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I think what Erdos did is almost the opposite. I say this as someone who has thoroughly explored both extremes. Intellectual pursuits provide intelligent people with the stimulus they need. When they are bored, in particular when they are prevented from pursuing their intellectual activities, some drugs offer a way to squash the desperate need for stimulus. However, when there are no restrictions, some other drugs provide the opportunity to push your intellect to its limits, eschewing, temporarily, the need for sleep, sustenance or distraction, to focus on the intellectual task at hand. Very broadly speaking, depressants fulfil the first need and stimulants fulfil the second.

I can say after much exploration that the un-stimulated brain is much more interesting in the medium and long term than the (chemically) stimulated brain. But I don't know anything better than depressants for seeing you through those times when you can't think or work freely.




"It is by will alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the Juice of Sapho that thoughts acquire speed, the lips acquire stains, the stains become a warning. It is by will alone I set my mind in motion."




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