Steroids for your Brain

Coffee. Adderall. Red Bull.

Set for another study session. Enhancing my focus and ability to stay awake so that I can do better in my classes. The truth of the matter is that with the drugs and energy supplements I can push myself to study longer and work more than someone not taking the supplements. Basically I'm taking steroids for my brain to help me achieve a goal. Unlike steroids however there's no long lasting side effects and my reward is knowledge besides just a good looking body. The question then is why is there no outcry about the mental edge that students are getting by using these mental enhancers? Is it morally better to cheat in the world of academia than in the world of sports? Or should we consider these enhancements as cheating as their not speeding up teaching of material only prolonging the studying ability of a student? The thing with steroids is that they don't themselves build muscle, you have to be willing to put time in to lift weights and practice to see improvment. In the same way though Adderall or Ritalin let you stay awake to study but you have to actually open a book and learn the material. So is it any different from physical enhancers?

Personally I've used Adderall which has been prescribed to me to help me study and stay focused when I need a boost or have a heavy workload. It helps me from being distracted by the things in our world which are supposed to improve our life yet seem to provide only more distractions. Facebook, AIM, and the air conditioning clicking on are suddently a lot less intresting when I've taken my medication as I can't come unglued from the article I'm reading or the paper I'm writing. The new age drugs that I take help keep me focused and away from the new age distractions in life.

I guess what I'm trying to ask is two fold. Should students be allowed to use Adderall to mentally push themselves longer? And are the drugs now more prominent on campus because of the number of distractions we're open too?


Update:
After posting I found this article on BBC which focuses on the same question.

Bring on the Cold

Bring on the cold. Bring on the fall breeze and bring on the jackets. After living in the northeast all my life it's a blessing when the weather takes a turn for the cold. Being able to wear layers again and get ready for the start of Ski season. My true passion is skiing and being around the mountains. And every year about this time as it starts to get cold I feel as if I'm being called back to the mountains. A perpetual ski bum I've always valued the gift my parents gave me of taking me out into the open and just going skiing and letting me be free. It's an expression of openness and a true sense of accomplishment while feeling peace at just being out there in the first place. For me being up on the mountain skiing is all of that. So now that we enter into the cold weather with the thermometer dropping, the girls putting away the mini skirts, and the guys pulling out the hoodies...I'm smiling. As for me...you can find me on the mountain sometime soon.

Just in case you need in motivation check out this trailer for Warren Millers new movie to get pumped for the oncoming season.

I commented on JSC's blog "Parking on campus? Ehh, not so much..."

I commented on Genesis' post "So What Exactly Are Our Politicians Doing?"