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When I first began this course I assumed it would focus on concrete facts or recent discoveries in the neuroscience field.  Although we did discuss important topics in the field, it was from an unexpected perspective.  At first it was disconcerting to discuss topics which had no clear answer or definition but throughout the class I learned that most aspects of neuroscience will never be black and white and that is the way it should be.  During previous classes I always discussed research in relation to the physical findings; however, this class provided me with the opportunity to look at the social implications of the findings and also revealed just how much society can influence the research being done.  In particular, I found the lack of ethics in research field disconcerting.  Many of the presentations and our conversations suggest that research is much more influenced by society than we are led to believe.  

I really enjoyed that we were able to pick out own topics because this provided discussion on a wide variety of topics that were interesting to both the presenters and class.  Also, this was one of the only classes I’ve taken within my major which was completely discussion based.  This was an important aspect of the class because the discussions were essential to increasing my understanding of the many interpretations of all our topics.  Overall, I think this was a good experience for me to have before leaving college because it allowed me to contemplate many controversial and important concepts in the neuroscience field.