Greetings Neuroscience Bruins,
As we continue into another quarter of remote learning, we want to assure students in the Neuroscience program that they can pursue SRP-99 and NEUROSC 199ABC/198AB research contracts this fall quarter. If you need help coming up with ideas of how to fulfill your research contract this quarter, please consult with your faculty mentor. You can also reference the attached list of remote project activity recommendations that has been provided by the Undergraduate Research Center- Life Sciences, along with the list below that was recently shared with our Neuroscience research mentors.
Suggestions for Remote Activities:
Students pursuing 199ABC/198AB research contracts this quarter can find all of the required forms and information on the Neuroscience website, along with the link to the CCLE website where these materials must be uploaded by Friday of Week 1 (October 9th, 2020).
Thank you all for your flexibility during these unprecedented circumstances and please let us know if you or your faculty mentor have questions.
Thank you,
Chair, Dr. Stephanie White.
Vice Chair, Dr. Christopher Colwell
Neuroscience Advisors, Jaclyn Robbin & Aftin Whitten
As we continue into another quarter of remote learning, we want to assure students in the Neuroscience program that they can pursue SRP-99 and NEUROSC 199ABC/198AB research contracts this fall quarter. If you need help coming up with ideas of how to fulfill your research contract this quarter, please consult with your faculty mentor. You can also reference the attached list of remote project activity recommendations that has been provided by the Undergraduate Research Center- Life Sciences, along with the list below that was recently shared with our Neuroscience research mentors.
Suggestions for Remote Activities:
- Focus on analyzing data previously collected. Re-analysis provides an opportunity for a second impartial/blind look at the lab’s data and can highlight strong inter-rater reliability values that can strengthen grant applications and manuscripts.
- Conduct a literature review relevant to the lab’s work.
- Help craft rebuttals to reviews of previously submitted manuscripts and applications.
- Take a deep dive into planning what experiments to prioritize once students are allowed back in lab.
- Develop an infographic for the public on your lab’s research topic and consider posting on the lab website.
- Enroll in on-line classes for coding through the Collaboratory at https://qcb.ucla.edu/collaboratory-2/workshops/ -- develop lab-relevant code in your exercises.
- Use your social media expertise to systematically promote the lab's accomplishments.
- Critique and edit the lab's publications, posters or grant applications.
- Shift to a modeling project that can be supervised remotely.
- In addition, taking the EH&S lab safety fundamentals course, filling out MHQs, taking the relevant on-line Citi quiz, attending and making presentations (e.g. of new analyses or presenting a relevant publication) at Zoom lab meetings all count towards time spent engaging in research
Students pursuing 199ABC/198AB research contracts this quarter can find all of the required forms and information on the Neuroscience website, along with the link to the CCLE website where these materials must be uploaded by Friday of Week 1 (October 9th, 2020).
Thank you all for your flexibility during these unprecedented circumstances and please let us know if you or your faculty mentor have questions.
Thank you,
Chair, Dr. Stephanie White.
Vice Chair, Dr. Christopher Colwell
Neuroscience Advisors, Jaclyn Robbin & Aftin Whitten
| URC - Mentorship of Undergraduates in Research During Remote Instruction |
WHAT ARE THE NEUROSCIENCE MAJOR CAPSTONE OPTIONS?
The Neuroscience, B.S. is designated as a capstone major. The capstone major at UCLA serves as a project-based culmination to a curriculum (a meaningful, shaped collection of courses typical of a major or minor), bringing together in a coherent way key elements of that curriculum. The acquisition of knowledge should lead to a specialized topic explored in a paper or project. Methodological training should be applied to a specific inquiry. Knowledge integrated across a range of topics and disciplines should provide broader contexts for a topic or project. And specific skills, such as research, discussion, teamwork, project design, performance, oral presentation, and writing, should be employed as appropriate to that inquiry
CHOOSE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CAPSTONE OPTIONS:.
Option 1: Laboratory Methods
(1) Neuroscience 101L*
Winter Quarter Only
Pre-requisites: NS m101A, m101B (NS m101B can be taken concurrently)
*PSYCH 116 is pre-approved as a substitute course for NEUROSC 101L - please contact the Neuroscience advisors for DARS substitutions
Offered all academic quarters + summer session
Pre-requisites: please contact the Psychology advisors for help with enrollment and waiving pre-requisites (on second enrollment pass)
(2) Additional major elective
Students who choose the NS 101L (or Psych 116) option must take a total of 4 upper division electives with at least one from each elective option. Neurobio M169 can be taken provided that student has already completed one elective for each of the 3 elective categories.
Option 2: Independent Research
(1) Neuroscience 199A
and
(2) Neuroscience199B**
Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters
Pre-requisites: NS m101A & SRP 99 (or departmental 199 research contract) under same faculty mentor
Students who choose the NS 198A/B or NS 199A/B option must take 3 upper division electives, one form each elective option.
Neurobio M169 does not apply.
Poster required at the annual NS undergraduate poster session in May
Please see Research Courses for detailed guidelines.
**Students pursuing Departmental Honors must sign up for NS 198AB instead.
INFORMATION ON NEUROSC 199AB- Project Brainstorm Capstone
You may use participation in Project Brainstorm to fulfill your capstone requirement for the Neuroscience major.
Project Brainstorm (usually offered as Neuroscience 192B) is a two-quarter outreach and research project offered to Juniors and Seniors in which you have an opportunity to develop teaching lessons on Neuroscience that you present to local K-12 students. Capstone students also develop a research project and present at Neuroscience Poster Day.
Project Brainstorm meets Thursdays, 9am-11:50am in both the Winter and Spring quarters.
However, for Capstone students, there will be many additional requirements and increased time commitment.
If you are interested in doing Project Brainstorm over two quarters to fulfill the Neuroscience Major Capstone Requirement, please download and submit the application in Fall Quarter.
Please note: Project Brainstorm as Capstone is EXTREMELY limited at this time- only ~7 students total.
You should be prepared with a back-up plan: Capstone Option #1 (Neurosc 101L in the Winter and an extra elective from any category) or Capstone Option #2 (Participate in Neuroscience Independent Research in a Neuroscience Lab under NS 199AB or NS 198AB) or Capstone Option #3 (Neuroscience C177 + Neuroscience 192C).
Questions? Please contact instructor, Dr. Walter Babiec, at brainstorm@ucla.edu.
Option 3: Neuroscience C177 + Neuroscience 192C (Effective Fall 2019)
Beginning in academic year 2019-2020, students can apply to complete their Capstone requirement in an additional option entitled 'DOPA-Team'. Specifically, successful applicants will enroll in two sequential courses, NEUROSC C177 'Drugs of Abuse: Translational Neurobiology' and NEUROSC 192C 'Drug Abuse and Society: Conveying Concepts to High School Students' as a third capstone research option. The research component will be built into the C177 course. Under the tutelage of the course instructors, students will choose a novel and unique project, such as youth drug trends over time. Public databases will be mined and analyzed. For the outreach component, students will be given the opportunity to choose a drug category and translate the academic knowledge acquired in C177 into an age-appropriate and interactive presentation and hands-on activity for high school students. As with Project Brainstorm and research lab-based options, students will be required to present findings at the annual Neuroscience Poster Day.
Students will apply for the “DOPA-Team” Capstone option via an application available in the Fall quarter. Please note enrollment will be limited so students should be prepared with a back-up Capstone option. Accepted “DOPA-Team” students will complete NEUROSC C177 in Winter quarter and NEUROSC 192C in Spring quarter.
Interested in DOPA-Team? Check out this article based on the experience of this past year's Capstone course that will be published in the Mind, Brain and Education Journal!
CHOOSE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CAPSTONE OPTIONS:.
Option 1: Laboratory Methods
(1) Neuroscience 101L*
Winter Quarter Only
Pre-requisites: NS m101A, m101B (NS m101B can be taken concurrently)
*PSYCH 116 is pre-approved as a substitute course for NEUROSC 101L - please contact the Neuroscience advisors for DARS substitutions
Offered all academic quarters + summer session
Pre-requisites: please contact the Psychology advisors for help with enrollment and waiving pre-requisites (on second enrollment pass)
(2) Additional major elective
Students who choose the NS 101L (or Psych 116) option must take a total of 4 upper division electives with at least one from each elective option. Neurobio M169 can be taken provided that student has already completed one elective for each of the 3 elective categories.
Option 2: Independent Research
(1) Neuroscience 199A
and
(2) Neuroscience199B**
Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters
Pre-requisites: NS m101A & SRP 99 (or departmental 199 research contract) under same faculty mentor
Students who choose the NS 198A/B or NS 199A/B option must take 3 upper division electives, one form each elective option.
Neurobio M169 does not apply.
Poster required at the annual NS undergraduate poster session in May
Please see Research Courses for detailed guidelines.
**Students pursuing Departmental Honors must sign up for NS 198AB instead.
INFORMATION ON NEUROSC 199AB- Project Brainstorm Capstone
You may use participation in Project Brainstorm to fulfill your capstone requirement for the Neuroscience major.
Project Brainstorm (usually offered as Neuroscience 192B) is a two-quarter outreach and research project offered to Juniors and Seniors in which you have an opportunity to develop teaching lessons on Neuroscience that you present to local K-12 students. Capstone students also develop a research project and present at Neuroscience Poster Day.
Project Brainstorm meets Thursdays, 9am-11:50am in both the Winter and Spring quarters.
However, for Capstone students, there will be many additional requirements and increased time commitment.
If you are interested in doing Project Brainstorm over two quarters to fulfill the Neuroscience Major Capstone Requirement, please download and submit the application in Fall Quarter.
Please note: Project Brainstorm as Capstone is EXTREMELY limited at this time- only ~7 students total.
You should be prepared with a back-up plan: Capstone Option #1 (Neurosc 101L in the Winter and an extra elective from any category) or Capstone Option #2 (Participate in Neuroscience Independent Research in a Neuroscience Lab under NS 199AB or NS 198AB) or Capstone Option #3 (Neuroscience C177 + Neuroscience 192C).
Questions? Please contact instructor, Dr. Walter Babiec, at brainstorm@ucla.edu.
Option 3: Neuroscience C177 + Neuroscience 192C (Effective Fall 2019)
Beginning in academic year 2019-2020, students can apply to complete their Capstone requirement in an additional option entitled 'DOPA-Team'. Specifically, successful applicants will enroll in two sequential courses, NEUROSC C177 'Drugs of Abuse: Translational Neurobiology' and NEUROSC 192C 'Drug Abuse and Society: Conveying Concepts to High School Students' as a third capstone research option. The research component will be built into the C177 course. Under the tutelage of the course instructors, students will choose a novel and unique project, such as youth drug trends over time. Public databases will be mined and analyzed. For the outreach component, students will be given the opportunity to choose a drug category and translate the academic knowledge acquired in C177 into an age-appropriate and interactive presentation and hands-on activity for high school students. As with Project Brainstorm and research lab-based options, students will be required to present findings at the annual Neuroscience Poster Day.
Students will apply for the “DOPA-Team” Capstone option via an application available in the Fall quarter. Please note enrollment will be limited so students should be prepared with a back-up Capstone option. Accepted “DOPA-Team” students will complete NEUROSC C177 in Winter quarter and NEUROSC 192C in Spring quarter.
Interested in DOPA-Team? Check out this article based on the experience of this past year's Capstone course that will be published in the Mind, Brain and Education Journal!
