Why name our nonprofit organization the Cortex Project?

When coming up with a name for our nonprofit, it was pretty challenging. We brainstormed for over a week to finally settle on the “Cortex project”. During the brainstorming, we develop many catchy names, but a quick search on the internet leads us to many different companies, organizations, and websites. This was unfortunate, we didn’t want to steal names from groups, (partly due to legal reasons). So, we brainstormed more scientifically. Thinking about what our non-profit has to offer, we thought about the different functions like communication, relatability, knowledge, and giving users a safe space. Since I took AP Psychology, I went back to some of the sections I’ve studied like the brain.

“Hey, Naysa, what if we think about the different functions of a brain? We could just choose one of the terms related to the functions of our nonprofit organization as the name!”

So, Let’s think about the cerebral cortex!

The cerebral cortex is the outermost layer of the cerebrum, which is the largest and most highly developed part of the human brain. It's responsible for many complex functions such as sensory perception, motor control, language, reasoning, and conscious thought. The folds and grooves known as gyri and sulci respectively, play a crucial role in increasing the surface area of the cerebral cortex within the confines of the skull.

This folding allows for a greater number of neurons to be packed into a relatively small space, which is thought to be related to the brain's capacity for complex cognitive functions. The outer appearance of the brain's convoluted surface gives it a distinct wrinkled appearance, often likened to a walnut or cauliflower.

Naysa joked about how our brainstorming was like brainstorming for a school project.

“That’s it!” I said while jotting on the whiteboard.

“Cortex” as in the cerebral cortex and “Project” like the timeline of making a project. Naysa and I were so excited, but we had to do a quick search. We did find “Cortex Project” on the internet, but the name was in a different format like all uppercase, lowercase or it wasn’t a competing business or ours. After deciding on the “Cortex Project”, I contacted one of my talented cousins Britney Yang to design a simple logo that will be used on our socials.

Just like the name “Cortex Project” she drew out two individuals discussing a brain. What’s unique is the brain is the subject the two people are discussing and their feelings/emotions. The logo displays a safe space for an open conversation on mental health.

With the name and logo, we were motivated to work on the websites, blogs, videos, and socials within the last few weeks. This process was very meaningful to us since we were able to bring our imagination to life. Thank you for supporting the Cortex project journey, we will have much more content and updates!