Tell me, what would you do if there was a pill that could make you smarter? We all know about the classic diet pills, but what if you had a pill that didn't make you go down a pant size, but up in IQ points? The movie (and now TV show), Limitless, delves into this idea; a pill that could make a person intelligently invincible. But now, thanks to the advances in science, this pill may become more than just a plot-line.
The drug is called "Modafinil" (or Provigil), and while it does not exactly make you more intelligent, it does improve attention span and focus. Think of it as a new and improved version of Adderall. Over the years, there have been several drugs marketed for brain enhancement, take BrainSmart and Cogni-Flex, for example. The difference for Modafinil? This one may actually work.
One man took a similar drug, Nuvigil, and recorded his results in a hilarious article. I'll make sure to include the link below because you won't want to miss it. After taking the pill, Jeremy Glass described it as "waves of happiness and alertness", but as the day went on he claimed "Nothing is bad but nothing is good, all at once. Call it a muted euphoria."
A muted euphoria.
Huh.
Call me crazy, but this doesn't seem like the most fun. In fact, psychiatric patients have been known to go off their meds to avoid a seemingly similar feeling. So why would we make ourselves feel that way? Let's read on.
Further on in the article, Glass comments on how the drug improved his writing: "Writing, I found, became a superhuman trait (granted, the most boring superhero on Earth, but still). I felt words and their synonyms flow from my fingers like lightning and I was typing verbatim what I was thinking." (I am MUCH more interested in this drug, now). I find this comment interesting. Did he feel "muted" because his brain was not particularly active? Do the effects of the drug only take place when the brain is at work? The drug is thought to advance focus, does it only do so when the brain is already trying to focus on something? To be determined.
Ultimately, Glass claims that although the pill wasn't so hot for his body, it was amazing for his mind. If feeling kind of groggy all day, but happy and pretty alert, than maybe this pill is something to consider.
However, we should consider the ethics side of the drug. Are we sure we as humans want a drug that could potentially become a intelligent-based steroid? I'm not so sure. Suddenly test scores won't mean as much if all you need to do is pop a pill before the ACT. I must say, though, being a college student myself, this pill is pretty attractive. I'm not sure I would say "no, thanks" to something that could help me stay focused in my Stats lecture, so it's completely possible that I'm just biased.
Which ever side you're on, I think everyone can agree that there need to be regulations. While I'm not sure I would turn down the drug, I am sure that it wouldn't be fair if I got a better grade than the girl next to me simply because I could afford a pill.
While my nerdy side is excited for the scientific possibilities this drug holds, I'm worried about what this could mean for the simpler side of our society. What ever happens with this kind of drug, I just hope our society will know how to handle it and focus it on improving the lives of those who could truly benefit from it.
Jeremy Glass's Article: https://www.thrillist.com/vice/i-spent-a-week-on-n...
