Smarts in a Bottle: UK Government Evaluates Cognition Enhancers

Faced with a new generation of drugs that promise to make people smarter and perhaps more industrious, the UK government has asked experts to evaluate the scientific basis and potential social impacts of so-called "cognition enhancers."

The Academy of Medical Sciences expert group has held workshops across Britain to find out the public's views.

It found some real concerns - quite apart from the long-term adverse health impact - these drugs could have.

One woman commented: "If, in the future, there are cognition tablets for exams and I wasn't happy for my children to take them, would I be disadvantaging them against those children that actually take them?"

Another comment was: "Who knows where we are going? In the future do you want one of those dictatorial type states where we have to take drugs to get better and faster to work longer hours?

Some interesting stateside reading on this topic can be found in the "Superior Performance" chapter of Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness, published in 2003 by the President's Council on Bioethics.

Question for readers: does anyone out there have experience with cognition enhancers, especially modafinil -- using them, choosing not to, and so on? What do all of you think about these drugs? Comment away.
Drugs may boost your brain power [BBC]

Image: Andrew Mason