Background: I'm a CS student quickly approaching his research project, and I'd like to do something meaningful with it.

Essentially, I'd like to know what issues someone up for their bachelor's degree might actually be able to help on, and where I can start. Obviously I'm not going to be able to just dive into a 6-year-running project without some prior research, so I'm looking for a start.

What are some current things that are lacking in Bitcoin core? Or am I better off making something else for the ecosystem?