Drug heads

DRUG HEADS: While sports fans debate the use of performance-enhancing drugs by athletes, academics have debated the use of drugs to enhance intellectual performance. Two Cambridge University researchers reported that about a dozen of their colleagues admit to using Adderall, a stimulant, and Provigil, which enhances wakefulness.

Surveys of college students show that from 4 to 16 percent use stimulants or other drugs to improve their academic performance. Some argue that this development will lead to new standards about what is normal performance, widen the gap between those with access to drugs and those without, and undermine character development. Others claire that it is wrong to compare use of performance-enhancing drugs in academia and sports, since in academia the main point isn't competition but the acquisition of knowledge--which seems to imply that the end justifies the means (New York Times, March 9):

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