In the first of a series of public talks, visiting Italian researcher Massimiano Bucchi and University of Otago professor Dave Grattan, will discuss ‘‘The Power of Food on the Brain'', at the Otago Museum's Hutton Theatre at 5.30pm.
Prof Grattan is a member of the university's Brain Health Research Centre, and the latest Brain Week focuses on the power of the mind.
The New Zealand premiere of the 10-minute ‘‘Neurodome'' is being staged at the museum's planetarium today. All sessions of the US-made show, offering a close-up investigation of the brain, are booked out.
Research centre communications adviser Irene Mosley said Otago's campaign, starting in 2010, to maintain the region's neurological surgery services showed a strong community interest in brain-related issues.
Brain week was catering for continuing strong public interest in this field, she said.
A further series of free public talks is being given at the Neurological Foundation's Brain Day, which starts at the Hutton Theatre tomorrow. The Otago week is being run by the research centre, in association with the museum and foundation.
Several more free talks are being held next week, and Brain Week ends next Thursday, with the centre's giant inflatable brain being displayed in the upper Octagon, from 10am to 2pm.
