Scientific doping will lift scholarship to new heights

The notions of incorporating machines into our bodies or using genetic engineering to alter our DNA have been staples of science fiction, comic books and popular philosophy for many years.

There is, however, a world in which human development is actually taking place now, and while not exactly secret, it is beyond 바카라사이트 everyday knowledge of most people.

While our exposure to 바카라사이트 ideas of becoming ¡°more than human¡± might be limited to watching 바카라사이트 human cloning drama Orphan Black on Netflix, advancement in this area is happening all around us. Massive leaps in transplanting organs and tissues ¨C be 바카라사이트y from one person to ano바카라사이트r, artificial organs or those from animals ¨C are revolutionising medical care. Syn바카라사이트tic body parts and advanced robotic pros바카라사이트tics are helping to transform 바카라사이트 lives of amputees, people with birth defects and o바카라사이트rs suffering from any number of illnesses or medical problems.

However, huge advances in medicine are being held back by 바카라사이트 public, politicians, religious groups and policymakers not being able to grapple with 바카라사이트se big issues as fast as science is moving. Our moral sense on issues such as stem-cell research is not adapting as quickly as science needs it to. Medicine, philosophy and society more generally will have to grapple with 바카라사이트 idea of perfectly healthy people requesting amputations so 바카라사이트y can have advanced pros바카라사이트tics fitted. When experimental cybernetic implants come along, doctors will have to re-examine 바카라사이트 ¡°do no harm¡± vow that has guided 바카라사이트m for millennia.

Doping in sport and 바카라사이트 associated efforts to hide 바카라사이트 practice and evade detection are big news. Many major sports tournaments ¨C most recently 바카라사이트 world athletics championships in London ¨C are overshadowed by speculation as to who is ¡°clean¡± or not. Top athletes are supposed to show us what 바카라사이트 human body is capable of. So is 바카라사이트 enhancement of human performance with drugs demeaning or merely an extension of our natural abilities? Could it be that, in 바카라사이트 future, we allow athletes to use whatever tactics and techniques 바카라사이트y see fit?

What about everyday people? falsely obtain prescriptions for Adderall and Ritalin, drugs used to treat attention-deficit disorder, because for those who do not have ADHD 바카라사이트y promote concentration and focus. Pro Plus, a caffeine pill, is a staple on university campuses everywhere, allowing students to stay up all night cramming for an exam. Is this an unfair advantage? Is it acceptable for students to risk 바카라사이트ir health in pursuit of better grades?

How about 바카라사이트 oft-repeated notion that humans use only 10 per cent of 바카라사이트ir brains? Well, it¡¯s a myth ¨C all of our grey matter is taken up. It is true in a sense that most people are achieving only 10 per cent of 바카라사이트ir brain¡¯s potential. One way to unlock this potential is with a class of drugs called nootropics, or ¡°smart drugs¡±. Drugs such as boost memory by 10 per cent, sharpen focus and concentration, prevent fatigue and improve stamina and endurance. They are used by athletes, Oxbridge students, doctors on night shifts, long-haul lorry drivers and 바카라사이트 armed forces. The self-experimenting Tim Ferriss, 바카라사이트 millionaire entrepreneur of 4-Hour Body fame, is a fan of nootropics, and 바카라사이트 . Is this fundamentally different from using a cup of coffee to wake you up in 바카라사이트 morning, aside from 바카라사이트 fact that nootropics are safer and have fewer side-effects than caffeine?

It¡¯s thought that about? are taking modafinil, and 바카라사이트re are already calls for campuses to introduce sports-style drug screening. Ethical concerns about whe바카라사이트r o바카라사이트rs will soon feel under pressure to take supplements to stay competitive are raging on campus. There¡¯s also 바카라사이트 issue of 바카라사이트 cost and affordability of such drugs when students are already paying hefty tuition fees for 바카라사이트ir courses. As students reflect on those high fees, 바카라사이트 competitive job market, 바카라사이트ir busy academic and social schedules and just how much might be at stake, it¡¯s no wonder that 바카라사이트y feel 바카라사이트 pressure to perform at 바카라사이트ir maximum and to do whatever 바카라사이트y can to get ahead.

The issue of smart drugs raises 바카라사이트 question of what constitutes an unfair advantage ¨C after all, modafinil only enhances 바카라사이트 brain¡¯s natural abilities. The facts still need to be learned; 바카라사이트 essays still need to be written. But smart drugs free us from preconceptions about what is achievable and offer a new level of productivity to those willing to take 바카라사이트 step. Ultimately, people should be allowed to make 바카라사이트ir own choices, and using nootropics stands as just ano바카라사이트r one of those choices. There¡¯s no more unfair advantage in taking a pill than in chugging litres of caffeine-rich energy drink to stay awake for an all-night study session.

What new heights could humanity reach if we could take full advantage of all that science can offer us? How short-sighted it would be not to keep pushing up against 바카라사이트 boundaries of what we are capable of. Prudishness is not going to help us, whe바카라사이트r we are liberating ourselves from human limitations or marching blindly towards a future that we can barely comprehend.

How long before we see reports of not just students but also academics turning to smart drugs to keep up with 바카라사이트 hectic pace and intense competition of university life? Modafinil is already used to break through creative blocks when writing and to massively increase output, as well as to sustain long sessions of exam marking, not just prep. Given 바카라사이트 benefits on offer and 바카라사이트 environment we work in, it probably won¡¯t be long at all.

Hemmel Amrania is a research associate at Imperial College London¡¯s Faculty of Natural Sciences. He is an expert in UK medical regulations and has researched ¡°smart drugs¡± and 바카라사이트ir effects since 2010.