In my previous piece, I set the ground work for serious minded discussion of Nootropics. We discussed how poorly adapted humans are for their new line of work. We discussed the fact that humans are outliving their natural lifespans dramatically these days, and particularly the problem of the cessation of learning around age 40. We discussed the problem of the age pyramid turning into an age cylinder, and how this must bring about the collapse of Ponzi retirement scheme, like Social Security.
So with this in mind just what is a Nootropic?
Nootropics have been described as Steroids for the mind. They are referred to as smart drugs. These are a collection of prescription drugs, non-prescription drugs, supplements, and nutraceuticals that purportedly improve mental functionality. Various Nootropics are said to have the following effects:
- Improved cognition
- Faster recall of long term memory
- Better detail of long term memory
- Faster formation of new long term memory.
- More detailed new long term memory
- Increased IQ as measured by standardized IQ testing.
- Improved focus, clarity, motivation, concentration, attention span.
There are more claim made by various vendors. The claims listed above are the empirical claims that are subject of scientific testing, via standard educational testing tools and psychological methods. So far the experimental tests are looking pretty good.
How were Nootropics discovered/designed/developed?
Most of the good and effective Nootropics were discovered as part of medical research into curing or mitigating the effect of several of the degenerative diseases and/or trauma. For instance Piracetam was first developed to combat brain damage resulting from stroke. Piracetam was later discovered to have a positive impact on victims of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
Curious medical researches wondered what impact Piracetam would have on normal health brain function. Many experimented on themselves. They began with the hypothesis that Piracetam would have no effect (positive or negative) on normal healthy brain. They were surprised to find measurable improvements. Many question the sincerity of the original hypothesis. Given what little we know about its mechanism, many believe these pioneers actually did expect positive results from Piracetam, but this is conjecture.
What good are Nootropics?
I don't know. You tell me: Do you think you would benefit in life from improved cognition, memory, focus, clarity, motivation, concentration, and attention span? If you are C# programmer, you understand that you cannot be wrong by so much as one upper case or lower case letter. The same is true for C, C++, and Java. Do you think any of these things would help you?
So just what is a moral difference, if any, between use of Nootropics for a programmer, and the use of Steroids for a Football or Baseball player?
First of all, we are not talking about athletic events between kids & teams here. We are talking about scientists, doctors, and engineers responsible for saving and building the world.
If you were about to undergo quadrupole bypass surgery, I think you would want the doctor in his sharpest and most focused state. I don't think you would be inclined to think about whether he 'cheated' to reach that level of concentration. The IOC rules for fair competition do not apply or pertain to this domain. This is not about fair competition. This is about doing a stupendous job in order to save a human life. You are throwing a flag for illegal formation at an Easter Egg hunt.
Likewise, if you had an engineer responsible for designing the new Oakland Bay Bridge, you would want to ensure that man was in the best possible mental condition to approach these large scale design problems. One major design flaw and it could cost society thousands of lives when that bridge collapses. Let's leave out the billions of Dollars lost on a bad bridge and a good replacement. The IOC rules for fair competition do not apply or pertain to this domain. This is not about fair competition. This is about doing a stupendous job to guard human life. You are throwing a flag for illegal formation at an Easter Egg hunt.
By the same token, the programmer who is on the verge of obsolescence and the employer who pays him both have a vested interest in ensuring that this guy is mentally sharp, ready to adapt to the new prevailing conditions, able to learn new tricks of the trade, capable of staying current in an ever-radically changing industry.
If said programmer works at a bank, and he is responsible for the transactional integrity of your banking website, you'd better hope he is sharp and functional. A few mistakes here and there and your payments for vital services (such as gas and electricity) will fly off to no where. The money may disappear from your account, and you may never see it again. You got nothing out of it, and you might as well have been robbed. Whether you know it or not, that programmer is vital to your financial health and well being. You depend upon him for your financial survival. If he slips up, you are in trouble. I think you want him to be as sharp as a scalpel, and you are disinclined to worry about how he got that way.
By my writing, I think you can gather that I don't believe the morality of international athletic competition applies or pertains to these trades at the core of our survival. I think I can make that argument stick. You bring me any moral philosopher you like. I'll argue him down.
So just what is the moral difference, if any between the use of Nootropics and other mind altering drugs such as LSD and Heroine?
This is a specious question and it leads to a specious argument. Some believe all drugs are created equal. No human should be ingesting any drug. Leave them all out. Go natural all the way. This is the Christian Scientist or extreme Pentecostal argument. I don't buy it. I never have.
For the record, let us recall that LSD and Heroine belong to the FDA Schedule-1 list of illegal drugs. These are drugs with no medical application or redeeming quality to recommend them. Many have poked holes in the Schedule-1 philosophy, but we won't consider that here. The purpose of these drugs is to run away from reality, and achieve an altered (high) state of mind. Rather than improving brain function, the brain actually takes damage, and the vital centers of judgement are impaired immediately. Over the long term, the brain incurs terrible damage.
Nootropics have quite the opposite effect. Rather than incurring brain damage, pre-existing brain damage can actually be reversed. Rather than impairing cognitive function, cognitive function is enhanced. Rather than running away from reality in an altered state of mind, you deal with reality in a more focused and clear mindset. Over the long run the brain gets healthier. If you are an Alzheimer's victim, the progressive degeneration the disease foments will be retarded.
But Nootropics don't do anything positive for healthy brains, do they?
Once upon a time in the 1960s and 1970s, Football players, Olympic Weight Lifters, and Power Lifters were all trying and using Steroids. To be quite frank with you, they still are. One strategy used to deter them from using Steroids was to form a conga-line of medical experts who all protested that Steroids were the latest snake oil sold by patent medicine con artists. Steroids don't work, or so they said. This was a pretty stupid strategy. Those who used Deca Durabolin, Anavar, Nanadrolone Deconate, etc., could measure explosive growth in strength. It showed up loud and clear at competitive lifting events. Increases in lean body mass with decreases in fat mass could also be measured. Losses in strength and lean mass were also obvious during off-cycles. Quite frankly, everybody knew these items worked as advertised.
Right now, a few individuals are forming a new conga-line of experts who claim that Nootropics don't work. The line is surprisingly short. They are getting surprisingly little respect.
Medical experts learned from the Steroid epoch that simple denial doesn't work. People do experiment for themselves. They can tell whether or not "it" works, whatever it is. Many experts are debating the question of how to use these agents, when to use these agents, how much to use, and just how broad the distribution should be. Many, such as the experts writing articles at Discover Magazine, argue for a broad spectrum deployment of Nootropics.
The argument focuses on the issues laid out in my first blog entry about Nootropics.
Forward...
In my next piece I will outline the several different categories of Nootropics, and explain their functions.
