Psychedelic singularities (was Test Scores (was Causality))
Ray Peck (rpeck@PureAtria.COM)
Mon, 16 Dec 1996 17:51:44 -0800 (PST)
>When I was 20 I took mescaline. I only took a small amount, not
>enough for a full-fledged psychedelic trip. But I did feel some effect.
>When I was 21 I took one more standardized test, given by the army.
>(This was during the Vietnam war; they tested us to see if we were
>draftable.) I scored in the 94th percentile on that one. About the same
>time, my grades started slipping. Lyle, the straight-A student from
>day one, had lost his edge.
I had the same experience, at about the same age (21-22), but without
the drugs. I'm 30 now, and am not nearly "as smart" as I was when I
was 20. The main effect has been concentration: I used to be able to
concentrate for hours at a shot. Now, while I'm not a poster-fella
for ADD, I sure can't. I can't even concentrate for 5 minutes any
more. I've been thinking that taking up meditation (and stopping
reading so much email!) might be a cure.
It may not have been the drugs, Lyle.