A snippet:
While only a fifth of the poll’s 1,400 respondents admitted to drug use to improve concentration, nearly two-thirds said they knew of a colleague who did. And if there were “a normal risk of mild side effects,” nearly 70% of the scientists said they’d boost their brain power by taking a “cognitive-enhancing drug.”
Scientists from all over the world participated in the poll, but 70% of respondents said they were from the U.S.
The most popular drug was Ritalin, used by 62% of responders. Provigil was the drug of choice for 44% of those polled—suggesting that many of the users take more than one drug. Beta-blockers, such as Inderal, accounted for 15% of the drug use.
Most respondents said they took the drugs to improve concentration or to improve focus for a specific task. Counteracting jet lag was also a popular reason for drug use.
One alarming poll finding was how often respondents used brain-boosting drugs. It was an even split, with about 25% of users saying they took the drugs daily, weekly, monthly, or once a year at most.
When asked how big an effect the drugs had on their mental function, most users gave them a 3 or 4 on a 5-point scale with 1 being “mild” and 5 being “large.” On the other hand, more than half of the users said the drugs had side effects they did not like.
“nearly two-thirds said they knew of a colleague who did.” Sure, I don’t use drugs, but I have a friend…
