Why does the brain matter?
MELVILLE–The University of Johannesburg will host a seminar over a three week period based on the fascinating dynamics of how the brain works.
If you’ve ever taken an interest in how the human brain functions and would like to know more about it, there’s an informative seminar taking place at the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (Jias) in partnership with Nanyang Technology University.
The seminar, Why the Brain Matters, runs from 12 to 30 September.
Director of Jias and professor of humanities at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), Peter Vale, said the brain is a complex organ of the body and very little work has been done on it, compared to work done on other parts of the body. “The seminar will be separated into four sessions over three weeks and I believe people need to understand that brain studies cannot be for one single aspect.
“Many of us are from different cultural traditions and there are also different understandings of the brain. Part of the conversation will be around these distinct cultural understandings, trying to understand the physiological, emotional and spiritual dimensions of the brain.”
He added that the first session will be on brain studies, the second session on the cognitive brain, followed by the creative brain and lastly, the social brain. “I will be coordinating the sessions, which are open to the pubic. Everyone who is interested in understanding how the brain works is welcome, because it is such an important, complex organ and stands at the centre of who we are.
“It is good for society to try and understand how different people see things, how creativity works in people and also we want to have a sportsman tell us how the brain works while playing sport, which is different to how your brain works when driving a car, for example.”
Details: Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (Jias) ehprinsloo@uj.ac.za
