war on drugs

From: Reanimation Lbrary

"The Pentagon hasn’t come close to solving the PTSD [Post-traumatic stress disorder] crisis plaguing the current generation of troops. And the top brass looks like it’s ready to try anything — like a major push into a cutting-edge, controversial realm of treatment. One that’d see military personnel popping a pill to wipe away the fear they associate with traumatic memories. [...]
     Of course, the idea of using drugs to tweak memories isn’t without controversy: An online debate flared last year among two camps of neurologists and neuroethicists, arguing over whether the existence of such drugs would 'alter something that makes us all human,' or open a Pandora’s Box of illicit use 'by people doing things they’d like to forget themselves, or that they would like others to forget.'”
— Katie Drummond, Wired
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"The field of memory-altering drugs has been marching forward for years, and we’ve seen several recent developments that can change our recollection of fear or trauma. In one example, rats given a brain injection had their fears extinguished; in another, researchers recently learned that a drug that suppresses stress hormones can interfere with the formation of negative memories.
     These types of drugs would have several uses, like helping military personnel overcome post-traumatic stress syndrome and return home to lead healthy lives; helping crime victims rehabilitate; and treating psychological disorders that might stem from some type of childhood trauma.
     But many ethicists argue these kinds of drugs should not be developed. People have memories for a reason, and changing or erasing them alters something that makes us all human. Not to mention that a tool that can erase memories could easily be abused by people doing things they’d like to forget themselves, or that they would like others to forget."
— Rebecca Boyle, Popsci
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"It would be hard to imagine improving on the intelligence of computer engineer Bjoern Stenger, a doctoral candidate at Cambridge University. Yet for several hours, a pill seemed to make him even brainier.
     Participating in a research project, Stenger downed a green gelatin cap containing a drug called modafinil. Within an hour, his attention sharpened. So did his memory. He aced a series of mental-agility tests. If his brainpower would normally rate a 10, the drug raised it to 15, he said.
     'I was quite focused,' said Stenger. 'It was also kind of fun.'
     The age of smart drugs is dawning. Modafinil is just one in an array of brain-boosting medications — some already on pharmacy shelves and others in development — that promise an era of sharper thinking through chemistry.
     These drugs may change the way we think. And by doing so, they may change who we are."
— Melissa Healy. LA Times
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