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Asking because I’ve noticed a trend over my years of software that the best developers don’t drink coffee and don’t appear to consume caffeine in any other forms (at least not at work).
Just looking for anecdotes!
Surely there have been studies on the effects of caffeine on the things you list?
Didn't seem to affect me negatively in any area.
The only times when I used caffeine in the past year was when I was sleep deprived(I rarely am now), and in that case modafinil is way more effective.
So I quit entirely for medical reasons. No caffeine + medication has entirely eliminated my physical symptoms of anxiety. I definitely miss it sometimes though, I feel like I am still more groggy in the mornings than I used to be.
What's the point of anecdotes? By definition they're irrelevant to the big picture. Surely there have been studies on the effects of caffeine on the things you list?
but statistics are only part of the story
I felt very relaxed for much of the time, though anxiety never fully left. Much more productive in the late afternoons when I'd normally crash. Probably a bit less productive but not worried about being less productive.
In the end I went back. I guess for the taste and the ritual, but partly I think there is a net productivity gain when one consumes mild caffeine and isn't too anxious in general.
What's the point of anecdotes? By definition they're irrelevant to the big picture. Surely there have been studies on the effects of caffeine on the things you list?
What's the point of anecdotes? By definition they're irrelevant to the big picture. Surely there have been studies on the effects of caffeine on the things you list?
Moreover, specific cases are what studies are based on. And studies are often flawed, wrong, or misleading. You can often learn more from a few honest, specific cases than you can from studies.
People who work in modern academia can attest to the fact that studies aren't reliable in general. Individual studies can can be reliable, but you have to really know the field and sometimes the specific researchers in order to know what's reliable and how to interpret it.
There should be a name for the fallacy that wrongly absolutely rejects specific cases in favor of "statistical data," but I don't know if there is one.