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Throughout this semester I have learned how strongly shared subjectivity has colored my perception of reality. Before this class, I always thought science was about delving into the depths of the unknown to shed light on some tangible truths. Instead, I have come to realize that scientific pursuits reflect only cultural truths rather than absolutes. Everything discovered is only an answer to a subjective question construed within the context of a society at a given time. By defining possibilities for what is “out there,” we artificially construct an ephemeral reality shifting with each cultural vogue. We, as a society, are only exploring our perceptual interactions within an irreducibly subjective environment. From depression to consciousness, these entities do not exist until we give them names. Therefore, shared subjectivity also highlights the immense power of language to term things into a subjective existence.

From this perspective of relativity, is depression really even a disease? Is savant syndrome really a product of a “disability?” Or are these merely examples of less mainstream interactions with a shared subjectivity? It is highly possible that depressed individuals are simply more in touch with an external reality that is unrecognizable by those predetermined to prescribe to popular thought. If mental health conditions interfere with the overall livelihood of the individual supposedly affected, then it should be their choice to look into treatment. However, it should be recognized that treatment is not a cure but more so a way of ascribing to a current mode of thought. In “fact,” there may be nothing to “cure.” There is just a way to “belong” a little bit more. However, these perspectives should not hinder the viability of scientific research as much as highlight potential ways in which scientific findings and terminology should be put into a more relative context. Accepting that that there is no absolute truth may just be the truest thing science has yet to reveal. Thanks to this class, I hope I have become one less sheep in the flock.

The areas I would like to see explored further over the next several years are:

1) Free will: I am very intrigued by the concept of will. Is there such a thing? Or are all of our actions predetermined by other factors? Is free will the truest form of consciousness?

2) Anxiety/Depression: I would like to see how the prevelance of these diagnoses shifts over the next few decades. Will the so-called fad run its course in due time? Will we redefine the minimum requirements to be diagnosed for these diseases/conditions if, as they stand, they become too widely diagnosed? Will we accept these conditions, to a larger extent, into the norms of society?

3) Mind-Body debate: Can we localize who we are into a bunch of neuronal connections in the brain? Can we look at patterns and interactions that make us not only conscious but also compose our identities? What are the larger implications and ramifications for this if we ever discover the answer to these questions? Is the magic of life an answerable question? Would we really want to answer the question if we could?