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New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

worldchess.com

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Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#71

Post by dududu »

yarou wrote: post #36

Anecdotally, Modafinil improved the functioning of the right hemisphere of my brain. I noticed this type of enhancement with Phenibut as well, my "emotional intelligence" was increased by one or two orders of magnitude. On the other hand, Adderall increased my raw intelligence by several orders of magnitude. I strongly believe that amphetamines should be decriminalized and unscheduled, as they are the only class of p…

I don't think you know what several orders of magnitude means. Did you have an IQ of 10 and then got to 100 or 1000? Anyway, this aside, the feeling that you are few times smarter is there, like I say, it's a high ( which, btw, like any dopamine pumping thing, means your next high needs Moar and moar) . The reality is that you are a bit smarter, not few times more, and you work much more.

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#72

Post by yial »

zw123456 wrote: post #69

I actually did a test myself with pot a while back, also playing against a computer, my thinking there was that it would provide the most consistent opponent skill level. I tried varying amounts. I saw a fairly significant improvement with small doses, less than what someone would use for entertainment purposes, an amount just before what could be called a high. I think it may increase concentration at the right dosa…

Anecdotal: I used to play chess frequently against a friend, who smoked pot pretty regularly. When he was sober, I usually would win. When he was starting to get high, he would usually win. When he was fully not sober, we would usually tie.

I do not smoke, so I was always sober during these games.

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#73

Post by yarou »

gwern wrote: post #59

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hbt04gej3syoygz/2017-franke.pdf?dl...

I found this to be a bit counterintuitive:

"We conclude that in sum, the present study shows that pharmacological modification of complex cognitive performance in a highly demanding task is possible most likely by modifying decision making processes. More reflective decision making may enhance performance when no time limit for the task at hand is present but may have (emphasis mine) disadvantageous effects under time constraints especially in individuals who tend to be rather slow thinkers."

Doesn't that mean stimulants are effectively useless for someone who tends to be a "slow thinker"? I would expect that stimulants would speed up the underlying decision making processes of a slow thinker, especially during times of stress/limited time constraints.

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#75

Post by mistercow »

John23832 wrote: post #22
mistercow wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That would be a huge step in the right direction. I actually think we should do the same thing for athletic competitions.

I get what you're saying, but people would still use performance enhancers in the "clean" classes. People cheat for the sake of winning.

Probably, but that's not the problem we're trying to solve. I don't care about the clean division, but it's fine that some people do. If you add a "doping" allowed division, the clean division is no worse off than it is now. It might be better, or it might not. But that's a secondary goal if anything.

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#76

Post by aantix »

zython wrote: post #48
aantix wrote: post #13

I've been taking 400mg of Magnesium Glycinate two times a day along with 200mg of Theanine (also twice a day) with my usual two cups of coffee. I feel fantastically focused without the jittery edge that accompanies caffeine alone.

How did you hear about these substances and what conviced you to swallow 4(!) pills a day with our national drug caffeine ?

Pretty sure that I initially heard about them through Tim Ferriss's podcast with Charles Poliquin (a world renown strength coach). He talked about them when outlining his sleep routine.

http://tim.blog/2016/11/06/charles-poliquin-mass-building-pr...

(you will sleep like a rock with a large dose of Magnesium Glycinate, especially if you've been deficient for a while (most coffee/soda/alcohol drinkers are))

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#77

Post by tempestn »

zw123456 wrote: post #69

I actually did a test myself with pot a while back, also playing against a computer, my thinking there was that it would provide the most consistent opponent skill level. I tried varying amounts. I saw a fairly significant improvement with small doses, less than what someone would use for entertainment purposes, an amount just before what could be called a high. I think it may increase concentration at the right dosa…

Is it possible the advantage was related to something like creativity or insight?

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#78

Post by yarou »

dududu wrote: post #71
yarou wrote: post #36

Anecdotally, Modafinil improved the functioning of the right hemisphere of my brain. I noticed this type of enhancement with Phenibut as well, my "emotional intelligence" was increased by one or two orders of magnitude. On the other hand, Adderall increased my raw intelligence by several orders of magnitude. I strongly believe that amphetamines should be decriminalized and unscheduled, as they are the only class of p…

I don't think you know what several orders of magnitude means. Did you have an IQ of 10 and then got to 100 or 1000? Anyway, this aside, the feeling that you are few times smarter is there, like I say, it's a high ( which, btw, like any dopamine pumping thing, means your next high needs Moar and moar) . The reality is that you are a bit smarter, not few times more, and you work much more.

I didn't mean orders of magnitude in the literal sense, otherwise I would have included my IQ.

Judging from the fact that you created your account recently and your first post ever is negative about Adderall suggests to me that you have an agenda.

I'm sorry Adderall fucked up your life bro, but spreading FUD about it does everyone a disservice, especially for those who want to get into cognitive enhancement.

Re: New Study Finds Performance-Enhancing Drugs for Chess

#79

Post by ASpring »

WhitneyLand wrote: post #74

How do they know it's not due to confidence boost? These drugs can make you feel "good" and confident, which all top competitors spend a lot of time trying to build up.

The mechanism doesn't really matter. Perhaps these drugs simply do make people feel good and consequently they perform better. In the end it still increases their performance on these tasks.
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