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Define "benefited". Saying, "I dropped acid and learned about myself," is very different from saying, "I dropped acid and became smarter." If you're in the latt

by rfrank 11y ago

Define "benefited". Saying, "I dropped acid and learned about myself," is very different from saying, "I dropped acid and became smarter." If you're in the latter camp, yes, I'm going to assume you're stupid.

ksk 11y ago
First of all, I think you're expecting way too much rigor from non-scientific, colloquial use of words. You already know what people mean when they talk about things in the general sense. In any case, its not for me to define. If someone tells me they dropped acid and it helped them in solving a problem, or opened their eyes to new ways of solving them, I'd take them at their word. In the context of altered mental states being beneficial, its not completely absurd to suggest so. This is justified in a day-to-day practical sense, much like if someone told me a restaurant was good, I would not conduct a scientific inquiry around the topic.
- rfrank 11y ago
  I think you're ignoring the context in which I originally replied in this thread. "Dual n-back, coffee, LSD. All things people swear make you smarter." It's not up for debate that people find a benefit from LSD. Or any drug. It's literally the reason that people do drugs in the first place. The question is whether or not they make you more intelligent. Able to process information more quickly and accurately. And to that my answer is a resounding no. And call me crazy, but yes, I do think you should approach an extremely powerful hallucinogen whose dose is measured in micrograms with some rigor and discipline. The potential harm to someone's mental state is a serious risk of LSD that people tend to under appreciate until they've seen it happen to someone.
  - ksk 11y ago
    Okay, fair enough. However, I'd like to point out that there is no objective metric for intelligence. Do you consider musical ability as intelligence? Several musicians have claimed to become 'more intelligent' with drugs. Also, my use of the word rigor was about the discussion, not the consumption of LSD. I don't want to comment one way or the other on whether one should consume drugs.

by rfrank 11y ago

ksk 11y ago

First of all, I think you're expecting way too much rigor from non-scientific, colloquial use of words. You already know what people mean when they talk about things in the general sense. In any case, its not for me to define. If someone tells me they dropped acid and it helped them in solving a problem, or opened their eyes to new ways of solving them, I'd take them at their word. In the context of altered mental states being beneficial, its not completely absurd to suggest so. This is justified in a day-to-day practical sense, much like if someone told me a restaurant was good, I would not conduct a scientific inquiry around the topic.

rfrank 11y ago
I think you're ignoring the context in which I originally replied in this thread. "Dual n-back, coffee, LSD. All things people swear make you smarter." It's not up for debate that people find a benefit from LSD. Or any drug. It's literally the reason that people do drugs in the first place. The question is whether or not they make you more intelligent. Able to process information more quickly and accurately. And to that my answer is a resounding no. And call me crazy, but yes, I do think you should approach an extremely powerful hallucinogen whose dose is measured in micrograms with some rigor and discipline. The potential harm to someone's mental state is a serious risk of LSD that people tend to under appreciate until they've seen it happen to someone.
- ksk 11y ago
  Okay, fair enough. However, I'd like to point out that there is no objective metric for intelligence. Do you consider musical ability as intelligence? Several musicians have claimed to become 'more intelligent' with drugs. Also, my use of the word rigor was about the discussion, not the consumption of LSD. I don't want to comment one way or the other on whether one should consume drugs.