Yeah, sometimes I coded after a few beers and I felt smarter. Next morning the disappointment came :)
Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
11–20 of 22 posts
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#12What kind of problems have you tried to solve while high? I, personally, prefer to have a clear mind when approaching things that require a heavy cognitive load, but that's just me.
Well, as I said, I didn't really have had any problems yet that I wasn't able to solve sober. But I definitely did experience a shift in the understanding for complex topics, an improvement in the ability to visualize abstract subjects and creativity in general. If you are very focused on something and really willing to solve a problem it can even give you a better inner clarity. By the way: We are talking low/modera…
Sure, can you give examples of those complex topics?
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#13For me psilocybin is too much of an emotional experience to focus on any abstract problems. I could imagine using cannabis for problem solving — it allows for concentration and focus.
Yeah, that actually really works. It depends of the kind of weed and of course the amount.
The problem is you can get to easy to focused on smaller tasks that are not really important.
I coded this while I was pretty high. https://github.com/entropie/rmp/blob/master/rmp.rb
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#14While I have never tried psychedelics or anything close to it, this episode of Tim Ferriss' podcast seems to cover this subject extensively, with some discussions on problem solving and creativity.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#15For me psilocybin is too much of an emotional experience to focus on any abstract problems. I could imagine using cannabis for problem solving — it allows for concentration and focus.
Yeah, that actually really works. It depends of the kind of weed and of course the amount. The problem is you can get to easy to focused on smaller tasks that are not really important. I coded this while I was pretty high. https://github.com/entropie/rmp/blob/master/rmp.rb
I don't have much time for my self, so my sessions have to be carefully planned — and I think planning helps not getting distracted with minutiae. The times I have been drawing high were well planned, and very productive.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#16a nameless colleague once claimed all his most critical code was written while high on LSD. A self-taught physicist turned programmer who first learned Pascal, his C files included a header file that #define(d) "Begin" as "{" and "End" as "}".
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#17In my experience the by far best state to do any sort of work is being sober, clear minded, and in the zone. What psychedelics help with is expanding perspectives, looking at things from a different angle, getting the big picture, semantically over-exaggerating problematic details like a microscope, breaking away barriers, and shuffling things up.
When done responsibly, with enough processing and digestion after a psychedelic experience, this can lead to trying new approaches, which, combined with hard work over long periods of time, can indeed lead to extraordinary results.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#18Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, as I said, I didn't really have had any problems yet that I wasn't able to solve sober. But I definitely did experience a shift in the understanding for complex topics, an improvement in the ability to visualize abstract subjects and creativity in general. If you are very focused on something and really willing to solve a problem it can even give you a better inner clarity. By the way: We are talking low/modera…
Sure, can you give examples of those complex topics?
* Better understanding of concepts like four-dimensional space or spacetime
* Innovative ideas when designing interfaces
* Easier visualisation of tiny/huge scales (time and space - cosmology/biology/physics)
* Deeper understanding of art/music/literature/philosophy
* Being able to look at things from a more neutral perspective and thus better seeing changes that occur over a long period of time or that I'm very closely involved with (society/nature/politics/health)
Those are not your typical complex problems that we're looking for here but for me it still feels as if there could lie some potential. In my case it seems to come down to helping with creativity and the ability to visualize in a more detailed and at the same time neutral way.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#19In my experience the by far best state to do any sort of work is being sober, clear minded, and in the zone. What psychedelics help with is expanding perspectives, looking at things from a different angle, getting the big picture, semantically over-exaggerating problematic details like a microscope, breaking away barriers, and shuffling things up. When done responsibly, with enough processing and digestion after a ps…
Nicely summarized, thanks!
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever tried certain psychedelics to solve complex problems?
#20As a data point on the topic, Kery Mullis, who won the Nobel Prize for PCR, claimed that LSD was a source of inspiration for that work.