MindSpec celebrates Brain Awareness Week by expanding the “Brain Biology” section of Autism Reading Room, its new online resource designed to enhance public understanding of autism research.

“Brain Biology” will be restructured to describe brains at different stages, comparing developing brains to those of adult brains.  Experience-dependent brain plasticity will be emphasized as a critical factor at all developmental time points.

Brain Awareness Week (BAW) was founded and is coordinated by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives and European Dana Alliance for the Brain.  Important BAW facts:

• March 12-18, 2012 is BAW’s seventeenth annual celebration.
• The campaign’s goal is to make the public more aware of the benefits and promise of brain research.
• BAW is a global partnership of government agencies, scientific organizations, universities, hospitals, service groups, professional associations, schools, and others.
• Hundreds of BAW events take place each year, organized by partners to meet one or more of the following goals: scientific, education, or advocacy outreach.