textfiles/drugs/smartdrg.2

        Article from "Whole Earth Review"  No.57 Winter 1987

           MAY YOU NEVER SLEEP - Cognition Enhancing Drugs

                          by R.U. Sirius


INTELLIGENCE INCREASING DRUGS might be labeled "Cognitive Enhancers,"
"Memory Enhancers," or, in some cases, "Psychic Energizers." What many of
these drugs and nutrients have in common is that they produce effects
similar to effects people are seeking from popular stimulants such as
caffeine, amphetamines and cocaine. These popular drugs temporarily enhance
cognition and memory, and amp up the user's energy levels only to leave the
user depleted. Cocaine and amphetamines might properly be labeled as
short-term intelligence-increase drugs and long-term intelligence-decrease
drugs.

However, the drugs and nutrients discussed in this review are all believed
to create long term improvements in memory and cognition. Some of them also
provide the short-term high-energy states associated with the stimulant
drugs. Also, there is virtually no tendency towards the kind of weirdness
and darkness of the spirit which so often accompanies even the occasional
speed or cocaine high. It seems that while the illicit stimulants cause
short-term release, but long-term depletion of norepinephrin, many of the
memory-enhancing drugs and nutrients work on the noradrenergic nervous
system in a different way, apparently modulating nerve cell control
mechanisms so that the cellular response is neither too great nor too
little. This is a gross oversimplification. More precise information on each
of these cognitive enhancers is easily available to the serious researcher.
Accurate and concise information for the layperson is easily available
through the popular written works of Durk Pearson and Sandy Shaw who,
whatever one might think of their bucket-of-pills-a-day personal
regimen, do
carefully monitor all of the research in this field.

This survey deals primarily with the short-term experiential effects of
these compounds, since I only have the experience of a relative and
imprecise ongoing use of one drug, Pemoline, and no scientific proof of any
intelligence increase on my part. Besides, a three-hour play can be
realistically reviewed. Reviewing a life is a somewhat more dubious
prospect.

In consideration of all this, I hereby present a review of
intelligence-increasing drugs.  May you never sleep.
 

VASOPRESSIN - Definitely the most euphoric of the memory-enhancing
 intelligence-increase drugs outside of the one being called "Euphoria" (more
 on Euphoria later), Vasopressin is marketed as Diapid, a prescription drug
 made by our old friends Sandoz. It can also be ordered as Vasopressin
 through chemical supply houses by those who know the ropes. I had five
 squirts of Vasopressin out of a nasal inhaler. I was surprised by how strong
 the effects were. I had that charged-up hyperconfident rush that one
 experiences with cocaine, but combined with much clearer ideation and
 without the numbing and discomfort or the strange and disquieting hard edges
 which often accompany even the more euphoric coke highs. It didn't last very
 long, about two hours, most of which unfortunately spent riding the BART and
 walking.  By the time I got home, the experience had pretty well dissipated.
 I did not have an opportunity to experience Vasopressin as a work/writing
 drug. It was clear, however, simply from reading (I was reading "Gravity's
 Rainbow" at the time and I consider that a fairly challenging test of
 comprehension) on the BART ride home, that Vasopressin is an excellent tool
 for rapid learning and comprehension of complex systems of thought.

 The only other time I had Vasopressin, it was in the form of Diapid. I had
 only two squirts at a party late at night on top of fairly substantial
 amounts of marijuana and alcohol. It didn't noticeably cut through the
 depressant effects of those drugs. However, I did experience an intensified
 and prolonged orgasm!

HYDERGINE - The invention of one Dr. Albert Hoffmann of Sandoz Laboratories.
 I know of many people who got their hands on buckets of this stuff and I
 know of nobody who continues to take it. The effects are said to be
 cumulative rather than immediate and everybody seems to lose interest. "I
 forgot to take my Hydergine" is a term which one often hears from chagrined
 "intelligence agents," fully cognizant (even without Hydergine) of the
 ironies involved. This probably says more about the people that I hang out
 with than about Hydergine as an intelligence increase agent.

 Incidentally, Dr. Hoffmann told a friend of mine that one can get exactly
 the same effects one gets from daily megadoses of Hydergine by using 25
 micrograms of LSD daily. I have not experimented with subthreshold acid as
 an IQ substance, so I cannot comment.

LECITHIN, CHOLINE with INOSITOL, PHENYLALANINE (with VITAMIN C and B6) -
 While perhaps less intriguing and glamorous to technophilic reality hackers,
 most of these easily available cognitive enhancers have a substantially
 perceptible effect. LECITHIN seems to be the exception. Even at "Durk and
 Sandy" dosage levels there was no noticeable enhancement of focus, recall,
 etc. CHOLINE and INOSITOL, at about three grams each, produce mild but
 definite results with no discomfort and can be used daily. I did this once
 for about a month and found myself losing my sense of humor. However, if
 you're already humorless you might just as well give this a go.
 PHENYLALANINE is quite speedy. While it can be used for creativity and
 focus, it tends to make one irritable. For emergency use only.

DEANER - This is getting really popular with the "health food set."
 Experientially, the effect is very subtle but noticeable. I've tried this a
 few times and what I've found is that if I already have a task to do, I will
 do it and, in retrospect, I will realize that I sustained my attention for
 an unusually long time without flagging or needing a break. However, if I
 use this (as I often do with other cognitive enhancers) without a precise
 sense of what the task at hand is, it doesn't clarify and help to motivate
 activity. This is an important point. Drugs such as Vasopressin, Pemoline,
 Euphoria and THA can actually cut through confusion and ennui and help
 invoke will. My guess is that most of these substances also work, to varying
 degrees, on the pleasure centers of the brain, provoking one's natural 'joie
 di vivre' and thereby provoking enthusiasm for creative and organizational
 activities.

PEMOLINE (usually combined with Magnesium) - The information most frequently
 passed around in reference to MAGNESIUM PEMOLINE was published by the Church
 of the Tree of Life some years ago in their publication "Bark Leaf". It
 recommends taking "Mag-Pem" at 50-100 mgs. every day for two months in order
 to substantially increase your I.Q.  OUCH! This program is a sure ticket to
 severe headaches and extreme nervousness. However, in the 20-30 milligram
 range, I've found that this can be used twice weekly with excellent results.
 The lift is very substantial and noticeable. I, and several of my friends,
 find it particularly good for writing, both creative and functional. For
 rapid-fire associations and grand synthesis just combine it with moderate
 amounts of Cannabis (Sativa, if possible). It lasts about twelve hours,
 coming on slowly and having its greatest effect at around the fifth through
 the tenth hours. Clarity and verbal acuity are the strong points here. At
 times, the sheer mass of information, new thoughts and connections can
 overwhelm and put one into a rather confused state, particularly if one is
 not applying oneself to something. When this occurs I find that I can slow
 down my thoughts to a point where there is coherence simply by verbalizing
 them or writing them down. Unlike its close cousin "EUPHORIA," Pemoline is
 emotionally bland. It is not a pleasure drug. WARNING: from my observations,
 approximately one in every ten people get nothin' but headaches from even
 small doses of Pemoline.

EUPHORIA - Well, someone took Pemoline, twisted it around a little bit and
 put a whole lot of pleasure into the equation. This might be a Dangerous
 drug! There are lot of different things that seem to happen with Euphoria.
 The first time I took it (40 milligrams - I've learned since that 25 mg. is
 considered your basic dose) I got really charged up. This is definitely a
 High and it comes on suddenly (about 45 minutes after ingestion). My first
 response upon coming on to it was an experience of an intense rush of
 perceived personal power. I found myself goosestepping down the busy Berkeley
 streets thinking about how good I felt, how successful I was destined to be,
 and knowing that the world was my oyster. After about 15 minutes of this as
 I found myself leaping down the BART escalator, I had to tell myself to slow
 down for fear that I would be completely drained later on. Although I didn't
 really slow down at all during this experience, I did bring myself into a
 somewhat more humane mindset and I spent the subway ride having an almost
 methoxylated amphetamine (MDMA, MDA, etc.)-type ideations. In other words, I
 wasn't just feeling good about myself, I was feeling good about most
 everybody else. The world was everybody's oyster.

 Arriving at my office, I immediately found myself doing organizational work
 at about three times the normal rate with far more self-assurance and fewer
 mistakes than usual. Simultaneously, I was entertaining perspectives on the
 nature of my true will and making important phonecalls which I had put off
 for some time. I did about thirty hours worth of work in about ten hours. I
 literally could not stop. I tried to make myself take a break for about ten
 minutes. Within a minute, I found my hand going into a drawer to pull out
 another file which needed reorganizing. Believe me, this is very unusual
 behavior. I hate organizational work.

 This all might sound like the first blushes of an amphetamine high, but
 he emotional overtones and the mentation under this substance is of a softer
 and more inwardly whole (less alienated) quality. As I've already indicated,
 the Euphoria high seems to have a slight methoxylated amphetamine quality to
 it. All in all, this was a very powerful experiencing of clarity,
 self-assurance and cognitive ability. The following day, I experienced the
 same sort of effects at about one-third the intensity. There was no burnout
 at all in aftermath.

 Subsequent experiments have shown Euphoria to be predictable as an effective
 tool for organizing binges, brainstorming sessions and radio talk-show
 appearances. It also seems to induce ongoing personal growth in terms of
 clarity of personal will. (I've received three other testimonies in this
 same direction.) As a writing tool, I've found Euphoria to be variable. It
 seems that verbal acuity comes on strong but the verbal circuits burn out
 quickly from intensity of use and one has to move on to less verbally
 oriented tasks. In other words, this is generally good for creative flashes
 and outlining grand syntheses but not too good for actual completion of
 written work. It gives one an impatience for minutiae and the kind of
 careful faceting that it takes to bring a work to completion.  In terms of
 appreciation and comprehension of aesthetics and information, this seems the
 opposite of its close cousin Pemoline. The accessing mode favored is
 visual. One wants to explore a painting or photograph or watch a movie
 rather than read a book.

 My only complaint about Euphoria is that it lasts 16 hours, which feels
 about 4 hours too long. In two of my five experiences, the last four hours
 were spent feeling slightly "headachy" and weary, although there was still
 no burnout following sleep. I would say, at this point, that Euphoria should
 not be used more often than once a week since it is so powerful and so much
 energy is expended in the experience. This is easily the most Fun of the
 intelligence increasers and, as such, is probably the most likely to be
 abused.

PRL-8-53 - Untried by your reviewer at this time. However, Durk Pearson is
 quoted in 'High Frontiers' as saying that "PRL-8-53 is a terrific memory
 enhancer. Normally you can memorize about seven or eight digits just by
 looking at them for a second. PRL-8-53 gives the average person a memory
 span of about 21 to 22 digits." He also reported that one amnesia victim was
 cured with one dose.

THA - Untried by your reviewer at this time. Again, Durk Pearson, this time
 in 'High Frontiers/Reality Hackers Newsletter:' "In combination with
 arecoline, THA has been found to be remarkably effective as a memory
 improver ... it's important that the dosage be individualized ... too much
 will actually impair memory and produce sweating, excessive muscle tone and
 mouth-watering." The standard dosage is "1 to 2 mg." however, Durk
 recommends that you start with a quarter of that every two to four hours and
 work up - if you get those side effects, back off.

===========================================

Letter to the Editor in response to the R.U.Sirius article above.

From the Summer 1988 issue of "Whole Earth Review"

                            ---

IF THESE DRUGS HAD BOTTLES, HERE'S WHAT THE WARNING LABELS WOULD SAY

I have been a big fan of your magazine for many years now, and I am a firm
believer in the principle that the free exchange of information is a
necessity to the survival and progress of our species. I commend you for
your efforts in this area.

Unfortunately, when it comes to psychopharmacology the old saying, that a
little knowledge is far more dangerous than none at all, is quite often
true. Specifically I am referring to the article of winter '87 on page 56,
"Cognitive Enhancers." I am not upset that you would print this sort of
information; there is both interesting and important research going on in
this field right now. What I object to is the uncritical, inaccurate, and
incomplete information given in an area that has Serious implications on
your reader's health. Here are some errata and addenda for that article,
most of this information is available in the "Physician's Desk Reference"
and the "Merck Index".

VASOPRESSIN - It is a naturally occurring peptide that can cause a wide
 variety of effects beyond those mentioned in the article. It strains the
 heart by reducing the heart's food and oxygen supply and increasing the
 heart's workload by increasing blood pressure. In individuals with hidden or
 overt heart problems, this can mean a heart attack. In addition vasopressin
 can cause a dangerous elevation in brain fluid pressure, leading to stroke,
 coma, or death. Also it can produce vertigo, circumoral pallor, pounding
 headaches, cramps, diarrhea, gas, nausea, vomiting, urticaria, difficulty
 breathing, anaphylactic shock, and normal shock. It is dangerous to use in
 people with a history of epilepsy, migraine, asthma, heart failure, or poor
 kidney function. Vasopressin can have dangerous interactions with most
 stimulants, including pemoline, caffeine, diet pills, and cold medications.
 Overall vasopressin is a real Pandora's Box, but fortunately there is
 ongoing research to develop safer and more effective alternatives.

CHOLINE, INOSITOL, VITAMIN B6, PHENYLALANINE, and DEANER - These compounds
 are both basically safe and effective if not spectacular. I would add a few
 notes though. Use caution with these if you have a history of epilepsy.
 Choline may be more effective when taken with inositol. B6 is more effective
 and better for you when taken in wide-spectrum mega-B vitamin supplements.
 PHENYLALANINE is neurotoxic and can cause brain damage in about 2% of the
 population [uploader's note: the 2% with the metabolic disorder PKU, that
 is], and it's probably not good in large doses for anyone. TYROSINE on the
 other hand is not toxic and is a more effective substitute. DEANER can be
 made more effective by combining it with METHIONINE, but be cautious of
 large doses of methionine if you have a history of psychosis. In addition,
 there are other nutrients that are save and effective in increasing
 psychological energy in most people, INOSINE, CYTOCHROME C, LYSINE, and
 GINSENG.

HYDERGINE - It is an ergot alkaloid, the same chemical class as LSD, but
 with no psychedelic or immediate effects. It is currently prescribed to help
 alleviate some of the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, but, despite the
 tremendous numbers of people with this affliction, Hydergine is not widely
 used, mainly because it is only effective in about 1/3 of the people using
 it. As a matter of fact it worsens cognition in about 1/3 of people. It is
 dangerous to use in individuals with any history of psychosis, low or high
 blood pressure, heart disease, pregnant women (at any point in pregnancy),
 or a history of migraines. Hydergine has caused rashes, drug fever,
 headaches, dizziness, vision problems, appetite loss, nausea, vomiting,
 cramps, fainting, sluggishness, drowsiness, emotional withdrawal, apathy,
 nervousness, hostility, confusion, depression, weakness, collapse, and coma.

EUPHORIA - The section on Euphoria is really in a muddle. First of all it is
 not clear what Euphoria is. The chemical structure shown is the article is
 MDA (methylenedioxy amphetamine), a drug rejected long ago by both
 psychologists and users as inferior to MDMA (XTC); it is also Highly
 Illegal. The other name given for Euphoria was 3,4-Methylenedimethoxy
 Methamphetamine. This is an impossible chemical structure. Technically
 speaking, a chemical structure can contain a methylenedioxy group or have 2
 methoxy groups; there is no such thing as a methylenedimethoxy group. None
 the less I can guess about Euphoria's toxicology from the effects R.U.Sirius
 describes and the class of drugs to which he claims it belongs. Like crystal
 methedrine it is almost certainly capable of precipitating paranoid
 psychosis, even in psychologically stable people. Though Sirius noticed no
 crash, he may have just been lucky. Amphetamines almost always have a crash.
 In general they also create tremendously large egos, and over confidence, so
 No judgement on mental improvement made by people under their influence can
 be trusted. Finally Euphoria is relatively untested, both scientifically and
 on the street. Its long and short term health effects are unknown by based
 on its chemical structure it would not be unreasonable to expect it to cause
 heart damage, brain damage, or cancer. I do not expect Euphoria to be any
 better than Coke or Speed, in the long run. I don't mean to sound cruel or
 cynical, but let some lab rats die before you put your neck on the line.

PEMOLINE is an interesting drug at the center of some current research.
 Unfortunately, it is not known how the drug works. If it was, a safer
 alternative could be found. Pemoline has caused fatal liver failure, still
 births, La Tourette's Syndrome, seizures, hallucinations, uncontrollable
 movements of the tongue, lips, face, eyes, and extremities, depression,
 delirium, dizziness, irritability, headaches, drowsiness, insomnia,
 anorexia, nausea, and cramps. Caution should be used when combining it with
 any other drug because it is known to have strong dangerous interactions
 with many drugs. Finally, pemoline, a controlled substance, is recognized by
 the government as having an abuse/addiction liability.

PRL-8-53 - I could find no information on this, even in the most up to date
 references. The fact that it still is referred to by its code number
 probably means that it is still highly experimental; they may not even know
 what its structure is yet. It might be safe, but you are playing
 neurochemical roulette.

THA - This is potentially very dangerous. It is an acetylcholinesterase
 inhibitor making its actions closely related to Nerve Gas, Pesticides and
 Strychnine. BE CAREFUL!

I wish you all good luck in your quest for personal growth. I am sure in the
near future science will come up with many things to help you. Please do not
let enthusiasm interfere with accuracy and safety

      Name withheld upon request

==========================================================================

Uploader's Notes:

     The previous letter is interesting in that the writer makes an
     erroneous assumption about the structure of Euphoria based on an
     erroneous and mislabeled diagram in the original R.U.Sirius article.
     Euphoria is NOT related to the methamphetamine class of drugs as this
     writer assumes! Euphoria IS however related to Pemoline (as R.U.Sirius
     implies in the text of his article), so the warnings above about
     Pemoline may well apply to Euphoria.

     The writer of this letter also makes a wrong assumption about
     PRL-8-53; namely, that it is so new that there's no info about it
     available yet. At the end of this file, there's an article out of
     "The Daily Breeze" Newspaper (which I don't have a date for, but it
     was published in either 1980 or 1981) that explains the origin
     of PRL-8-53.

     Strangely, R.U.Sirius didn't identify the chemical structure of
     PRL-8-53 either, even though he knew it was being investigated
     by Durk Pearson!

========================================================================

Yet More Letters to the Editor in response to the R.U.Sirius article above.

From the Winter 1988 issue of "Whole Earth Review"

                             ---

NO EUPHORIA ABOUT CHEMICAL STRUCTURE

In your Winter '87 issue, you ran an article by 'R.U.Sirius' entitled:
"May You Never Sleep" dealing with personal use(s) of experimental or FDA
licensed materials which your article collectively termed 'cognitive
enhancers.' Some of these are prescription only drugs, others come from
underground chemistry. Psychedelics generally have continued to receive
erroneous, confused & even hysterical press stemming from the LSD chromosome
scare of the mid-sixties through & into today's supposedly better informed
press & reporters having, among other things, computer technology to aid in
getting the facts straight. Or so one would think. Or at least hope.

However, I'm sorry to say that 'Whole Earth Review' has perpetuated this
same disregard for the facts of the matter not in one issue (Winter 1987)
but again in your Summer 1988 issue, surrounding the same subject - U4Euh
(Euphoria). In Sirius' original piece, he presented a completely False
chemical identification diagram re: U4Euh, showing instead that if MDA, a
completely different substance altogether. We all make mistakes, but Sirius
AGAIN put his foot in his mouth, appearing in the June issue of 'Whole Mind"
& calling U4Euh N-Methyl Aminorex, which is again false.

In the Summer WER there is a letter of rebuttal to Sirius' article which
attempted to once & for all (I suppose) set the facts straight, particularly
about U4Euh. Here again, an attempt at correction dis-information IN
ACTUALITY ends up spreading further myths surrounding U4Euh & psychedelics.

The letter writer states: "finally, U4Euh is relatively untested, both
scientifically & on the street, etc...."

OK. Let's get some facts straight & clear up a lot of confusion about this
substance U4Euh. U4Euh (4-Methyl Aminorex) was 1st discovered by a research
group headed by Georde Poos at McNeil Laboratory in Ft. Walsh, PA. in the
early 1960's. The 1st published report appeared in 'The Journal of Med.
Chem." in 1963 [1] & several other patents were issued in Belgium, France &
the US [2,3,4]. Three other papers were published regarding U4Euh in 1963 &
1966 [5,6,7].

In the mid 1980's, U4Euh was resurrected within the underground &
noncontrolled experiments were carried out on humans. The substance's new
spokesman was named The Friendly Stranger & samples were studied at, among
other places, the Continental Rainbow Gatherings. Both instructional manuals
as WELL as ongoing research results were distributed to those having
interest & concern about U4Euh & its effects.

There are two forms of U4Euh currently available via the underground - the
free-base & the hydrochloride. Prices range from $75 pre gram for the
hydrochloride upwards to $150 per gram for the most powerful free-base.

This substance (4-Methyl Aminorex) was placed on schedule I by the DEA & the
FDA in 1987. The resultant scheduling report presented by the DEA shows a
Death associated with its use (or abuse).

Unfortunately psychedelics or 'cognitive enhancers' remain the legendary,
obscurely attractive sources for 'bad press' - & are kept illegal - BECAUSE
false, misleading, obtuse or hysterical reporting (like that perpetuated in
your WER) outweighs the true facts of the matter.

I hope that author R.U.Sirius & WER continue to provide insightful articles
in the area(s) of drug use/abuse. However, some attempt must be made to
provide accurate reporting, especially in areas already worked over by too
much of the same.

Best wishes,
Thomas Lyttle,
Publisher,
Psychedelic Monographs and Essays

References:

[1] Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 6, 266 (1963)
[2] Belgian Patent 628,803, June 16, 1963
[3] French Patent M2448, May 4, 1964
[4] U.S.Patents 3,161,650 Dec 15, 1964 and 3,278,382 Oct 11,1966
[5] Archives Int. Pharmacodyn. Ther. 164(2) 412-18 (1966)
[6] Journal of Pharm. & Experim. Therapeutics 140: 367-374 (1963)
[7] Ibid. 141:180-84 (1964)
[8] Journ. Clin. Pharmacology 7:296-302 (1967)
[9] Science 1982 218(457)487-490
[10] Annual Reviews of Med. Chemistry 1965 51-58 (1966)44-47

The above mentioned references were provided by
'Psychedelic Monographs & Essays' from an upcoming piece entitled:
"A Chemical and Pharmacological Review of Euphoria or Intellex"
by 'The New Age Chemist'.

This piece will appear in the Autumn 1988 (vol.4) issue of PM&E.


                               ---


ANOTHER ALCHEMIST WHO AGREES

Dear Friends,

I read with interest the article in issue #57 on intelligence drugs by
"R.U.Sirius." I also read the same author's letter correcting the depicted
structure and identification of "Euphoria" in issue #58.

I too noticed that the chemical structure on page 58(#57) was that of
3,4-methylene dioxymethamphetamine (mistakenly spelled as "3,4-Methylene
Dimethoxy Methamphetamine"). while it was incorrectly labeled as "EUPHORIA."
The label was meant to say "chemically related to MDA." The label was
however, correct in stating that it was "Ecstacy."

In "Sirius's" letter (#58, page 140) correcting his article in issue #57, he
(?) states that "Euphoria is N-Methyl Aminorex and looks like this -


           C6H5  O  NH2
               \ \
               |  ||        [uploader's note: THIS IS THE CORRECT U4EUH.]
               |___N
              /
             CH3

Well, this structure is not that of N-Methyl Aminorex. It is correctly
called 4-Methyl Aminorex.

Aminorex has the structure:

    [Diagram of Aminorex]

And the structure of N-Methyl Aminorex is as follows:

    [Diagram of N-Methyl Aminorex]

I am not yet sure what the correct chemical structure of "Euphoria" is but I
am sure of the above information. Perhaps this will help clear up the
misunderstanding.

"Sirius," maybe you could try again to enlighten us? What is the correct
structure and name of "Euphoria"?

Yours sincerely,
The Alchemist
Vashon, Washington

===========================================================================

Article from "The Daily Breeze" newspaper, published around 1980 or 1981


                    Chemical Found to Improve Memory

OMAHA (AP) - Creighton University researchers say they have discovered an
organic chemical compound which apparently improves memory and intellectual
performance that normally deteriorate with aging.

Dr. Nikolaus Hansl, associate professor of medical chemistry and a member of
the team of scientists, said the compound, known as PRL-8-53, counters the
destruction of certain chemical pathways in the brain by "making up the
slack chemically."

In a clinical study at Creighton, Hansl said, 58 college students performed
better on intellectual tasks when they were given the compound, which he
described as similar to an amino acid.

In another study published in 1978, researchers compared the compound's
effects on performance of college students with that of persons who were
over 30.

The participants were asked to remember lists of "nonsense syllables,"
geometric objects and other tasks, Hansl said.

"The older group showed a 130% to 140% improvement in memory over the
college students," he said.

He said the effect of the compound lasted about seven hours, and added that
even after the effect faded, memory was better.

"Experiences from the past that were fading were recalled better" with no
detectable side effects, he said.

Hansl said the compound could help "the geriatric population - anyone over
30 - such as the elderly man who forgets his glasses or loses a thought in
midsentence. I would like to make them more self-sufficient."

Another use, he said, could aid those "in intellectual stress situations,
such as a businessman or student, to perform tasks better."

But Hansl added there have been no indications that people with brain damage
could benefit from the compound.

He said the research team is working on a related compound which could
produce even better results. They are now evaluating the clinical effects of
the compound.

Hansl, who had been involved in the research project for more than 15 years,
said the chemical is one of a new group of compounds that were studied in
the search for a new tranquilizer that would not slow down intellectual
functions.

                     ==============================

Uploader's Note:

     On the back of the above news clipping I wrote:

     "PRL-8-53 is 3-(2-benzylmethylamino ethyl) benzoic acid methyl ester"

     I don't recall where I found that piece of info, but I suspect it
     was from an item in "Science News".


    The Reader's Guide to Periodic Literature lists the following
    reference to PRL-8-53:

    "Learning and Memory Improvment Through Chemistry: Dream or Reality
     in the Offing." (PRL-8-53) by Nicolas Hansl & A.B. Hansl
     in the "Phi Delta Kappan" 61:264-5 December 1979

     But I haven't been able to get a copy of that article yet.

                                 ---

     Finally, the magazine "Reality Hackers/High Frontiers" which
     R.U.Sirius edits is available from:

             Fun City MegaMedia/Mondo 2000
             PO Box 49271, Berkeley, CA 94704
             (415)845-9018

     And the "Whole Earth Review" is available from:

             Whole Earth Review
             PO Box 15187, Santa Ana, CA 92705-9913
              
                                 ---

=========================================================================
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