Avenues of Scientific Discovery Participation!

This year, in collaboration with Dr. Katherine Duggan and the PATHS Lab, our lab participated in the NDSU Avenues of Scientific Discovery, “a one-day conference for middle and high school students focused on cultivating an interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.” Undergraduate (Glade, Jorgensen, Weston) and graduate student (Byron and Garcia) members of the labs contributed to this outreach presentation (abstract below). Great job everyone!

The Psychophysiology of Stress: How the Brain and Body Communicate to Prepare us for Challenges

Our brains and our bodies are constantly communicating with each other to make sure we have all the resources and energy we need to do things like ride a bike, exercise at the gym, or run from a lion. In this workshop, learn about the technologies scientists use, including virtual reality, to find out more about how people’s minds and bodies respond to stress. The presenters will demonstrate how to measure what our bodies are doing during stress using blood pressure monitors; you will learn about the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which is the system our body uses to regulate our responses to stress; and how social support can help people cope with stress and therefore improve their health.