[1] Other than the founders, directors include Richard M. Buxbaum, Lawrence W. Stark, Semir Zeki, Tamia Marg Anderson, Lila S. Crutchfield, and Vero Bollow.
The foundation was named after Minerva, the Roman goddess of, among other things, wisdom and medicine.
Since its inception in 1983, the foundation has honored exceptional scientists with its Golden Brain award and brought leading research to the general public through its series of conferences and other forums on creativity, perception, and brain science.
Minerva Foundation maintains a large Victorian building originally built for Charles C. Boudrow (c. 1830–1918), a Massachusetts-born master mariner, in downtown Berkeley near the University of California at Berkeley campus.
It was bought by Frank Leba and Kelly Brown in 1994, who restored and renovated the entire building.