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Misericordia men use size advantage to defeat King’s in Freedom Conference hoops

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Three-goal second period leads WBS Pens to 4-1 win over Phantoms

<p>SCRANTON &#8212; Quick, what&#8217;s the largest part of the human brain? How long do infants sleep? About how many neurons does the brain contain?</p><p>If you answered, in order, &#8220;the cerebrum, duh,&#8221; &#8220;up to 18 hours, regardless of what sleepless first-time parents say,&#8221; and &#8220;That would be about 100 billion, with a B, though it may be less for some news reporters,&#8221; then you probably are a) a smart aleck and b) a good candidate for participation in the upcoming regional Brain Bee &#8212; assuming you are in grades 9-12.</p><p>The University of Scranton will host the Northeast Pennsylvania Brain Bee on Saturday, Feb. 3, at 1 p.m. in the Loyola Science Center. But that&#8217;s just the local start of something global. Victory in the regional bee means a crack at the national competition (March 16-18 in Baltimore) and that leads to the International Brain Bee, to be held in Germany this year.</p><p>The IBB is the, er, <em>brain</em>child of Dr. Norbert Myslinski from the University of Maryland Dental School, Department of Neural and Pain Sciences. According to the IBB website, the idea &#8220;is to motivate young men and women to learn about the human brain, and to inspire them to enter careers in the basic and clinical brain sciences.&#8221;</p><p>The motivation seems to be succeeding. The website says the competition has grown to more than 160 chapters in 40-plus countries.</p><p>At the University of Scranton, the bee is sponsored by the Neuroscience Program. There is no charge to participate, but there is a registration deadline: Jan. 31. Those interested in competing can register online at <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/nepabrainbee/" target="_blank">sites.google.com/site/nepabrainbee/</a> , or contact Robert Waldeck at the university, 570-941-4324 or robert.waldeck@scranton.edu.</p><p>The winner of the local bee gets $400 to offset costs of attending the national contest, and a $1,000 scholarship to the University of Scranton.</p><p>And if you want to study, that&#8217;s free too. The questions for this bee come from the book Brain Facts, available for download at the Society for Neuroscience website, <a href="https://www.sfn.org/Public-Outreach/Education-Programs/Brain-Bee" target="_blank">sfn.org</a>. It may not be a page turner, but it can boost your sense of self worth. Consider this from the introduction:</p><p><em>The human brain &#8212; a spongy, three pound mass of tissue &#8212; is the most complex living structure in the universe. With the capacity to create a network of connections that far surpasses any social network and stores more information than a supercomputer, the brain has enabled humans to achieve breathtaking milestones &#8212; walking on the moon, mapping the human genome, and composing masterpieces of literature, art, and music.</em></p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

OK, braniac, pop quiz to prep you for the (very real) Brain Bee