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  Reflecting on this semester in the Senior NBS Seminar the idea that is most salient to me is the importance of shared subjectivity even in what we may tend to think is ideally a very objective practice in scientific study, as well as in the social function of people in general.  I don’t feel that the inherent subjectivity of even what is considered good science necessarily invalidates or problematizes those observations, but it helps to emphasize the importance of reproducing experimental results and communicating clearly both results obtained and the manner in which those results were obtained, so that the shared subjectivity of scientific inquiry involves the collaboration of as many perspectives as possible.  While we (being the scientific community at large) may prefer to phrase the qualities of good science in more certain terms it seems that what good science is about, in terms of this irreducible subjectivity, is attempting to provide as many variables in an observation as possible so as to investigate causality as confidently as possible and to provide as completely as possible all components of your own subjectivity in conjunction with each observation.  It is vital that your subjectivity and observations be understood so that those observations can be recontextualized to the subjectivity of others within the scientific community in order to determine the universality of that particular observation. 

Within the neurobehavioral sciences I am particularly interested in the following questions:

1. Non-specifically neuroplasticity and neurogenesis.  I am very curious as to the limits of the brain’s ability to adapt its function in response to damage or malfunction and for the brain to hone its function to maximize its ability to effectively perform frequently initiated tasks.   
2. What are the limits of current fMRI technology to represent complex and abstract functions within the brain?  This is tied into the notion of consciousness as a discrete and consistent pattern of neural activity, whether or not consciousness can be observed using an fMRI style examination of the brain is also an interesting question.
3. To what extent cosmetic manipulation of the brain whether via surgery or via pharmacological means will be tolerated by society, whether objections arise on moral grounds based upon the bounds of science or the bounds of humanity or the bounds of fairness.