Page 6 - Establishing the Institute for Brain and Neural Sciences

6
How do consciousness and cognition emerge from the brain’s complex neural networks? How do we learn and remember? Why does brain function decline with age? What are the circumstances underlying mental illness or neurodegeneration, and what can be done to repair brain and spinal cord injuries? These and other urgent questions can only be addressed with the very best minds in the eld working in perfect synergy.
WHY BRAIN SCIENCE?
WHY NOW? WHY WEIZMANN?
F
ully realizing the promise
In all, some 40 Weizmann labs are exploring the brain and neural circuits from a variety of angles. Our experts in molecular and cell biology, immunology, genomics, systems biology, and cognitive neuroscience are tackling challenges that will have implications for neuroscience. Our computer scientists are working
at the cutting edge of arti cial intelligence. Our physicists and chemists are developing new methods and technologies—for example, for visualizing the brain in action.
If all this strength could be leveraged as one, the result is an entity whose whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
The new Institute for Brain and Neural Sciences will generate such synergy.
It will accelerate multidisciplinary research, both basic and translational, by gathering the diverse neuroscience
knowledge, expertise, and infrastructure at the Weizmann Institute into a greater, more collaborative, and integrated whole—creating a unique environment of physical proximity that promotes robust synergistic energy and catalyzes discovery for the bene t of humanity.
At the heart of the project is a facility designed to enable collaboration.
The new building will house laboratories, all the newest instrument systems, and central research service facilities. The state-of-the art structure will serve as a hub for all activities of the Institute for Brain and Neural Sciences, including the training of students and national and international conferences and symposia.
of neuroscience research to understand and demystify the brain in health and disease requires intellectual exchanges between scientists from a large range of elds. The best way to ensure the necessary collaboration
for transformative advancements in neuroscience is to promote face-to-face interactions among scientists.
The compact design of the Weizmann Institute of Science naturally enables such interactions, with its small size and permeable walls between departments and its culture of collaboration. Today, members of the Department of Neurobiology and their labs are spread across several buildings, and numerous scientists in other departments are actively conducting research of relevance to neuroscience across all levels of analysis.