What I learned
Neuroscience research involves measuring brain activity as it responds to different kinds of stimuli. A range of technologies are available, such as eye-movement tracking devices and sophisticated neuron-mapping devices. 

Dr. Stolzenberg kicked-off the panel with a self-proclaimed oversimplification of how the brain incorporates emotions into reasoning. She argued that what are often perceived as emotional reactions to situations are really well-reasoned subconscious responses based on previous circumstances that may resemble the current situation.

Highlights
Dr. Pradeep stole the show by offering examples of how neuroscience research can inform product design and marketing. Pradeep discussed the brain activity, for example, of eating chips and salsa. As it turns out, a neural phenomenon occurs when the eater is lifting a fully-loaded chip to his or her mouth: their brain activity goes off the charts. Something about the consistency of the salsa and the feeling of the chip as it rises to the mouth consistently triggers strong responses in the subject's brain.And although there may be differences in how we externalize those neural responses, it is more or less the same from subject to subject. 

Dr. Pradeep's music video that explained how neuroscience worked was another highlight. It was a sort of hip hop song featuring scientists working in a lab. 

What didn't work
It was clear that Dr. Stolzenberg could easily have spent more time describing reasoning and emotions. She went very quickly through her portion of the discussion and if you were taking notes, it was difficult to keep up. She still gets an A for trying to present sophisticated information in five minutes to a non-neuroscience crowd. 

Unfortunately, the other panelists offered little memorable information or insights.  

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