Not a day goes past in science without a spark of excitement. When I was five years old, I thought the brain was a ‘squishy’ tangle of noodles. As I grew up, I learned that the brain was the “heart” of the body. All through high school, I was intrigued by how the body works, but more particularly, how the brain works. I enjoyed biology and philosophy classes and found important links between science and a day to day life. So Neuroscience became my chosen path and it has never been regretted. Now, as I begin researching as an honors student, science and the academics have taken on a new and even more exciting dimension.

Academic work is more of a lifestyle than purely a job. I am able to study a topic that I am interested in, and I go about it in the way that I think is appropriate. Despite the deadlines and commitments, I work at my pace, without the inherent pressure of being late for a 9 am lecture. It involves independent learning, but also a great deal of teamwork and patience when working in a lab environment. My project relates to the Barrel Cortex of rats. This is an area in the brains of rodents that deals with the whisker motion, allowing rats to whisk through objects and ‘feel’ the texture, shape, and size of that object. In simple words, we are trying to implant electrodes into this area of the rat’s brain, and deliver small bursts of electricity directly, making it feel these sensations artificially, without actually having its whiskers there. If succesful, it can be used in any sensory system – even the human visual system, thereby enabling the blind to perceive!

My 15th of April involves coming into the lab and preparing for an experiment that I have been perfecting over the last month. I believe that this time it will go smoothly because I have learned from my previous mistakes. The experiment will continue for the full day and hence we work in a team so that we are able to take breaks without stopping the experiment. The initial stage is the craniotomy, or the opening of the skull, which requires precise measurements, along with extreme care. Only tough and sharp instruments will cut through the tough bone, but the soft structure just under it must not be touched for fear of the slightest damage. Soon, we have revealed the most amazing and beautiful structure within – the brain.

An electrode is then lowered into the brain to record the activity inside. The electrode is connected to a computer that records all the activity, and to speakers from where we can listen to the sounds that the neurons are making. We can also watch the screen which shows the neurons bursting with excitement as the electrode touches them. A photograph showing the equipment is below to show you that a scientist needs to understand not just the body, but also electrical devices to a reasonable extent in order to use them appropriately.

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We keep recording at various depths into the brain and take as much data as possible. Problems do arise along the way: the electrode doesn’t work too well, we’re on the wrong part of the brain, or the equipment to record is connected wrongly and many more. But we work through each difficulty in our own style, find a way around it and keep recording till late evening. It’s tedious, and sometimes frustrating, but we laugh and have our own fun when we can. On this day we have not gained what we wanted. It’s been close to 12 hours of work, but we’re not able to understand what has gone wrong and everyone is exhausted. So we finish off the experiment. We will spend the next few days reading, discussing and trying to understand what can be done differently, and then we will push on. Despite not gaining a good result, we have moved one step closer to solving one of the many mysteries of the brain.

From this one small aspect of brain research, I have been introduced to world of academia. And I enjoy it. I recall telling my dad a very long time ago that I wanted to be a brain scientist, not knowing what it means or how to get there. I’m glad I’ve made it thus far so that I can see where I’m headed and how to eventually become that brain scientist.