"The Dancing Brain" at Mount Sinai for Brain Awareness Week 2026

"The Dancing Brain" at Mount Sinai for Brain Awareness Week 2026 

On February 28th, I presented work at the intersection of dance and science to 20 teens and 12 volunteers as part of Mount Sinai's Art and Science Saturday. 
I led the group through warmups and a small movement pattern. We spent the rest of the time talking about hand gestures (hastas) and how they can be thought of as a kind of language. By using a question-based pedagogical framework, I was able to elicit questions that were interesting and relevant to the participants (image below of what participants had to say): 

Questions at the beginning of the session 

• Where did you learn to dance?
• When did you learn to dance? 
• Why do you like dancing?
• How does dance relate to the brain? 
• Do other species dance? 
• Is dance talent innate or learned? 
• Is birds dancing innate or learned? 
• How many different dance styles are there? 
• When will we see each other again?  

Questions about language

• What was the first language? 
• What makes a language? 
• Do dogs (and other animals) have language? 
• Words, tone, grammar, meaning- how do they work together? 
• How do we learn a new language?
• If we speak multiple languages, which is the one we dream in and think in? And why? 

Words participants used to describe the session: 

• global
• freedom 
• precise
• expressive
• culture 
• unique
• parade
• learned
• energetic 
• beautiful 
• complex
• The hippocampus! ​

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Image credit: Alyssa Gale, MPH