Upcoming Events

• DIALOGUES OF DISCOVERY
  Common Sense about Taste — From the Tongue to the Brain: How We Transform Sensation into Perception
  APRIL 23, 2008, 7 p.m.
  The Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Janelia Farm Research Campus invite the public to attend the second in a series of lectures called “Dialogues of Discovery.” Charles S. Zuker, Ph.D., an HHMI investigator at the University of California, San Diego, will present “Common Sense about Taste — From the Tongue to the Brain: How We Transform Sensation into Perception.”
  
  Zuker's lecture will examine the mystery of how our minds assemble information from our senses into perceptions, using his own research into the sense of taste as an example. According to Zuker, somehow our small repertoire of five taste qualities combines in the mind to create a universe of sensation. In the course of his research into how this occurs, Zuker's laboratory has discovered the receptors for four of the five tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, and umami. Salt is the fifth, and his group is currently working to find the salt taste receptor. In addition, his lab overturned the long-held idea that individual cells in our tastebuds could sense all 5 tastes. His group's experiments with mice proved that each cell is hardwired to only one taste, and sends only one type of signal to the brain. His lecture will focus on two basic questions: “How does the tongue know what it tastes, and how does the brain know what the tongue knows?”
  
  The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. A short question and answer period will follow Dr. Zuker's talk. Light refreshments will be served.
• HOW TO OBTAIN A TICKET
  Tickets are required for admission. Seating is limited to 250 people. You will be able to obtain a ticket by accessing a special ticketing service that has been created for this event. Tickets are limited to two per order.
  
  Sorry, there are no more tickets available for this event. We appreciate your interest in attending.

• HOW TO GET TO JANELIA FARM
  The Janelia Farm Research Campus is located on Route 7 in Ashburn, directly opposite the entrance to Ashburn Village. You will be directed to a designated parking area when you arrive.

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