One in five Nature readers — mostly scientists — say they up their mental performance with drugs such as Ritalin, Provigil, and Inderal. […] when asked how they felt about professional thinkers using drugs to enhance their cognitive performance, nearly 80% said it should be allowed. While this report reaches a different part of science, the usage of these drugs can be utilized by software developers alike. What is your opinion on this, somewhat new, development?
Ask OSAlert: Use of Brain-Boosting Drugs in Software Industry?
About The Author
Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSAlert.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
Follow me on Twitter @EugeniaLoli
Drug is a drug, it shouldn’t be allowed in my opinion.
A bit shortsighted, no?
I was giving Ritalin when I was a child… because I am what I am.. namely, hyperactive. The real deal, not one of those “hyperactive” kids, that are just little brats with parents that don’t have a clue.
I don’t take them anymore though. But that’s mostly because I love doing computer science. I don’t need anything to keep me going for hours on an end
But I can give you first hand experience, they simply allow you start on your work instead of running around screaming to do something more fun. And if it can help any hyperactive person for a short period in need, I’m all for it.
Still anyone without focus problems should best stay away from them
>I was giving Ritalin when I was a child… because I am what I am.. namely, hyperactive.
There are even countries which tread such things with electric shock therapy. So where is the point? It’s to _some_ degree nonsense. Of course there are certain hallucinogens as _last_ resort, like the mentioned methylphenidat. But just for fun to try something new or to extend some abilities? It’s crazy and people tolerating or promoting it are crazy too. Drugs _are_ drugs with some exceptions for really ill people.
Just to point out, Methylphenidate is a Central Nervous System stimulant, not a hallucinogen.
(Just because a small segment of people have hallucinations as a side effect doesn’t make it a hallucinogen, as that’s not its primary action. I got hallucinations when I shot-gunned 12 redbulls one night – going to peg that as a hallucinogen?
Edited 2008-04-11 00:53 UTC
I remember when I was at school, kids who were hyperactive were just seen as kids ‘with a lot of spirit’ or ‘very excitable’ – there was never any need to drug up them up to the eye balls with medicine. Good old fashion running around at the park, playing rugby, bull rush and other past times worked all that excess energy out of their system; and we had as much ‘additives’ and ‘sugars’ in our foods.
Its (sugar and additives) been shown that time and time again, that these have NO EFFECT on children. It is all about discipline and how the parents act. Heck, I would call myself an incredibly crap parent, but apparently when I look after kids, they are well behaved after them being with me; what do I do? I treat them like little adults. I don’t talk to kids in childish language, I give them responsibility, and make them think about what they’ve done wrong rather than simply the typical politically correct ‘time out’.
Yeap, its all about finding what YOU are passionate at. Who gives a shit about what everyone else thinks; do what you are passionate about. You’ll find that if you’re passionate about something, you’ll be happy to put in the long hours without any need to take any drugs.
Then again, it goes back to this *STUPID* idea created by the politically correct that “you can be anything you want” – WRONG! if you don’t have the natural ability or inclination towards something, you will suck no matter how hard you work at it. It is delusional thinking that some how a person with an IQ of 100 can ever be a rocket scientist.
People have talents, people have a natural ability in a particular area. Don’t create this hocus-pocus bullcrap that some how you can turn someone from an average employee into a manager. I’ve seen it happen, people who have been in organisations for 10 years, no inclination towards management – being pushed into the position of being a manager! its stupidity in action!
For me, I *KNOW* I suck at maths, and no matter how many hours I spent trying to study it, it never gelled. Now I do know what I am good at – abstract thinking which helps in the areas which I am interested in, Religious Studies and Philosophy.
To some how *THINK* that drug taking is the solution for failing to understand that you don’t have talents in that certain area, its pathetic and it lacks commonsense. Know your limitations, know what you’re capable of doing, and face that reality – stop trying to a rocket scientist when you abilities are geared towards being a landscaper.
Edited 2008-04-11 05:34 UTC
Bury that Axe….
It appeared that at school I had ‘no natural talent’ for languages, and was advised against going to university because I wasn’t really up to it.
Guess what, things change, experience opens up new paths, and I now hold a PhD in comparative German-British history from a Russell Group university (which kind of requires that you know die deutsche Sprache to a fairly intimate degree). I got First Class marks from the get go, from the BA onwards.
Would you rather live in a caste system? That’s pretty good at making sure people know what they can or cannot become, at dictating what apparent ‘natural talents’ are present in any individual.
I am no Superman but I sure as hell won’t listen to homilies from other people telling me how good I am at something. I’ll find out for myself, thanks all the same. I may just surprise myself (again), that way.
Edited – PS Admins, the last two posts I have submitted have turned up immediately with two votes against them. It’s nice to be appreciated but unless this is a new weighting system I have missed information on, you may want to check out the site software, thanks.
Edited 2008-04-11 08:55 UTC
I disagree and have seen several examples to the contrary. For example one person I knew showed no real aptitude for math and failed first year mathematical analysis god knows how many times at university. But for whatever reason he wanted to be a mathematician so he refused to give up and kept working on it. And while he’ll probably never be a great mathematician, he at least got good enough to get his Masters and be offered a PhD position at a fairly prestigious university.
Don’t underestimate the power of sheer bloodymindedness. Passion and interest are far more important that natural aptitude. As a counterpoint to the above story I met several people at university who figured they’d go for a math degree, not because they where passionate about it, but because they had a natural aptitude for math, got straight A’s through highschool without having to study and figured to math at university would be the easy for them. Long story short, most of them failed most of their exams and had dropped out by the end of the first year or second year.
In fact one of those people was me. I found math and physics easy throughout high school, yet dropped out of physics at university with horrible grades because I found I had no passion or interest for the subject. So I gave up on academia and spent a few years doing low level sysadmin and programming jobs instead. Later through I series of events I found my passion for math rekindled and headed back to university where I this time around managed to get my Masters in mathematics without any significant problem, because this time I really wanted it and enjoyed the subject.
Funny you should say that, because if I was to make a list of things you had to be good at to be good at math, abstract thinking would easily top the list. So as such I don’t think it’s that you suck at math per se. it’s probably more likely a combination of bad teaching and a lack of passion and interest from your side. Which is perfectly cool, because if everybody was good at math I’d never get a job.
Bravo!
You’re spot on. I was diagnosed “mild to moderate case of ADD” as a kid.
You should have seen the look on the “Doctors” face when I looked him straight in the eye as a 6th grader and said, “Bullshit. You’re just jealous that my brain works faster than yours. Now you’re going to drug me so I’ll fit into your little box labeled ‘normal’. I don’t want to be normal. I’m better than normal, my brain is faster than yours, and you’d rather drug me than admit that you’re slow.”
I was put on Cylert, which gave me the most debilitating headaches I’ve ever had, made me a virtual zombie, and left me feeling ‘slow’ _all_the_time_.
The strangest thing was that my critical thinking and reasoning skills went to hell in a handbasket, and fast. I was in the advanced math classes, and started failing tests. Not just one or two, -all- of them. Even though I was (for once in my life) doing my homework. I started experimenting with the medicine, and was able to draw correlation between taking the medicine for a few days, getting headaches, and failing tests.
Funny thing, if I didn’t take the medicine for a few days I’d quit doing my homework, but I’d get high B’s and A’s on all the tests…
I found Newsweek magazine articles that listed the most reported side-effect of that medicine was migraine headaches, and reduced reasoning abilities. I left it out on the counter for my parents to see. The next day, I flushed the pills in a grand act of defiance right in front of them.
I never took another ‘pill’ for “ADD”. That lovely mythical bullshit explanation of a ‘disorder’ that doesn’t exist, and behavior or thought-patterns that are in many ways beneficial.
I do self-medicate with caffeine to some extent. Okay, I’m a caffeine addict. I force myself through withdrawal every few months so I can start back on smaller doses of coffee… :-p The caffeine helps me focus on uninteresting material with the same level of rigor that I can focus on things I find highly interesting.
And let me tell you, when I find something interesting, just -try- and keep me from thinking about it.
Productivity wise, caffeine is a god-send for those mundane, boring tasks.
What math mainly is, is abstraction (along with logical reasoning). Religion, on the other hand, has much less to do with abstraction and almost nothing at all to do with logical reasoning.
Do you even know what Religious Studies and Philosophy are about – in terms of attending a public university – University of Canterbury?
Are you talking about drugs in general usage for medical conditions, like anaesthetic for operations. Or are you talking about using drugs to alter your abilities as stated in the article.
There is a big difference between the two. I certainly support the first, many people need drugs to survive insulin, penicillin etc. I’m not so sure I support the second, I think it is dangerous to meddle with things we don’t fully understand. I don’t think it gives people a greater advantage, some people are born differently and thus have different advantages in different areas. These drugs don’t give a better advantage than having been born with better genes.
Really? Why? Give some justification please. “It’s not natural” is a BS argument because there is nothing natural at all about our modern lives / society. If a drug increases performance, isn’t harmful to the user, then wtf is the big deal?
Well, yes. Our present average lifestyle is unnatural, as it happens. And, interestingly enough, the unnatural parts tend not to be very healthy.
Coffee is bad for you. Soda is bad for you. Smoking is bad for you (smoking has no positive side effects whatsoever). Not sleeping during the night is bad for you. Looking at a CRT (or LCD) very much is bad for you. Not getting enough sleep is bad for you. Obesity is bad for you.
You’re going to have a long, uphill struggle if you want to argue that boosters have no detrimental side effects. A reasonable argument might be that an acceptable product or behavior is one the utility of which exceeds its health detriments.
EDIT: A “natural” lifestyle would be hunter-gatherer, and nobody is arguing for going back that that. The health benifits of a few of our unnatural advances (agriculture, medicine, germ theory) easily outweigh all the detrimental practices combined, which is why a smoking couch potato still has a life expectancy about twice that of any population on earth until quite recently.
Edited 2008-04-11 03:00 UTC
I think you are missing the point.. actually I know so
We are not talking about drugs as in heroine but drugs as in medicine. You can get Ritalin in your local pharmacy, it is used to calm kids…
Heroin is, last I checked, otherwise known as diamorphine^aEUR”rather widely used in the medical world.
The only difference between drugs and medicine is the intent.
To the people saying ^aEURoedrugs are bad!!!11^aEUR: do you drink alcohol? coke? coffee? eat food containing MSG? what about foods containing tryptophan?
See, the lines are very very blurry. One person’s ^aEURoenatural^aEUR is another’s^A ^aEURunrefined^aEUR. When the active ingredient and the effect is the same, it matters very little.
And, for the record, (in response to the earlier comments) smoking has positive effects; it just lacks medical benefits.
And for the love of all that is holy!
Will the admins PLEASE learn how to build scripts which accept (or silently convert) non-ASCII characters?
OSAlert v3 managed it perfectly well
Edited 2008-04-11 11:43 UTC
So is alcohol and caffine. Are you seriously suggesting that programmers shouldn’t drink coffee to keep them going on those late night coding marathons nor have a pint after work to celebrate?
“Doctor Leech: I think you’re in luck though. An extraordinary new cure has just been developed for exactly this kind of sordid problem.
Edmund: It wouldn’t have anything to do with leeches, would it?
Doctor Leech: I had no idea you were a medical man.”
That’s not you talking, it’s the caffeine.
We seems to always need more.. more money, nicer cars, more attractive partners, bigger houses, more elaborate vacations, slimmer bodies, bigger muscles, better facial features, better sex.
Drugs to make us perform better mentally seems to be a logical next step.
Or, we could just relax a little…
Meanwhile, your competition in the job market (probably a hungry immigrant) will keep burning the midnight oil, studying and learning while you’re off relaxing. How long do you plan to stay relevant anyway?
Note: I’m not advocating the use of any kind of drugs here, just saying don’t sleep for too long.
If you think you need drugs to compete in your job, you should probably find a new career.
Anyways what’s more important in life? Turning yourself into a workhorse just so you can be stressed out all the time and die younger all because you want to finish a piece of software sooner?
didnt the pioneers of the micro/home computer age dabble in LSD?
Yes and LSD expands one’s horizons in all trains of thought. It’s just not something you sit at a computer and program with because the slightest distraction will have you staring into the pixelation of a font face for hours.
heh, i would worry what one would end up with if one programmed computers using a direct brain interface while on lsd then.
and that’s why steve jobs got the font faces perfect and bill gates f–ked it up.
LSD is great for brainstorming; not so great for pumping out code. I am not saying a person can’t code while tripping too hard in their own home, but I do not think it would go so well at the office.
1 million homeless half-crazy ex-hippies can’t be wrong
Edited 2008-04-11 12:59 UTC
There is no proven relation between LSD and other hallucinogenic drugs and any disease, mental or otherwise. Not even addiction.
Shamans all over the world have used hallucinogenic substances of different origins since the beginning of time and that they were the shamans means that hallucinations had no negative effects and probably allowed them to gain an edge over the unenhanced townsfolk. Who knows how many early inventions were more the result of drug-induced lucidity than anything else.
But even if their only benefit is the fun, who are you or the government to ban any adult from using them? If the adult does something stupid, let the law sort him out.
1) LSD is not addictive
2) Ecstasy is, but that’s because of its amphetamine properties.
3) I have spent some time talking with 50+ ex-hippies as well as 30+ ex-ravers.
I know my facts because I have seen them first place. I can honestly tell you that I was scared from what I’ve seen. Once is not safe enough. My experience happens to agree with science.
Common sense is not *necessarily* wrong.
I’m sorry if this comes out as a dispute because I don’t mean it this way. Please do yourself a favor and stay away of the mind altering s**t. I was once 18 myself you know and thought the same way you do. Most likely you won’t just take my word and that’s the tragedy of life.
Edited 2008-04-11 23:51 UTC
This really isn’t something new — I’ve been aware of and tracked, off and on, nootropics (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nootropic/ for a summary) for over two decades. Unfortunately, the “media” has now discovered them, and groups will crawl out of the woodwork to oppose them.
Personally, I think that in general it’s a wonderful idea and encourage legally unfettered research into them.
As with anything, there are risks as well as benefits; these risks certainly need to be considered. However, the risk/benefit equation differs from individual to individual, and thus no general policies should be created about their use.
Much of the modern world has become extremely risk-adverse, to the detriment of progress and the loss of benefits. I expect that the usual cast of idiots in government, religious groups, and the mainstream media will do everything they can to eliminate progress and persecute those who would seek it.
Ok, so then where is the end game? You’re going to trust a drug some company is going to give you because they want the software title out 6 weeks quicker? And, news flash….corporations don’t give a hairy rats behind about their employees, they’re in it to make you work as hard as possible for as little pay as possible. And if that means jacking their employees up on the latest dope du-jour, with little regard as to well being and safety, then oh well. “There’s more slaves, I mean “employees”, where he/she came from.” God help Apple employees, if this drug thing goes through.
Look, I’m not against a little of the magic lettuce, every now and then…but not to increase productivity so my company’s stock goes up 1 point. Drugs are supposed to be for recreation and relaxation, when is the world going to figure this out?
when competition stops being the biggest source of entertainment? or in other words, never, as i fear that we are hardwired to find competition of any form entertaining. competition is natures way of testing fitness after all…
You know what they say: RDF is a gateway drug.
Software developers…isn’t their “drug” usually Coca-Cola or energy drinks?
caffeine and relatives
Caffeine in general
Back in the heady dot com days of insane salaries and even more insane deadlines, I knew of several developers who did amphetamine to get through those all night coding sessions. Apparently a small amount, like a quarter gram, was just the thing to get you coding away for an extra 8 hours after you body told you it had to go to sleep.
So no, caffeine is far from the only software developer drug.
Human beings will always be human beings.Never satisfied.Although this stuff is new to me it doesn’t surprise me a bit.
I’ll stick to coffee and the occasional drinking binge [1].
[1] http://cogscanthink.blogsome.com/2008/03/10/risk/
I tacke breigh-boostering druggs and tehy rilly seam too helpe me alots!
I can take every boost I can get.
Me too!
I already max out at 5.66 hours of sleep, and have only 6 hours of energy to burn ( I’m in a daze the rest of the time, trying to figure out where I am and what I’m doing ).
Any drug that can break these limits is useful!
I find caffeine extremely mild, cocaine made me to ‘up,’ and mary jane causes even more dazing.
LSD is too uncomfortable ( though I can code and code and code until I get stuck in my reflection which is present in the turned-off monitor ).
I have, instead, created a regimen.
Morning:
2200 mg Graviola
Men’s One Daily
500 mg Vitamin C
800 i.u. Vitamin E
300 mg Yohimbe/Epimedium/Gota Kola Root mix
1/2 dose Fiber ( citrucel )
Joint Complex
200 mg Ibuprofen
Caffeine ( not from coffee )
Nicotine before & after meal
— Between
300 mg Cat’s Claw
Lunch:
100m Aspirin
200mg Ibuprofen
200 Tylenol
Caffeine
1/2 Dose Fiber
Nicotine after meal
— Between
300 mg Cat’s Claw
Dinner:
200mg Ibuprofen
Calcium w/ Vitamin D
2x Rolaids
2200 mg Graviola
2-4 tokes on peace pipe
Nicotine after meal
1 hr Before Bed
200 mg Aspirin
400 i.u. Vitamin E
4-6 tokes on peace pipe
Nicotine
At Bed time
6-8 tokes on peace pipe
5 ml 20 ppm MesoSilver Colloidal Silver
200 mg Tylenol
Caffeine & Nicotine ( for ‘dreams’ )
I have done this now for a few weeks, and I have greatly improved energy levels and stamina. I also no longer need to take any sleep aids!!
Also, please note that I drink massive amounts of fluids and the ibuprofen and Tylenol are in the mix to alleviate pain due to severe back problems.
Normally I drink Orange Juice or some other juice, or if I can’t drink that I will drink Mountain Dew / Coke / Vault / Root Beer ( when I need to watch caffeine intake levels ). I rarely exceed 32 oz of soda in a day, and normally it is only around 20 oz.
But, back to the article, I openly welcome research and unbiased studies into performance enhancing chemicals/drugs. Of course, we should focus on natural blends, my regimen allows me to feel ginkgo and taurine now, so it is working for me.
Not to mention that I now have energy after working for the last 12 hours :-). Yeah!!
–The loon
Apirin, Tylenol, ibuprofen, caffeine, nicotine and marijuana. I’d be really interested to know what your blood pressure and prothrombin time are. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to run that list by a doctor.
Apirin, Tylenol, ibuprofen, caffeine, nicotine and marijuana. I’d be really interested to know what your blood pressure and prothrombin time are. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to run that list by a doctor.
The Aspirin / Tylenol / Ibuprofen / Caffeine all come from the same source: a migraine preventative schedule.
I failed to mention that, I guess.
My blood pressure is 105/68, pulse is 62.
It is only not this when I am in a workout, where the blood pressure reaches 120/75 and the pulse can get to the 90s.
I have no clotting issues thanks to the Aspirin, which alleviates what little I get from smoking ( I’m a light smoker, not even making 1-pack/day, normally around half or less ( I’m too busy to smoke that much ) ).
Red wine probably helps the whole equation as well. Having added colloidal silver to the mix I’m interested in what my next blood-work will look like. Ahh, too bad I don’t have insurance, paying for everything kinda sucks, but it’s still been cheaper than having insurance ( best I found was about $400/month because of pre-existing conditions I need covered to make insurance worth-while ( i.e. multiple prolapsed discs in the back ( count: 6-10, not sure if it has changed ) with degeneration, sciatica, and severe migraine with pain lasting up to 3 or 4 days, exhaustion following it — I’m out for up to a week ).
My regimen allows me to avoid my headaches and much of the back-pain while directly tackling the problems causing the pain.
So far I’ve actually managed to heal three of my discs, without surgery ( though I did the epidural thing (twice), which I won’t do again ), and the pain related to my sciatica has improved greatly ( not to mention the improvement in neurological effects ).
The trick is in the amount and type of fluids I drink. If I lapse I could get into trouble if I were to follow that regimen exactly.
Otherwise I’m doing great, have had much improvement.
–The loon
Oh, BTW, the peace pipe has been paramount in healing my nerves. But I hate getting too high, so I rarely smoke as much as I should, normally maxing out at 4 tokes in an evening.
Edited 2008-04-11 16:07 UTC
;D
:))
Check out the following before your next dose of colloidal silver:
http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/PhonyAds/silverad…
I’ve read all of that, and I’ve read the studies. Argyria is produced by protein-bonded silver, and requires very high doses ( such as all cases reported, the users were DRINKING 16 oz of 450 PPM solutions ( which aren’t colloids ) of silver nano-particles suspended in filtered water ).
My intake is 5 ml 20 ppm electrically suspended silver, a real colloid ( MesoSilver ) every other day or so.
I also don’t drink any quantity of it, I use it as a mouth wash / gargle and allow some sub-lingual absorption.
I became interested in the stuff after getting strep throat, and wanting to avoid antibiotics because they tend to make sicker rather than better.
I was gargling with salt water, and I got this stuff the second day of symptoms. I gargled once with it, and ( to my surprise, actually ) my throat immediately changed back to its normal color, though I could feel some infection farther down.
So I swallowed 15 ml ( in small increments ) and avoided drinking or eating anything for 15 minutes, then I drank some orange juice and a glass of water. Gone!
Honest, completely gone!
Not to mention how it repaired my gums!
I got it for free, but I bought the second bottle. All of my acne cleared up after 3 days ( day 1: 5ml / day 2: 2.5ml ) and my irritable bowl is now in good working order ( after some weeks at low dose ( 1ml/daily 2.5 ml every other, 5ml on weekends ) to prevent any organ overload due to flushing out “wall-less” bacteria/viruses ).
The silver is the only thing I added to get these effects, and my acne comes back after a week of not taking it, but I did not get sick or anything, so the silver isn’t weakening my defenses.
Colloidal silver still must be used with care, body-weight adjusted, and timed to not be taken with certain proteins already present in the blood ( i.e., not taken 1-3 hrs before ) to help prevent the possibility argyria ( if the doses themselves don’t do it ).
Oh, and most of those people with argyria ( if not all ) actually say they developed it only after using it externally, but I take no chances either way.
–The loon
Either this is a troll post, or you’re trying to see what major organ gives out first.
As for the article, I guess I’m glad I’m in infrastructure and virtualization instead of development, because I would never do lifespan shortening crap like that for work. My life is family and friends, not my career.
The intake of everything is timed, and I guess I should’ve mentioned that I don’t follow the regimen to the letter on most days.
Vit E & C are recommended as well as the Men’s daily multi-Vit. Graviola is simply powdered leaves ( edible, no less ).
Most things are in synergy and are balanced with my diet. And I forgot to make it obvious that the Ibuprofen/Asprin/Tylenol/Caffeine all comes from one pill used for migraine prevention.
Those intakes cause vitamin E, A, D, and Calcium depletion ( and potassium, but I eat enough in my diet ), though at levels not high enough to be of any concern.
My regimen is the result of careful study and planning ( and testing, of course ).
–The loon
Im my opinion the drug would only make effect in people who already know how to make software, plenty of amateurs who use criptyc and disorganized ways of programing will stay the same.
Personally I wouldn’t do it but I don’t think the goverment should be allowed to ban any substance as long as the risks are known and no one should be barred from ingesting anything they want. The drug war is futile and people are are going to do what they want to do anyway. This has been proven time and time again.
One of the few interesting issues posted by OSAlert well done.
Lots of endorphins flying with a consistent level of sexual intercourse.
Hasn’t always been my experience.
You need to do it more often than every 7 years
But of course it’s not always the case but I still rather have sex than popping a pill. Even if it doesnt revitalize me it’s still a lot more fun.
Perhaps you’re right, Doctor.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1PwpcUawjK0
“Perhaps you’re right, Doctor.”
LOL..thanks for sharing that one.
I am not sure of the drug use at all. History repeats itself, no? Some of the greatest minds of our times were addicted to drugs. One argument would be it did help them to be creative I guess. Sigmund Freud was addicted to cocaine, as was Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin. LSD was originally used by Dr. Timothy Leary to aid in freeing and opening ones mind. Marijuana is legally used in some places as a pain reliever and relaxant. None of the above mentioned people can it be said any drugs helped.
The fact of the matter is if alcohol, caffeine, and tobacco were just being discovered they would be outlawed already as well.
Regardless of the above, any mind altering substance, including ritalin, is dangerous, like it or not. In actuality it holds one back by making one “docile”, so they stick with the crowd rather than learn even more.
I forgot to mention, before there was ritalin, there was Albert Einstein, who had ADHD and flunked mathematics….
Just something to ponder.
Forgot about that aspect of daily regimen
Nary a day will pass (well… half a day) before an endorphin release is triggered.
But that is what the Yohimbe / Epimedium / Gota Kola complex is for. I take mild amounts for blood flow stimulus to increase oxygenation ( I have become a smoker somehow.. yuck, how in hades?!? ).
And I use Graviola primarily as a cancer preventative and mild tranquilizer ( to lessen my energy-wasting hyper-active moments ). Timing is everything!
And as such, I more or less time endorphin release.
–The loon
Stop smoking! Get at 9 servings of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables per day. (Shoot for all the colors of the rainbow.) Bonus points for spinach, berries, and cruciferous vegetables. And perhaps a cup of cocoa. (Preferably cocoa not processed by alkalai. Spares the polyphenols.) Eat fatty fish regularly. But choose fish low in mercury. Wild Alaskan salmon is easily available fresh, frozen, canned, or in vacuum sealed pouches, and has low levels of mercury, and high levels of EPA and DHA Omega-3 fats.
That’s about the most evidence-based regimen you’re going to find.
Edit: BTW, if you insist upon smoking, take care to avoid high levels of beta carotene, as found in supplements. There is evidence to indicate that it substantially *increases* the incidence of lung cancer in smokers. It is not known to have such an effect on nonsmokers, however.
Edited 2008-04-11 03:38 UTC
People already use legal performance enhancing drugs, for example, caffeine. My view is that it’s another risk/reward ratio that people are going to have to work out, but should by no means be illegal.
As far as companies forcing you to take them… I don’t think a company should be allowed to fire you for any non-directly work related reason. I don’t think, for example, being female on a building site should be a sackable offence. However, they may find that another “doped up” candidate performs better than you and choose them over you. Tough luck, I guess. This is how human society works. Just as, generally, men might get more jobs on building sites because they’re stronger and it’s a physically intense job.
Driving a car, for example, is likely far more risky than most of these drugs are, yet many jobs list driving as a requirement. Some people might argue that WiFi fries brains and refuse to work in any office with WiFi. Their choice, but it’s going to lock them out of a fair few office jobs.
Society isn’t fair, unfortunately. Currently people are sometimes blessed with better brains than others and get better jobs. In the future, some people will either need to accept that there is an increased risk for increased pay, or go and work in a more menial job that doesn’t require brain enhancing drugs.
Personally, I don’t think a drug is particularly special. It’s just a way of inducing a net-positive psychological effect. I support regulation of addictive drugs, simply because they can tear apart families, screw up childhoods and so on, and sometimes people can make bad choices.
Drugs – Nootropic or otherwise – are technology.
Their use should be up to the individual. Individuals ought to be responsible for the consequences as well. No bullshit lawsuits, in other words, if some of these turn out to be problematic in the long run.
I don’t like the idea of people making this decision for me. A person’s performance and behavior can and ought to be judged and sanctioned appropriately, but those who are not on caffeine, nicotine, antidepressants or otherwise are too often junkies of a far more insidious thing – self righteousness.
I personally don’t think most of these drugs have been studied sufficiently for me to experiment with them, but I certainly do take calculated risks with moderate caffeine consumption from time to time.
I am 100% for medicine, and not drugs, unless it is a life threatening situation.
To clear any myths and misconceptions, drugs are medicine with side effects. And yes, there are real medicine in the world, you just need to know where to look
Therefore, I know this article is about drugs … aka crap. But if there were medicine that does boosting, then i’m all for it.
I think you can see this differently. In many cases, the substances refered to as “drug” and / or “medicine” are the same. It’s just about the the intention – who takes them, and why.
I may speak from a very personal experience. Because of ICD-10 G47.1, .2 and .4 I had to take Vigil (aka Provigil, Moadfinil). This was medicine, because it changed by “abnormal” behaviour into a “normal” one. If a completely healthy man would take Vigil to extend his working periods, he would change his “normal” behaviour into something “abnormal” again – that would mean drug abuse.
Especially in cases of “trained” drug users, you hear them talking about “using the drug” or “controlling the drug”, but usually this contradicts to the concept that drugs force you to use them, they take away your control. Symptoms of drug evasion are what your body uses to show you this. Most medicine and drugs have something in common: Side effects. So I’d recommend the authority to ordinate medicine to a doctor with many experiences and a healthy common sense. That’s what drug users usually seem to lack.
Refer to “THX 1138” for a nice utopia.
Medicine differences from drugs by the argumentation I’ve given above. First, you use drugs to feel better, but later on, you are forced to take them to feel nearly normal. And the side effects… okay, I think we’re all educated enough to know about the danger with drugs, hmkay?
Coming back to the topic: Medicine may help persons to be active in some sectors of IT industry. Drugs do not automatically enable you to be successful in your job.
Problem is, that’s a false dichotomy.
Incorrect
The definitions are clear and correct.
This took 30 seconds with dictionary.com
EDIT: Since you’re obviously dying to be asked, why don’t you tell us about the magical herbal remedy for which you want to change the definition of medicine.
Edited 2008-04-11 23:20 UTC
uhh … replied to the wrong post? lol!
No. I was refuting your assertion that the definitions you gave were correct.
You’re joking, right?
This is the only definition / distinction you’ve offered:
The really obvious question that statement begs is: what existing medicines *don’t* have any side-effects? Besides placebos, that is.
I am 100% for medicine, and not drugs, unless it is a life threatening situation.
To clear any myths and misconceptions, drugs are medicine with side effects. And yes, there are real medicine in the world, you just need to know where to look
Therefore, I know this article is about drugs … aka crap. But if there were medicine that does boosting, then i’m all for it.
Please elabortate because that sounds like the biggest bunch of crap I have ever heard. All drugs have some side effects. There is no difference between “medicine” and “drugs” other than their legality. Take OxyContin for example, it might as well be heroin in a prescription bottle. There are other “medicines” that have been derived from illegal plants like the cocoa plant and marijuana. The only difference is that it has been packaged and sold to you at an outrageous price compared to the real deal.
No need to clarify. I already mentioned of which I prefer. It is really a clear issue. What more do you want? Have you never taken any medicine, only drugs? If so, ouch! I feel sorry for you.
I really doubt that evasive posturing will win anyone over to your argument.
Can you give but one example of such a “medicine” that does not have side effects? Otherwise I have a hard time taking you seriously.
Seems to me you guys are focusing on the wrong facets.
1. Does the drug have clinically proven benefits?
2. Are those benefits proven for the target population, or some other population?
3. What short term side effects, if any, does it have?
4. What is known of its long term effects?
4a. Does it remain effective?
4b. How confident can we be that we really know the long term effects, both good and bad?
5. How much risk is the subject willing to take to gain the possible benefits?
It’s really all the same questions that should be weighed in deciding, for example, whether to start treatment with any medication. Do the possible benefits outweigh the possible risks.
The problem is that the unknowns and risks are usually of a magnitude that, in the absence of a clear medical problem or deficiency, they outweigh the possible benefits.
There is no need to split hairs over charged terms like “medicine” vs “drug”. An objective cost/benefit analysis, which takes into consideration both short and long term factors, is much more to the point. The key term being “objective”, which may be a difficult state for the subject to attain; We tend to be biased, and we tend to want things now. This is where the opinion of a third party, trained in the medical field, and familiar with the scientific literature and practical application (from a medical standpoint) is invaluable.
In fact, in the final analysis, I doubt that what OSAlert readers decide about the issue in general has any relevance or meaning at all. Each case is unique, and should be treated as such. The decision being made after careful consideration by the relevant parties.
Personally, while I make a great effort each day to maintain good diet, exercise, and quality sleep time, brain health being a primary motivation, I don’t feel particularly tempted to seek out pharmaceutical aid at this time.
Here’s two that are common for babies teething and gas:
1. Hyland’s Homeopathic Teething Gel (No Anesthetic, this no chance of baby death.)
2. “Safeway” Infants’ Simethicone Drops (Gas Relief).
I just realized, that people who are not parents may not have used any common medicine available. My apologies for assuming you are a parent.
I will be very shortsighted here – not because I think I am, but because most will think I will be
Generally I am against drugs/medications/whatever if not taken for some real medical reason. Willing to “enhance their cognitive performance” is not a medical reason, and I don’t like the idea. Moreover, I am also something you could call a scientist, and I wouldn’t like to see my co-workers take such drugs, and I wouldn’t like to work with such fellas. You see, if you can’t have a good idea without the drugs, there’s no way on earth you’ll have it with it. Of course, if you happen to have that idea while being medicated, it’s easy to say it was because of the drugs
Which I find stupid.
If one really can’t focus on a specific task at hand for a reasonable time, that might just be a case where medical reasons could explain the necessity for such drugs. But that’s not average joe’s task to decide.
BTW, I usually find that I have pretty good ideas while having beer [well, at least I find them good while drinking those beers
)) ] so I should just go to work tomorrow and say I’ll be taking beer on a regular basis from now on because I feel it enhances my cognitive performance 
All I have to say to that is: fcuking morons. Idiots shouldn’t have children.
Are they sure those things don’t cause brain damage ?
So you are saying that you drink beer for a real medical reason?
Hehe, would be nice
Actually, I had a friend who had small kidney stones, and his doctor recommended him some herb teas and also to drink lots of beer, since it’s a fairly good diuretic 
Best illness one can have, if we could not feel the huge pain when the stones pass away that is 
)
Throw a pill at everything, regardless of if it’s actually a problem or not.
I would question this just because of the drugs listed… particularly Inderal which is a SEDATIVE and has a host of health risks associated with it. Seriously a beta-blocker is the LAST thing you should be taking if you need to CONCENTRATE.
I THINK that what was meant is Adderall, which is a amphetamine and a close relative to Ritalin, which is in itself only a half-step away from Methamphetamine. That would make the list be three forms of bennies – oh yeah, good thinking there. (though if people are indeed making that mistake, then it’s even funnier)
The irratablity hours after taking them probably makes home-life miserable, nothing like the shakes and jitters if you mix it with the other commonplace stimulants coders are notorious for like caffiene and sugar. I’m just SO certain the insomnia associated with these drugs make a person so productive a week after their abuse… and let’s not forget the increased risk of becoming diabetic which again, goes SO well with the caffiene and junk food coder diet.
Frankly, if you are going to sit around taking amphetamines, you might as well get the cheap over the counter DHEA or ephedra sold as diet supplements – since they are damned near the same thing.
The question becomes are these people actually more productive, or do they in thier altered mind-state just THINK they are more productive… at which point it’s kind of like asking a drunk if they think they are too impaired to drive.
Though I’m willing to bet all of these jokers popping pills would probably be WAY more productive if they took the time to slow down, eat right, and get a decent nights sleep instead of staying up until 3AM playing WoW and watching Adult Swim when they need to be at work 8AM the next day.
Edited 2008-04-11 05:54 UTC
The world is full of very intelligent people. The enormous body of art and science that humans have amassed is a constant reminder of this. Don’t let the fact that there are brilliant people everywhere make you feel stupid. Those who market “smart drugs” are exploiting this insecurity just as surely as cosmetics companies exploit the insecurity of women who only see the most beautiful of the beautiful in media. It is nothing but a confidence scam.
There is only one way to make yourself smarter–sustained effort at mental activity that challenges you. If you keep working on difficult skills you will eventually get better at them. There is absolutely no substitute for effort. If it were easy nobody would think you were smart for being good at it. Age and experience will give you the confidence and insight to apply these smarts you’ve earned in ever more creative ways. Soon, others will be so impressed with your abilities that they will wish they could pop a pill to be as smart as you.
Edited 2008-04-11 08:13 UTC
“Mental enhancing” substances destroyed the lives/fried the brains of at least 2 good persons I know.
It’s time the bust the myth of a safe wonder magic potion that makes everything better. There’s no such thing. There are only cruel, naive interventions to normal brain neurochemistry. Sorcerer’s Apprentice syndrome.
Supporting optimal brain functional through nutritients, exercise (mental and physical), fun, hanging out with interesting people pays out a lot more, IMHO, but it’s not as easy.
Even coderz drug of choice caffeine (hell, I love it) gives you something (think fast, concentrate better) and gets back something in return (you ended up writing 100000 lines of… Java?
I’ve been diagnosed with ADHD during high school and used ritalin for 6 months. It helped me to get myself in one piece mentally and to concentrate but I hated the side-effect of disabling parallel-thinking in my brain. On the positive side, I learned how to concentrate after I gave up ritalin.
Duiring later years, I’ve searched how to concentrate better without any chemicals and I found a way which I can apply to myself and it actually works. Here’s the recipe (Disclaimer: This may not work on everybody)
1- Find your favorite music and try to listen it while wroking. If you can work while listening music, this is a big plus. This removes you from the environment and leaves you on your own. Also music acts a external pacemaker for my brain so may do the same for you. So you can work with a uniform speed.
2- It’s very hard but, strenghten yourself mentally. Put your life to a balance. Remove as many overheads as possible. Take problematic people OUT of your life, by any means necessary. If you can’t, isolate them. Isolate problems too. Develop sustainable solutions. They may be instantenous or span over months not a problem. Solve these problems and prevent them from reoccuring. This will make you happy and relaxed.
3- Sleep 6 to 7 hours (or your body’s acceptable minimum), eat well and light (not in terms of calories or such but in terms of digiestion). Do not overeat and stress your stomach. This will prevent slowdowns or aftermeal sleepy situtations. If your body accepts and you don’t have time in the morning, skip breakfast for workdays (I drink 1 big glass of choclate milk every morning for 15 years). Please note that eating light not means a strict diet but balanced eating habits.
4- Walk for transportation or nothing if you can… Walking cleares mind, makes your muscles work and relaxes you.
5- Consume lots of liquid. I prefer tea. I drink 48-72oz of tea everyday just in work.
6- Leave some time for yourself. Do whatever you want during that time. Get a hobby if you can. I’m also an amateur photographer ( http://zerocoder.deviantart.com )
7- I didn’t mentioned alcohol. Of course consume some, but not excessive amounts regularly.
This is my formula. All neutral, free from drugs, measuring cups, other chemicals and such. It may work or may not work for you. The only difference of my formula is that: my formula doesn’t augment body chemistry but forces whole metabolism to evolve, adapt and grow stronger. The only downside: This formula doesn’t make you work 30hrs a day / 8 days a week and doesn’t consume your life.
Your life is more important than everything else. Respeoct yourself. Don’t consume it for the sake of the company.
(Yes I’m a programmer too.)
P.S: Also don’t forget: “Don’t fight with your metabolism. Your metabolism will beat you to death to get itself right if it requires to do so”.
Edit: Added P.S. part.
Edited 2008-04-11 11:24 UTC
Mod +1
All real-life examples I know rather enjoy brain-busting drugs like beer while programming. Especially the *-nix-crowd seems to have a special relationship with beer, even the girls!
I’m not judging anyone, it is just my experience from a couple of places I worked in the media- and software-industry. Also, the media-guys drink much more and also use plenty of other soft-drugs when available.
Right now I am revising PHP-code for a large web-app that has been WUI (written under the influence) by a friend. I can’t say I like everything I see there. There is obviously some point where the quality of code suddenly drops sharply with higher levels of intoxication. Weirdest line of code:
if ($somevar) {}
else {foobarfunction($somevar0);}
Obviously the braincells that knew how to do simple if-statements were already passing out on the sofa.
Pretty embarrassing if this drunk-3am-in-morning-code gets into the final product, if you ask me..
Obviously, the choice of PHP was MUI. Which Python framework are you rewriting it in? Friends don’t let friends use PHP.
Edited 2008-04-11 12:37 UTC
I’ve always known that as ‘voodoo programming’
I agree. I find low alcohol intake helps me concentrate in code by killing other thoughts or worries that get in the way. One/two beers is best. When stuck, it is magic.
Work as a software developer. After looking for an ‘edge’ (in regards to mental clarity + energy) without going illicit/illegal route, I had doctor prescribe Provigil, which was done because of the ‘downer’ effects of some of my blood pressure meds. Personally, I absolutely LOVE the stuff. At normal dose, I can remain in head-down-pure-focus mode for extended periods of time. I can easily work all night with an extra dose. Of course, I don’t do it often, but it’s been a boon for me.
We could take drugs to enhance our productivity…
…or, we could all just have Robert of SkyOS fame do all our software development and go take a super-long vacation to relax.
I used to do amphetamines and other uppers to get big projects slammed out or to go the long haul on a complex problem.
You just have to be responsible, which I’m sure to many people is a big shock.
On the other hand, I doubt most people that get addicted actually expected to get addicted. It was a big shock for them as well.
I just slam a couple of Red Bulls through out the day. It’s perfectly legal and gives me that awesome $2 dollar crack rush before I bottom out because of the sugar. Then I get the caffeine shakes and headaches. Then I slam another.
Kind of reminds me of the Helter Skelter song.
“When I get to the bottom
I go back to the top of the slide
Where I stop and turn
and I go for a ride”
Interesting this subject comes up because a few days ago I was wondering what really is the difference ethically between athletes using performance enhancing drugs and someone sucking down coffee, caffeine, or cigarettes to open their mind up prior to taking a test.
I’m not referring to long term effects on the body when those substances are abused but merely the ethics behind them. The only answers I could find were two:
1) A mental skill challenges only one – yourself. Athletics not only is against yourself but also other people’s skill.
2) Society has deemed it perfectly acceptable to use certain enhancers to stimulate the brain while disallowing them for athletics.
Orange juice for me…
And proper medicine for headache, flu and other illness only when when needed… Even coffee might be too much for me – I don’t even like its taste, and it often only turns my stomach upside down and disturbs my concentration.
As to real drugs, well, the definition of a drug or of a dangerous drug depends on current medical knowledge, laws and cultural habits. I remember my friend – who is a doc – used to say that if coffee was a new invention, you probably wouldn’t be able to buy it without a doctor’s recipe… Too bad that in my home country coffee is served almost everywhere. Yuck…
Edited 2008-04-14 00:37 UTC