the arts”. 

Speakers at the event included psychologists Dean Burnett, Nick Davis and Sarah-Jayne Blakemore. The stands and talks were a fantastic way to inspire the public and the next generation of scientists. For those of us manning the stands, it was an energising reminder of how important it is to power through with our research while also taking the time to share what we do with the public. 

[Picture: Jonny Donovan]