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Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

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Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#131

Post by a-priori »

dejb wrote: post #104

OK if we are talking about anecdotal evidence then how about a colleague of mine who smoked pot every day while doing his PHD. He spent several years doing very little work and then ended up having a major psychotic episode. Without people to support you this sort of thing could entirely derail your life. Fortunately he managed to complete the PHD only after getting off the pot. Having known a number of people who ha…

From Biopsychology by Pinel, J:

"... many people believe that marijuana causes mental illness, in particular, schizophrenia. Several correlational studies have shown that heavy marijuana users are more likely to be subsequently be [sic] diagnosed with schizophrenia... However, there is no way for correlational studies to rule out the possibility that the correlation between heavy marijuana use and schizophrenia occurs because people who are predisposed to develop schizophrenia also tend to use marijuana."

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#132

Post by a-priori »

tyn wrote: post #34

Marijuana actually impairs memory and learning http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn10607

Since we're referencing science articles, I have two:

"... researchers have concluded that neurocognitive changes that can be reasonably attributed to chronic cannabis use are subtle compared, for example, with those seen in neurological illness, and depend on prolonged and quite heavy levels of consumption." (Rogers and Robbins, 2001)

"Some cognitive deficits appear detectable at least 7 days after heavy cannabis use but appear reversible and related to recent cannabis exposure rather than irreversible and related to cumulative lifetime use." (Pope, et al., 2001)

Sources: http://research.lycaeum.org/researchpdfs/2001_rogers_1.pdf http://www.cannatrade.com/pdfdocuments/new/Neuropsychologica...

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#133

Post by a-priori »

ajkirwin wrote: post #93
tyn wrote: post #34

Marijuana actually impairs memory and learning http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn10607

In rats. And nerve cells in a dish. And that's only the neural firing patterns. There isn't any actual proof that this HAS a detrimental effect. Did they give THC to the rats and then ask them to memorize some information, then quiz them later? Hell, do that to a few users of cannabis. Then, perhaps, real results will be forthcoming. Neuroscience is still very new, and a lot of things are ascribed without true unders…

You clearly know little about psychological research techniques if you don't know how they test rats for memory. Ever heard of the term "rat in a maze"?

And, what do you mean by "farce of fMRIs"?

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#134

Post by ph0rque »

edw519 wrote: post #11

Oh you poor baby! You have trouble reading and writing and 'rithmetic, so you need a little chemical help. You pussy. Get out of cocoon, er I mean school, get a real job, get married. have a couple of kids, get a mortgage and a couple of car payments, raise those kids without worrying too much about the evils around them, visit Mom in her nursing home, do things for others in need, and, if you have time, have a nice…

Wow, this is the first arguably "mean" thing I've seen you post, edw519... it seems to have really struck a nerve with you.

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#135

Post by edw519 »

rms wrote: post #109
edw519 wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks Daniel (I think). he just questioned the morality of pot as an aide in student studies No I didn't. I challenged the appropriateness of a #1 hn post from a student who uses drugs to get by and then brags about it. The reaction seems very mob-like. I didn't know what to expect, but this was no surprise. Since "net" scores are the only thing that show, I'm curious how many up votes and down votes there were. Eve…

>I challenged the appropriateness of a #1 hn post from a student who uses drugs to get by and then brags about it. It would have been more meaningful if he was a physics or science PhD. A pot smoking liberal arts PhD is... eh. Not news.

A pot smoking liberal arts PhD is... eh. Not news.

Right. Until some voted it up to #1 here.

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#136

Post by evgen »

pmorici wrote: post #103
evgen wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Tobacco is a local industry. Marijuana is not. You are kidding, right? Marijuana cultivation is one of the largest cash crops in the US (there is some question as to whether or not it is the largest, but there is no disputing the fact that it is in the top five.) > The US was built with the money from Tobacco, not Marijuana. The US was built with money from tobacco, sugar, and slavery. Not really a great mix for us…

"when you see period documents that talk about "hemp"" Good point I read some place that the reason people originally wanted to out law marijuana was in order to make it illegal to grow hemp which was competing with their cotton crop. So really this all just started out as a government enforced monopoly to please some corporate fat cats.

While that theory has some support, I would also suggest that you not discount the synergistic effect of the popular association between marijuana and that "scary" jazz/beatnik scene which probably seemed quite threatening to the dominant culture of the time.

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#137

Post by omouse »

edw519 wrote: post #129
tptacek wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I usually love your comments. It's hard to get through changing diapers and managing toddlerhood and stay sane and sharp, and you have, and, you know, respect, yo. But this right here? Sounds like you just snapped. What do you care if people smoke up in their spare time? Why is it bad if it helps them cope with stress? I'm sure exercise would be better, but doing nothing about stress is probably worse. Agree: whining…

Thank you, tptacek. Sounds like you just snapped. Not at all. This was planned. I won't beat it up, but like I've responded already, I just don't want to see any more about drugs, sex, religion, politics, profanity, and certainly not the stream of conciousness bloggings of liberal arts students. I can get all that at a thousand other places (but I don't). I just didn't think that the usual "not hacker news" would hav…

"I just don't want to see any more about drugs, sex, religion, politics, profanity, and certainly not the stream of conciousness bloggings of liberal arts students. I can get all that at a thousand other places (but I don't). "

Agreed! People seem to forget that there was a previous generation that did some of the things they're doing. It's a bunch of rediscovery and it's boring. Find something new you damned kids (and get off my lawn)!

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#138

Post by tptacek »

edw519 wrote: post #129
tptacek wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I usually love your comments. It's hard to get through changing diapers and managing toddlerhood and stay sane and sharp, and you have, and, you know, respect, yo. But this right here? Sounds like you just snapped. What do you care if people smoke up in their spare time? Why is it bad if it helps them cope with stress? I'm sure exercise would be better, but doing nothing about stress is probably worse. Agree: whining…

Thank you, tptacek. Sounds like you just snapped. Not at all. This was planned. I won't beat it up, but like I've responded already, I just don't want to see any more about drugs, sex, religion, politics, profanity, and certainly not the stream of conciousness bloggings of liberal arts students. I can get all that at a thousand other places (but I don't). I just didn't think that the usual "not hacker news" would hav…

Well, I'm a hacker and juggling the same eggs you are, and what I think is, if leveling out with THC after a sprint is effective, whether or not I think it's a good idea, it qualifies as Hacker News. Burnout is one of the biggest issues in running a tech startup.

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#139

Post by edw519 »

ph0rque wrote: post #134
edw519 wrote: post #11

Oh you poor baby! You have trouble reading and writing and 'rithmetic, so you need a little chemical help. You pussy. Get out of cocoon, er I mean school, get a real job, get married. have a couple of kids, get a mortgage and a couple of car payments, raise those kids without worrying too much about the evils around them, visit Mom in her nursing home, do things for others in need, and, if you have time, have a nice…

Wow, this is the first arguably "mean" thing I've seen you post, edw519... it seems to have really struck a nerve with you.

Not really. But it obviously came across that way. I'm still working on making my prose as readable as my code :-)

Looking back, I can't imagine I would ever talk like that to anyone here, and certainly anyone in person. But since I was responding to a pseudonym from a passing blog, I took a few liberties.

Everyone should be allowed one pass. I guess this one was mine.

Re: Pothead Ph.D. - This is most definitely not a cautionary tale

#140

Post by ajkirwin »

a-priori wrote: post #133
ajkirwin wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In rats. And nerve cells in a dish. And that's only the neural firing patterns. There isn't any actual proof that this HAS a detrimental effect. Did they give THC to the rats and then ask them to memorize some information, then quiz them later? Hell, do that to a few users of cannabis. Then, perhaps, real results will be forthcoming. Neuroscience is still very new, and a lot of things are ascribed without true unders…

You clearly know little about psychological research techniques if you don't know how they test rats for memory. Ever heard of the term "rat in a maze"? And, what do you mean by "farce of fMRIs"?

I meant complex memory, not simply pathing repetition that can be replicated with an EEPROM and a few lines of code.

And by that, I mean, how people are using activity in areas of the brain to say that a person is 'x' or what thinking about 'y'. It's phrenology for a new age.

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