You tend to use the very specific phrase "nootropic drugs" to talk about drugs which help with productivity or creativity or some other aspect of working life. Asking whether there is evidence on nootropics, is just asking whether there are any heavily-tested nootropics. Asking anything else--to lex it out, whether "drugs that have no productivity-enhancing aspect, enhance productivity" is just playing the fool to incite extremely subjective flamewars.
So, let's avoid that, and just focus on nootropics. Is there evidence that they work? Depends on the drug. We have drugs (caffeine, theanine) that are in foods we've been consuming since the beginning of civilization, so we've heavily researched those and are pretty confident in what they do.
On the other hand, new, synthetic compounds, like modafinil, are only really created and pushed through FDA approval if there can be found some sort of therapeutic, non-nootropic purpose in their use: in modafinil's case, treating narcolepsy. This means that their use as nootropics is much less well-researched, and consists mainly of anecdata (however much there is) shared over the internet.
The best you'll find, I think, in terms of data for efficacy of various drugs, is people who have set out to do double-blind studies on themselves: http://www.gwern.net/Nootropics
After reading data-points like these, you might be convinced to try some of them on your own. But be aware that people's body-chemistries can vary widely--especially where things affecting neurochemical balance are concerned--so everyone's reactions to these will still be different. Not in a sense of a "bad trip", usually; just that some things which other people swear by might not have much of an effect on your particular chemistry. So, the best thing to do, as in most situations: first research, then experiment.
I'm not an expert, but I'd like to comment on your statement that discussing non-nootropics in this context is pointless. I think it is not, and my argument goes like this: you code better when in mood to do so. Certain psychoactive substances make it easier to fall in certain moods, easier to change your mood or even forcibly change your mood for you (like some of benzodiazepines or MDM, MDMA). Their working is not "nootropic" (as in it does not necessarily improve any mental functions) but you're in generally better disposition to code after using them. This is true even for coffee, and even without developed dependence - if you're feeling sleepy, your code will be worse than when you're feeling wide awake, and coffee, being a stimulant that it is, can give you that feeling.
So, what I want to say is that not only measurable enchancement of "cognition, memory, intelligence, motivation, attention" (as with nootropics) can result in you doing better job. For example, while benzodiazepines generally lower cognitive ability, they enable people with depression to actually do something (to code, for example :)). Of course, when overdosed or just not fit for your particular brain, the same psychoactive substance can lower mental function so much, that no amount of optimistic thoughts is going to help you.
I just want to point out that there is more to productivity than memory, intelligence and concentration and that this means that when discussing productivity there is a place for not-strictly-nootropic drugs in the discussion. Although, I have to admit, that place is rather marginal due to very, very varied responses to such a substances among individuals.
You made a good point that I just wanted to make explicit, because I think it is generally not something people know or at least not something they've thought much about - The FDA has a very specific mandate. They regulate any substance which "treats, prevents, or cures any disease." They specifically do not regulate, or test for, any substance which would claim to improve the functioning of a healthy person. If a drug came out tomorrow which would enable you to lift 50 kilos more tomorrow than you can life today, the FDA would have no jurisdiction over it (unless someone wanted to give it to patients suffering from muscular impairment due to a disease, of course). This is also one of the reasons why the FDA does not regulate alcohol and cigarettes. Those substances are not meant to treat, cure, or prevent anything.
I'm not clear on whether such a 'strengthening' drug would be legal to sell, just that the FDA could not authorize it for sale.
From what I understand there is only one study on the relationship between creativity and LSD:
Psychedelic agents in creative problem-solving: a pilot study. Harman WW, McKim RH, Mogar RE, Fadiman J, Stolaroff MJ. Psychol Rep. 1966 Aug;19(1):211-27.
The results suggested that LSD has a positive effect on creative problem solving. I think it is a shame that no follow-up experiments have been conducted.
In my opinion, the most fascinating and progressive areas of study are the ones that aren't studied, due to a multitude of political reasons. It makes me feel quite bad for people that can't fully entertain an idea if it hasn't been through a randomized, double-blind placebo study.
Define drugs. I know Ritalin is an invaluable tool when it comes time for me to sit down and hack, but can also be counter-productive in limiting my creativity.
I think it would be self-evidently false to suggest that no mind-altering substance could lead to a state of consciousness more conducive than the baseline for a given activity, but I would stop short of recommending any particular drug for programming. If it works for you, do it. If not, don't.
You do realise that you're doing something quite dangerous by turning to dopamine-influencing drugs to motivate you, right? This class of drugs can change brain structure, promote cancer growth and generally make you devoid of emotion. At the very least, protect yourself with anti-oxidants and NMDA antagonists. There are plenty of less serious things you can take/do if you simply lack motivation. Exercise, cut out sugar and caffeine entirely and try Noopept.
After 1971 he also took amphetamines, despite the concern of his friends, one of
whom bet him $500 that he could not stop taking the drug for a month. Erdős won the
bet, but complained that during his abstinence mathematics had been set back by a
month: "Before, when I looked at a piece of blank paper my mind was filled with
ideas. Now all I see is a blank piece of paper." After he won the bet, he promptly
resumed his amphetamine use.
He also liked coffee.
Note: effective programming in the real world is absolutely not the same as mathematics - but some would argue that the essence of it is.
According to popular wisdom, "There are two major products that came from Berkeley: LSD and Unix. We don't believe this to be a coincidence." It's, of course, incorrect (http://www.lemoda.net/people/jeremy-s-anderson/index.html), but, in any case, it's a funny one.
Now, on a more serious tone, a lot of programmers these days take some kind of drug, be it to control their ADHD, Asperger and other assorted medical conditions, be it to supplement something they think their brain is burning through faster than our hunter-gatherer heritage made us budget. I have noticed, however, some friends of mine who started taking ADHD medication (Methylphenidate, the only ADHD drug approved for use in Brazil) that became, indeed, much more focused and productive (amazingly so, sometimes), but that's not a double-blind study.
It would be fun (if horrendously complicated) to design a good study for that.
LSD: I have found it possible to use it to gain insight. (Cisco systems had some key person(s?) using LSD to design products.) The problem is that you can trick yourself quite easily into "discovering" things which end up not meaning much. So you do need some care, and perhaps someone to help guide you. For beginners, I'd say LSD's bigger benefit is being able to reshape how you think and handle life rather than understanding some new data structures. It's definitely a "must do this at least once in a lifetime" type of thing.
Stimulants are fantastic. Amphetamines provide focus as well as a nice perky feeling to keep you happy while coding. Ritalin (methylphenidate) works too, but I find it harsher and not as pleasant as speed. As the name hints, it makes you fast at things. Talking, thinking, calculating, coding. I notice with Ritalin, doing mental math happens instantaneously - I surprise myself. The focus can be a drawback: if you don't plan, you can end up focusing on something "interesting" yet time wasting. So prepare your day, first.
Opiates (such as time release oxycodone) are fantastic for keeping optimism. By keeping your mind in the right state, you can end up being much more productive. Again, the benefit is the drawback: being overly optimistic means your risk calculations and general decision management might be way off. (Biggest downside here is addiction, but it _is_ manageable, at least if you have money.)
Pot I've not found useful for much as far as work. I did try coding on it, and ended up writing an infinite loop and thinking it was the coolest thing in the world. Alcohol can sometimes be slightly helpful, in a similar manner as Xanax; just by relaxing and getting one into a better mindset.
> Opiates [...] (Biggest downside here is addiction
Dependency. Addiction is very similar for all the things you mention, physical dependency is unique to opiates (at least in comparison with LSD, pot and amphetamine).
I scale the Ballmer Peak on a regular basis. I've semi-scientifically mapped out the exact amount required to get the desired effect. I've started trying to plot the continuous consumption rate required to spend more time at the summit.
Define better code. Code at that point/moment in time in comparision, maybe. Code later on that is more robust and well documented so that others can understand and change if need be better, probably not.
People say drugs help you do this and that, but over time you gain tollerance, have downsides when drug wears off. So is this another tortoise and hare comparision nomatter how it is thought thru.
Now if drugs help you to do what you can't, be it atheritis or the like, or pain medication. Something that counters a condition you normaly have that limits your abilities, then sure they do make better code. But as a rule it has too many exceptions to make such a brash statement by using such a losely drifined term as drugs in a title without better focus onto specific groups/types/needs.
What goes up must come down, employers don't pay for your comedown, nor do they pay for your supply, so beyond the offcie coffee or prescription mecial needs. I'd say meditation and better mind focus and planning/whole mental approach can do more for anybody to produce better code than any off the shelf solution. On balance take the free coffee and run with it.
This comment reads as some general pondering about "no there's no way ahead except hard work". Just because there are tradeoffs doesn't mean there's not a clear advantage.
Thinking that humans have somehow evolved to behave at maximum performance for engineering or software design is an odd belief.
As far as "it must come down, it can't last", there was a leader (for 10 years) of one of the world's top air forces that was a morphine addict. Using "office coffee or prescription" is just a no true Scotsman argument.
> It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.
It seems pretty specific to me. If you have evidence, present it.
I can see an argument for it being too broad, but it saddens me that a question such as this is closed when it has the potential to be very interesting.
I suppose it also has the potential to devolve into a giant drugs flamewar, which may be why it was really closed.
It just seems to me like relevant, interesting questions get closed all the time because just because. It's getting pretty annoying from the StackExchange network.
That reminds me of the time I was taking pot while in college. During one class I was completely zoned into the cursor and moved it back and forth 5-6 pixels across the screen.
My experience though it is anecdotal seems to rule out at least cannabinoids.
Dosage is an important consideration, though. I know someone who used to use pot as a programming aid, but he had to be very careful with the dosage. By using very small amounts spread out over the day, he could maintain a flow state that let him churn out code for hours and hours. He didn't find it all that helpful for design and planning, but for large projects that involved an overwhelming amount of fairly boring work, he found it to be a helpful tool.
The problem was that if he used too much, he'd be pretty much useless until it wore off some. Smoking a plant is not exactly what you would call "precise dosage administration", so this was a fairly significant issue.
First of all, do we have a clear evaluation criterion for "better" outcomes? If the question is about writing better code, is there agreement at the start of an experiment about what "better" means? I'm not experienced in evaluating software code (I'm much more experienced in evaluating psychological and medical research), but it seems to me, from reading HN, that better code could be code
a) that is able to pass all the unit tests with an earlier deadline,
b) that has a smaller total bug count when subjected to code review,
c) that solves a problem that other programmers in the same workplace didn't solve until later,
d) that works around an intellectual property claim by a competing company more convincingly,
e) that meets company stylesheet requirements more exactly,
f) that can be maintained by less skilled subsequent programmers,
and perhaps other criteria.
Any sound experimental study has to meet a lot of other criteria
to be worthy of believing, and in human drug studies the criteria include
1) sufficiently large sample size (n = 1 just doesn't do the job)
2) treatment-control design (so that some subjects of the experiment get the drug, and some subjects do not)
3) double-blind administration (the subjects of the experiment should not know if they are getting the drug, nor should the experimenters know which subjects are getting the drug)
and many more, especially
4) rigorous statistical analysis afterward.
As Richard Feynman said, "The first principle is that you must not fool yourself--and you are the easiest person to fool. So you have to be very careful about that."
So anecdotes along the lines of "I took this drug, and I wrote much better code" can be completely discounted, because we don't have access to the coder's before-and-after work product (nor to the coder's detailed dosage history) to know what really happened.
Psh, anything that gives you a different perspective on life is important. LSD gives you a vastly different perspective on reality, so I guess if you relate that to life in a meaningful way, is fairly important.
Many great people did drugs. But don't mess correlation with causation please. Maybe great people are just more predisposed to drugs, while drugs actually harmed them.
I don't know the answer, but I am reminded of John Markoff's 2006 book What the Dormouse Said: How the Sixties Counterculture Shaped the Personal Computer Industry[1].
Insofar as programming involves problem solving I believe the answer is an unqualified "yes".
In _The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide: Safe, Therapeutic, and Sacred Journeys_ by James Fadiman, Ph.D a chapter is devoted to discussing the results of a study on the use of the psychedelic substance mescaline to enhance creative problem solving.
This study was conducted at the Institute for Psychedelic Research at San Francisco State University.
I'll quote at length from the book chapter:
"The participants were 26 men engaged in a variety of professional occupations: 16 engineers, one engineer-physicist, two mathematicians, two architects, one psychologist, one furniture designer, one commercial artist, one sales manager, and one personnel manager."
"Nineteen of the subjects have no previous experience with psychedelics."
The subjects were selected based on their psychological stability and motivation to solve a specific problem they had at work.
They met in small groups for several days before the psychedelic session and were told what to expect and given instructions in the use of the drug-effect for problem solving.
The subjects were given 200 milligrams of mescaline.
After six weeks the subjects were given questionnaires on how the effects of the session had effected their ongoing creative ability as well as how valid and acceptable the solutions conceived during the session seemed to them at that time.
Some (but not all) examples of solutions obtained by the subjects under the drug-effect:
* A new approach to the design of a vibratory microtome
* A commercial building design, accepted by the client
* A mathematical theorem regarding NOR-gate circuits
* Design of a linear electron accelerator beam-steering device
There are several tables full of numerical data. Table names include "Application of Solutions Obtains in Experimental Sessions" and "Work Performance Since Session".
My conclusion:
Psychedelic substances can be used to enhance creativity - but as always who is using them and how they go about it makes all the difference.
Quotes from the above article that I feel are most salient for this discussion of drugs, creativity and problem solving:
"As explained in Shanon (1998b), ayahuasca can also induce very impressive ideations. It is very typical for ayahuasca drinkers to report that the brew makes them think faster and better -- indeed, makes them more intelligent. Several of my informants reported the feeling of potentially being able to know everything; I too had this experience. While, this overall feeling is not objectively provable, my data do reveal some ideations which are truly impressive. Especially let me mention philosophical insights attained by drinkers without prior formal education. Some of these resemble ideas encountered in classical works as those of Plato, Plotinus, Spinoza and Hegel. Significant insights are more likely to be encountered in domains in which drinkers have special competence. Personally, with ayahuasca, I had many insights regarding my professional field of expertise and to which, following further critical scrutiny, I still hold. I have heard the same from other persons."
For me, "better" code seems to come from a combination of confidence, creativity, and concentration (maybe not all at the same time).
I need a certain amount of confidence to go after a difficult chunk of work that may not really lead anywhere or may turn out to be too big a task to accomplish in the available time.
I need a certain amount of creativity to come up with new avenues to try when I'm stuck on a problem or starting to brainstorm a new project.
And I need a certain amount of concentration to power through a hard coding task (both to tune out distractions and to keep a lot of information in short-term memory).
I have zero experience with hallucinogens, but my understanding is that they can help immensely with creativity but are really lousy for concentration (anyone care to chime in?).
Straight depressants don't really help me with any of the above, although I gather some people get more confident after drinking. I tend to go straight from "pleasantly unwound" to "I really need to get to sleep".
My experience with (legally prescribed) stimulants is that they're really pretty great for confidence and concentration. I also find that being slightly behind on sleep is less of an impediment to coding, and when I get into social settings I'm much more engaged and generally better at interacting with people.
The flip side is that I often can't sleep well, and I can rarely nap, so if I get too far behind I end up clicking around the web like a zombie all day. Paradoxically I'm a lot less interested in socializing, even while I'm better at it. All told I would say it's neutral to negative on creativity.
I'm also not totally comfortable with what effect five, ten, or twenty years of daily use will have, and part of me really wants to maximize the portion of my life spent without taking a pill every day. So it's a mixed bag.
I think stimulants and amphetamines definitely have an effect on programming. Maybe it affects quantity more than quality, but Paul Erdos, one of the most prolific mathematician ever, comes to mind:
His colleague Alfréd Rényi said, "a mathematician is a machine for turning
coffee into theorems", and Erdos drank copious quantities. After 1971 he also
took amphetamines, despite the concern of his friends, one of whom (Ron Graham)
bet him $500 that he could not stop taking the drug for a month. Erdos won the
bet, but complained that during his abstinence mathematics had been set back by
a month: "Before, when I looked at a piece of blank paper my mind was filled
with ideas. Now all I see is a blank piece of paper." After he won the bet, he
promptly resumed his amphetamine use.
[+] [-] derefr|13 years ago|reply
So, let's avoid that, and just focus on nootropics. Is there evidence that they work? Depends on the drug. We have drugs (caffeine, theanine) that are in foods we've been consuming since the beginning of civilization, so we've heavily researched those and are pretty confident in what they do.
On the other hand, new, synthetic compounds, like modafinil, are only really created and pushed through FDA approval if there can be found some sort of therapeutic, non-nootropic purpose in their use: in modafinil's case, treating narcolepsy. This means that their use as nootropics is much less well-researched, and consists mainly of anecdata (however much there is) shared over the internet.
The best you'll find, I think, in terms of data for efficacy of various drugs, is people who have set out to do double-blind studies on themselves: http://www.gwern.net/Nootropics
After reading data-points like these, you might be convinced to try some of them on your own. But be aware that people's body-chemistries can vary widely--especially where things affecting neurochemical balance are concerned--so everyone's reactions to these will still be different. Not in a sense of a "bad trip", usually; just that some things which other people swear by might not have much of an effect on your particular chemistry. So, the best thing to do, as in most situations: first research, then experiment.
[+] [-] klibertp|13 years ago|reply
So, what I want to say is that not only measurable enchancement of "cognition, memory, intelligence, motivation, attention" (as with nootropics) can result in you doing better job. For example, while benzodiazepines generally lower cognitive ability, they enable people with depression to actually do something (to code, for example :)). Of course, when overdosed or just not fit for your particular brain, the same psychoactive substance can lower mental function so much, that no amount of optimistic thoughts is going to help you.
I just want to point out that there is more to productivity than memory, intelligence and concentration and that this means that when discussing productivity there is a place for not-strictly-nootropic drugs in the discussion. Although, I have to admit, that place is rather marginal due to very, very varied responses to such a substances among individuals.
[+] [-] otakucode|13 years ago|reply
I'm not clear on whether such a 'strengthening' drug would be legal to sell, just that the FDA could not authorize it for sale.
[+] [-] pchivers|13 years ago|reply
Psychedelic agents in creative problem-solving: a pilot study. Harman WW, McKim RH, Mogar RE, Fadiman J, Stolaroff MJ. Psychol Rep. 1966 Aug;19(1):211-27.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychedelics_in_problem-solving...
The results suggested that LSD has a positive effect on creative problem solving. I think it is a shame that no follow-up experiments have been conducted.
[+] [-] marcos123|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] gourneau|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] redthrowaway|13 years ago|reply
I think it would be self-evidently false to suggest that no mind-altering substance could lead to a state of consciousness more conducive than the baseline for a given activity, but I would stop short of recommending any particular drug for programming. If it works for you, do it. If not, don't.
[+] [-] Supreme|13 years ago|reply
Also see:
* http://www.nih.gov/news/health/feb2009/nida-02.htm
* http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2006/05/ritalin_causes_cancer...
* http://www.cchrint.org/2010/11/15/adhd-ritalin-%E2%80%93-bra...
But for the love of god, think about what you are doing to your body. There are other ways, just look a little harder.
[+] [-] 6ren|13 years ago|reply
Note: effective programming in the real world is absolutely not the same as mathematics - but some would argue that the essence of it is.
[+] [-] rbanffy|13 years ago|reply
Now, on a more serious tone, a lot of programmers these days take some kind of drug, be it to control their ADHD, Asperger and other assorted medical conditions, be it to supplement something they think their brain is burning through faster than our hunter-gatherer heritage made us budget. I have noticed, however, some friends of mine who started taking ADHD medication (Methylphenidate, the only ADHD drug approved for use in Brazil) that became, indeed, much more focused and productive (amazingly so, sometimes), but that's not a double-blind study.
It would be fun (if horrendously complicated) to design a good study for that.
[+] [-] meds_means_hide|13 years ago|reply
Stimulants are fantastic. Amphetamines provide focus as well as a nice perky feeling to keep you happy while coding. Ritalin (methylphenidate) works too, but I find it harsher and not as pleasant as speed. As the name hints, it makes you fast at things. Talking, thinking, calculating, coding. I notice with Ritalin, doing mental math happens instantaneously - I surprise myself. The focus can be a drawback: if you don't plan, you can end up focusing on something "interesting" yet time wasting. So prepare your day, first.
Opiates (such as time release oxycodone) are fantastic for keeping optimism. By keeping your mind in the right state, you can end up being much more productive. Again, the benefit is the drawback: being overly optimistic means your risk calculations and general decision management might be way off. (Biggest downside here is addiction, but it _is_ manageable, at least if you have money.)
Pot I've not found useful for much as far as work. I did try coding on it, and ended up writing an infinite loop and thinking it was the coolest thing in the world. Alcohol can sometimes be slightly helpful, in a similar manner as Xanax; just by relaxing and getting one into a better mindset.
[+] [-] klibertp|13 years ago|reply
Dependency. Addiction is very similar for all the things you mention, physical dependency is unique to opiates (at least in comparison with LSD, pot and amphetamine).
[+] [-] noonespecial|13 years ago|reply
I have spreadsheets.
[+] [-] jobu|13 years ago|reply
For extra points, I would love to see your spreadsheet data plotted as a xkcd-style graph (http://mathematica.stackexchange.com/questions/11350/xkcd-st...)
[+] [-] waterlesscloud|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Zenst|13 years ago|reply
People say drugs help you do this and that, but over time you gain tollerance, have downsides when drug wears off. So is this another tortoise and hare comparision nomatter how it is thought thru.
Now if drugs help you to do what you can't, be it atheritis or the like, or pain medication. Something that counters a condition you normaly have that limits your abilities, then sure they do make better code. But as a rule it has too many exceptions to make such a brash statement by using such a losely drifined term as drugs in a title without better focus onto specific groups/types/needs.
What goes up must come down, employers don't pay for your comedown, nor do they pay for your supply, so beyond the offcie coffee or prescription mecial needs. I'd say meditation and better mind focus and planning/whole mental approach can do more for anybody to produce better code than any off the shelf solution. On balance take the free coffee and run with it.
[+] [-] meds_means_hide|13 years ago|reply
Thinking that humans have somehow evolved to behave at maximum performance for engineering or software design is an odd belief.
As far as "it must come down, it can't last", there was a leader (for 10 years) of one of the world's top air forces that was a morphine addict. Using "office coffee or prescription" is just a no true Scotsman argument.
[+] [-] getsat|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Bockit|13 years ago|reply
It seems pretty specific to me. If you have evidence, present it.
I can see an argument for it being too broad, but it saddens me that a question such as this is closed when it has the potential to be very interesting.
I suppose it also has the potential to devolve into a giant drugs flamewar, which may be why it was really closed.
[+] [-] inghoff|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mung|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] xutopia|13 years ago|reply
My experience though it is anecdotal seems to rule out at least cannabinoids.
[+] [-] mistercow|13 years ago|reply
The problem was that if he used too much, he'd be pretty much useless until it wore off some. Smoking a plant is not exactly what you would call "precise dosage administration", so this was a fairly significant issue.
[+] [-] tokenadult|13 years ago|reply
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/about-science-...
First of all, do we have a clear evaluation criterion for "better" outcomes? If the question is about writing better code, is there agreement at the start of an experiment about what "better" means? I'm not experienced in evaluating software code (I'm much more experienced in evaluating psychological and medical research), but it seems to me, from reading HN, that better code could be code
a) that is able to pass all the unit tests with an earlier deadline,
b) that has a smaller total bug count when subjected to code review,
c) that solves a problem that other programmers in the same workplace didn't solve until later,
d) that works around an intellectual property claim by a competing company more convincingly,
e) that meets company stylesheet requirements more exactly,
f) that can be maintained by less skilled subsequent programmers,
and perhaps other criteria.
Any sound experimental study has to meet a lot of other criteria
http://norvig.com/experiment-design.html
to be worthy of believing, and in human drug studies the criteria include
1) sufficiently large sample size (n = 1 just doesn't do the job)
2) treatment-control design (so that some subjects of the experiment get the drug, and some subjects do not)
3) double-blind administration (the subjects of the experiment should not know if they are getting the drug, nor should the experimenters know which subjects are getting the drug)
and many more, especially
4) rigorous statistical analysis afterward.
As Richard Feynman said, "The first principle is that you must not fool yourself--and you are the easiest person to fool. So you have to be very careful about that."
http://www.lhup.edu/~DSIMANEK/cargocul.htm
So anecdotes along the lines of "I took this drug, and I wrote much better code" can be completely discounted, because we don't have access to the coder's before-and-after work product (nor to the coder's detailed dosage history) to know what really happened.
[+] [-] antihero|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] fpp|13 years ago|reply
... and there is of course the Ballmer Peak
http://duvet-dayz.com/archives/2012/04/13/1199/
[+] [-] dlazerka|13 years ago|reply
Many great people did drugs. But don't mess correlation with causation please. Maybe great people are just more predisposed to drugs, while drugs actually harmed them.
[+] [-] cynwoody|13 years ago|reply
If you've forgotten what the dormouse said, listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WANNqr-vcx0
[1]http://www.amazon.com/What-Dormouse-Said-Counterculture-Pers...
[+] [-] abecedarius|13 years ago|reply
I can't answer about helping with coding.
[+] [-] sh_vipin|13 years ago|reply
For that matter, it's not the best code that makes a good product. A good code is just part of it.
[+] [-] davidtanner|13 years ago|reply
In _The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide: Safe, Therapeutic, and Sacred Journeys_ by James Fadiman, Ph.D a chapter is devoted to discussing the results of a study on the use of the psychedelic substance mescaline to enhance creative problem solving.
http://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeuti...
This study was conducted at the Institute for Psychedelic Research at San Francisco State University.
I'll quote at length from the book chapter: "The participants were 26 men engaged in a variety of professional occupations: 16 engineers, one engineer-physicist, two mathematicians, two architects, one psychologist, one furniture designer, one commercial artist, one sales manager, and one personnel manager."
"Nineteen of the subjects have no previous experience with psychedelics."
The subjects were selected based on their psychological stability and motivation to solve a specific problem they had at work.
They met in small groups for several days before the psychedelic session and were told what to expect and given instructions in the use of the drug-effect for problem solving.
The subjects were given 200 milligrams of mescaline.
After six weeks the subjects were given questionnaires on how the effects of the session had effected their ongoing creative ability as well as how valid and acceptable the solutions conceived during the session seemed to them at that time.
Some (but not all) examples of solutions obtained by the subjects under the drug-effect:
* A new approach to the design of a vibratory microtome
* A commercial building design, accepted by the client
* A mathematical theorem regarding NOR-gate circuits
* Design of a linear electron accelerator beam-steering device
There are several tables full of numerical data. Table names include "Application of Solutions Obtains in Experimental Sessions" and "Work Performance Since Session".
My conclusion: Psychedelic substances can be used to enhance creativity - but as always who is using them and how they go about it makes all the difference.
[+] [-] davidtanner|13 years ago|reply
http://www.maps.org/news-letters/v10n3/10318sha.html
Quotes from the above article that I feel are most salient for this discussion of drugs, creativity and problem solving:
"As explained in Shanon (1998b), ayahuasca can also induce very impressive ideations. It is very typical for ayahuasca drinkers to report that the brew makes them think faster and better -- indeed, makes them more intelligent. Several of my informants reported the feeling of potentially being able to know everything; I too had this experience. While, this overall feeling is not objectively provable, my data do reveal some ideations which are truly impressive. Especially let me mention philosophical insights attained by drinkers without prior formal education. Some of these resemble ideas encountered in classical works as those of Plato, Plotinus, Spinoza and Hegel. Significant insights are more likely to be encountered in domains in which drinkers have special competence. Personally, with ayahuasca, I had many insights regarding my professional field of expertise and to which, following further critical scrutiny, I still hold. I have heard the same from other persons."
[+] [-] knarfus|13 years ago|reply
I need a certain amount of confidence to go after a difficult chunk of work that may not really lead anywhere or may turn out to be too big a task to accomplish in the available time.
I need a certain amount of creativity to come up with new avenues to try when I'm stuck on a problem or starting to brainstorm a new project.
And I need a certain amount of concentration to power through a hard coding task (both to tune out distractions and to keep a lot of information in short-term memory).
I have zero experience with hallucinogens, but my understanding is that they can help immensely with creativity but are really lousy for concentration (anyone care to chime in?).
Straight depressants don't really help me with any of the above, although I gather some people get more confident after drinking. I tend to go straight from "pleasantly unwound" to "I really need to get to sleep".
My experience with (legally prescribed) stimulants is that they're really pretty great for confidence and concentration. I also find that being slightly behind on sleep is less of an impediment to coding, and when I get into social settings I'm much more engaged and generally better at interacting with people.
The flip side is that I often can't sleep well, and I can rarely nap, so if I get too far behind I end up clicking around the web like a zombie all day. Paradoxically I'm a lot less interested in socializing, even while I'm better at it. All told I would say it's neutral to negative on creativity.
I'm also not totally comfortable with what effect five, ten, or twenty years of daily use will have, and part of me really wants to maximize the portion of my life spent without taking a pill every day. So it's a mixed bag.
[+] [-] lost-theory|13 years ago|reply