Neuroscientist Colin Ellard knew he wanted to study animal habitats; it was choosing an animal that was tricky. After years observing Mongolian gerbils, he finally found the perfect creature.

“It’s us!” he said of his final realization.

For the past ten years, Ellard has studied how our brains and bodies react when we roam the streets of some of the world’s biggest cities, including New York, Mumbai and Berlin.

This fall he has taken the lab on the road again, running Psychology on the Street at the Urbanspace Gallery at Richmond St. and Spadina Ave.

Part exhibition, part experiment, Ellard shares what he learned inside the gallery while carrying out more research on the streets surrounding it.

In past experiments, he monitored sweat glands with special wristbands to measure stress levels. In Toronto, he has added special headbands that measure brain waves.