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Hacking the Brain

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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Re: Hacking the Brain

#91

Post by LeftHandPath »

dr_dshiv wrote: post #12
Medicalidiot wrote: post #10

I'm skeptical of IQ enhancing drugs ever coming about. Intelligence is so complex even the actual definition is a controversial topic. So far we can show that intelligent enhancement can be predicated on exercise, outside of that there are temporary drugs (e.g. coffee) that "boost" intelligence but in actuality boost attention.

"In the first test, conducted in Northern California in the late 1960s, a researcher named Calvin Edlund selected 79 children between the ages of 5 and 7, all from “low-middle class and lower-class homes.” The children were randomly divided into an experimental group and a control group. First, they all took a standard version of the Stanford-Binet IQ test. Seven weeks later, they took a similar test, but this time t…

We're all going to be fucked, when it comes to employment in twenty years, then.

Forget the M&M's. Video games are a skinner box on steroids. Kids are going to learn fast.

Edit: I may have missed the point -- it looks like motivation improves performance, not necessarily actual "cognitive ability", if we can quantify that.

Re: Hacking the Brain

#93

Post by BurningFrog »

heyoni wrote: post #73
dr_dshiv wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Improving executive function using transcranial infrared laser stimulation (2015) Abstract Transcranial infrared laser stimulation is a new non‐invasive form of low‐level light therapy that may have a wide range of neuropsychological applications. It entails using low‐power and high‐energy‐density infrared light from lasers to increase metabolic energy. Preclinical work showed that this intervention can increase cort…

I asked this elsewhere but I’ll ask again here: how is this any different from just going outside?

Not everyone lives in a sunny tropical paradise.

Re: Hacking the Brain

#94

Post by quickthrower2 »

perl4ever wrote: post #62
manmal wrote: post #16

I haven’t found near infrared radiation referenced in the article - I‘m using near infrared as a brain hack, by shining a cheap 850nm LED light on my forehead. This has, over the last 2 years, enabled me to code for weeks on end, for 12+ hours a day, with only minor cognitive decline. It’s not something I really want to do, but sometimes it’s useful. Before I started the near infrared routine (~5 minutes every other…

It's a shame the wavelength needed is so specific, or you could use a garden variety remote control...

Just use an all in one remote and set it to a Toshiba L9300 Series

Re: Hacking the Brain

#96

Post by arandr0x »

throwawawathrow wrote: post #8

It really takes a special kind of mind to take something originally intended to be fun, subversive and/or spiritual (recreational drugs) that's existed for decades or even centuries, and turn it into yet another tool to boost your React productivity by 12.3% on Friday evenings, under the new brand of 'enhancement' or 'hacking'. Because to what other end would that 'performance' boost be put to use?

I was about to write a negative, sarcastic comment agreeing with you but (despite being absolutely sober) was suddenly filled with acceptance and understanding for my fellow humans and decided against it.

Dear HN, this person's got it. Hacker ethic is about finding the hidden ways in things, it's about not letting the world tell you what to do, it's definitely not about playing monkey tricks for money treats. Also, being a hacker is about fun. Fun, interestingly, is like, what happens when you don't have to force/trick/"hack" yourself into doing something. It's pretty great. If you're forgoing it for more volume of code then, maybe consider talking to someone about your goals and fears? Introspection and the ears of well-meaning people can do wonders for productivity, since nothing will let you do things quite like doing the right thing.

Re: Hacking the Brain

#97

Post by sitkack »

iikoolpp wrote: post #24
manmal wrote: post #16

I haven’t found near infrared radiation referenced in the article - I‘m using near infrared as a brain hack, by shining a cheap 850nm LED light on my forehead. This has, over the last 2 years, enabled me to code for weeks on end, for 12+ hours a day, with only minor cognitive decline. It’s not something I really want to do, but sometimes it’s useful. Before I started the near infrared routine (~5 minutes every other…

This is the funniest post I've ever read on this website Either it's entirely the placebo effect, or it somehow actually does something and you're cooking your brain to wage slave even harder

Placebo or not, I have turned the post into a business plan and have just submitted what I think will be an award winning pitch to YCombinator.

Re: Hacking the Brain

#99

Post by AdieuToLogic »

manmal wrote: post #16

I haven’t found near infrared radiation referenced in the article - I‘m using near infrared as a brain hack, by shining a cheap 850nm LED light on my forehead. This has, over the last 2 years, enabled me to code for weeks on end, for 12+ hours a day, with only minor cognitive decline. It’s not something I really want to do, but sometimes it’s useful. Before I started the near infrared routine (~5 minutes every other…

> Sidenote: 850nm light works way better for me than 830nm.

You might want to check out 1064nm laser stimulation as well (instead?), based on the research done in "Transcranial laser stimulation improves human cerebral oxygenation"[0].

0 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5066697/

Re: Hacking the Brain

#100

Post by manmal »

anonytrary wrote: post #84
iikoolpp wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the funniest post I've ever read on this website Either it's entirely the placebo effect, or it somehow actually does something and you're cooking your brain to wage slave even harder

I honestly couldn't tell if the comment was just really good satire. It sounds like something right out of a dystopian anthology series.

It was not. Do look it up, good keywords are "lllt", "photobiomodulation", "cytochrome c oxidase".
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