The Barstable-Brown Conference was my first research conference, and it was quite interesting. Although the majority of the presentations were safely over my head, it was a great experience to see the attitude and culture that existed among a group of researchers in the same field. Questions that sometimes seemed highly critical or even accusatory, were not just accepted, but encouraged. It perfectly matched the spirit of the scientific community as a whole and fostered growth through discussion and open accountability. Similarly, the poster presentations were extremely intriguing. First, there are a hole new set of social cues to follow as one walks through a poster session,throwing my already-awkward self into a tizzy. But once I stumbled through over my walls of gracelessness and into a conversation about a study, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how excited the researchers were about their work. One poster that particularly stood out to me was aimed at the clinical application of a psychological principles to increase the effectiveness of self-improvement programs, namely a weight loss program. I greatly enjoyed the discussion I had with her, and I hope that I provided her with a few things to think about!