Showing only Notes & Links tagged adaptation on art, design, creativity and, technology by Casey A. Gollan

Maybe it’s wrong-footed trying to fit people into the world, rather than trying to make the world a better place for people.

I often wonder about the medical treatments we’ve come to rely on for the treatment of ADHD. Ritalin (aka methylphenidate) is a potent, psychoactive drug. We prescribed it to millions of kids with little knowledge of the long-term consequences. While I know Ritalin can be effective - I’ve seen it perform wonders on my elementary school friends, not to mention all the undergraduates who juiced their attention with crushed pills - there are many uncertainties concerning its long-term application. A new PNAS paper by scientists at the National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA) makes this clear.

It’s worth noting, though, that previous studies found no link between stimulant treatment for ADHD and drug abuse. The takeaway from this latest study is NOT that Ritalin is just a fancy brand of cocaine, …it’s that we really don’t know how stimulants like Ritalin influence fundamental pathways in the brain.