Submission + - Would You Boost Your Own Brain Power?
Hugh Pickens writes: "There are several drugs on the market that improve memory, concentration, planning and reduce impulsive behavior and risky decision-making, and many more are being developed. Doctors already prescribe these drugs to treat cognitive disabilities and improve quality of life for patients with neuropsychiatric disorders and brain injury and cognitive-enhancing drugs are increasingly being used in non-medical situations such as shift work and by active military personnel. Although the appeal of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancers — to help one study longer, work more effectively or better manage everyday stresses — is understandable, potential users, both healthy and diseased, must consider the pros and cons of their choices. Read the story from Nature magazine on the ethical issues raised by the use of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancers and the questions raised on how the use of cognitive enhancers should be regulated in healthy people."