 The
Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind at UCSD was established in March
through a $7.5 million gift from physicist Fred Kavli and The Kavli
Foundation. The research center crosses academic disciplines to
explore the relationship of the brain’s cellular make-up and
the resulting behaviors of the mind. To do so, the institute will
harness neuroscience and neurobiology expertise at UCSD and neighboring
scientific institutes.
A 15-member Advisory Board was formed and is comprised of investigators
from the collaborating La Jolla-based institutions, including UCSD,
The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, The Scripps Research Institute
and the Neurosciences Institute. Scientists from The Burnham Institute
also will be participating in the UCSD institute’s programs.
Jeffrey Elman, associate dean, Division of Social Sciences, and Nicholas
C. Spitzer, professor of biology, both of UCSD, are the new institute’s
co-directors and will serve as co-chairs of the board.
“As we increase our understanding of how the brain and mind
work, we will begin to see breakthroughs in medical treatments
for physical
and mental disorders, as well as a broad range of social applications
addressing learning impairment, emotional trauma and social interactions
such as consumer choice and aggression management,” said
Spitzer.
Elman also emphasized the importance of the work. “The brain
is one of the most complicated physical systems we know,” he
said. “Anything we can do to explain how this piece of tissue
gives rise to emotions, thoughts, beliefs and desires opens up
enormous possibilities.”
For David H. Auston, Ph.D., president of The Kavli Foundation
of Oxnard, California, and Fred Kavli, founder and chairman
of The
Kavli Foundation, UCSD was the perfect place to establish such
a research
location. The Kavli Foundation provided $4.5 million, while Fred
Kavli gave $3 million to establish the UCSD institute, one of
three neurosciences institutes that are among the nine research
institutes
created by Fred Kavli and The Kavli Foundation. “
We were so impressed with the talent of the people we met, the backing
of the administration, and the strength of the proposal that it was
an easy choice for us,” said Auston, referring to the decision
to establish the Kavli Institute at UCSD.
Kavli concurred, saying, “I am
expecting good things from UCSD,” adding that UCSD has a powerful
team.
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