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Day: 26 February 2015

Modafinil: Become a genius for a few hours?

What if there is a way to make yourself smarter, more focused and motivated for a few hours without any long term negative drawbacks? These are the characteristics given to Modafinil, one of the most popular and prevalent study drugs out there now.

Originally used for narcolepsy, the drug has become more mainstream. Being seen as a drug that makes you a genius for a few hours, it’s easy to see the appeal of it and why people choose to take it.

Modafinil is a central nervous stimulant and prevents excessive sleepiness, which narcolepsy is known for. It affects three sections of the brain, the dopamine system which will make you more alert and interested in something, norepinephrine which, again, makes you more alert and focused and finally histamine which will keep you awake.

The drug claims to increase and focus attention on a certain task, enhance memory, motivation for a very generous length of time. It also claims to enhance short term memory by up to 10 per cent. By also keeping you awake, it seems to knock caffeine out of the park.

Some describe virtually no side effects from it, feeling calm, clear headed and focused while others say they feel agitated and anxious. Some students have reported the lack interest in socialising while on it as the mind is solely focused on working, which isn’t an awful thing given the reason that someone would take it. Julia Smith, of the Guardian , also reported that while  Modafinil stopped her feeling sleepy, her body felt tired and lethargic.

But, where there are highs, there are also lows. What goes up must come down as they say. A major crash after the effects have worn off can sometimes be expected, especially if someone has undertaken repeated dosages. The biggest drawback would be that it can mess up a person’s sleeping pattern if taken regularly. You are unable to fall asleep which becomes counterproductive given that we consolidate our memories in our sleep.

The Guardian reported that some students, after regular doses, felt trapped in a ‘twilight zone’ where they were neither awake nor asleep. Eventually, however, this would wear off, it’s never smart to take too much of anything.

One-fifth of students have taken Modafinil, according to The Guardian, and there haven’t been any serious adverse effects reported.

The effects are taken from a laid back stance; they are seen to wear off with no lasting side effects. The average length of time that Modafinil lasts for is reported as around seven hours, but this would vary depending on the individual. Some have reported feeling the effects for 24 hours or more, again this is usually associated with regular dosing.

Everything is best in moderation; it is true that there can be too much of a good thing.  Dr Peter Morgan of Yale University stated that while it does help enhance the memory, frequent use could actually harm it.

Since it is a prescription drug and not every student has narcolepsy, the main source of getting them is through the internet. One of the most prevalent brand of Modafinil in the UK and US is Provigil. There are a lot of different websites that do sell it but this brings up many problems of buying on the internet that are obvious. The main danger is do you know what you’re putting into your body? Given the prevalence of drugs among university, it is doubted that students care that much.

The hard bit can be deciding what dosage to take and at what time for optimal results. 50mg has been described by some to not have any effect that is worth it, but it’s good to build it up. It’s always better to not take enough rather than to take too much. 400mg, however, has been described to have the same effect on the brain as involved with substance abuse. The usual amount tends to be between 100 – 200mg.

It does make you think, how much is the development of Modafinil going to change society? Will we get to the point where we don’t need that much sleep? The author of The 24 Hour Society, Leon Kreitzman, said that drugs like Modafinil will transform society. He went on to say that within the next quarter of a century, we’ll reach the point where sleep becomes optional.

The NHS discussed an experiment to check the validity if the claims of Modafinil i.e. it makes you smarter. There were two groups, one group was given Modafinil while another a placebo, neither knew which group they were in.  It was found that the people who took Modafinil had a slower response than the ones who took the placebo, and were no more accurate.

It doesn’t seem like it would end the world to try Modafinil once if you’re feeling up to it. Testimonies show it to be something that can help, combined with the usually lack of side effects (depending on the individual), why not?  It makes a nice change from the jitteriness of caffeine. Also, not being addictive, it could be a miracle when work gets too much. Some doctors have even reported using it to perform better surgery. There hasn’t been that much research on study drugs so each experience leads to more understanding.

Overheard at the University of Manchester, 23/2/15

“What’s the difference between bondage and S&M?”
Overheard on the bus

“You’ll never see me wearing Adidas, I hate Adidas, they take food from children for money.”
Overheard in the Samuel Alexander computer cluster

“I don’t wear jeans, they’re so generic.”
Overheard in University Place

“If I had unlimited power and I could change anything in the world, honestly the first thing I’d do is replace those shit excuses for water fountains in the Library.”
Overheard in the Students’ Union

“I really feel like I am garlic.”
Overheard in 256

“Maybe she’s in the mood for a flaccid penis.”
Overheard outside the Learning Commons

“Movement is the spice of life.”
Overheard on the bus

“Weetabix is the blank canvas on which I can express my creativity.”
Overheard in Fallowfield

“I don’t want a boyfriend as such, I just want someone who will pay for my Chicken King after a night out.”
Overheard in Fallowfield

Student delegates travel to Bosnian region to remember Srebrenica

Two Manchester University students, Iman Nauman and Zainab Ahmed, were lucky enough to be selected as delegates for the charity organisation ‘Remembering Srebrenica’ to explore the Bosnian Genocide and its impacts on the lives of those affected as the end of the war approaches its 20th anniversary.

‘Remembering Srebrenica’ is a British charity which focuses upon the events in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, which was under the watch of the United Nations Protection Force during the Balkans Conflict. However in 1995 Serbian paramilitary units overran the town capturing its population. In the following days over 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were murdered and buried in mass graves, whilst many women were deported and forced into ethnic cleansing rape camps.

The two students went to the Bosnian region where the conflict began in 1993 to take part in cultural understanding lessons. They also met some survivors of the genocide, including mothers of Srebrenica whose husbands and sons were lost in the massacres. They described meeting the mothers as a very humbling moment. It was at that moment that the conflict became humanised.

Nuaman and Ahmed described the meetings as ‘truly eye-opening’ yet also incredibly emotional due to the nature of their visit. They emphasised the importance of such meetings with genocide survivors. There is only so much documentaries and news clips can show.  The people of a country cannot be judged by media or by the actions of their governments. In order to understand the full impact hate crimes have upon normal citizens it is important to make an effort to educate ourselves properly.

The students were fortunate enough to also visit the facilities of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) in Sarajevo and Tuzla to learn about the difficult, painstaking but ultimately successful work that continues to be done in the identification of victims buried in mass graves. Here they were able to learn about and discuss the actions and aftermath of genocide, and the difficult process of reconciliation.

The programme aims to raise awareness of what it describes as “one of the worst atrocities committed on European soil since the Second World War”. They aim to teach lessons from the events in Bosnia between 1992-1995 and to draw upon this understanding to promote tolerance and community cohesion here within the UK.

During their visit with the organisation, Nauman and Ahmed learnt about the Srebrenica-Potočari Memorial Complex, a non-profit organisation that aims to build and maintain a complex in memory of the victims of the Srebrenica genocide, founded in May 2001.

Former US President Bill Clinton officially opened the memorial to the public in 2003.

Almost twenty years after the massacre, bodies are still being recovered from mass grave sites around the country. Every year, thousands gather at the memorial centre on 11th July to bury what remains of their loved ones. In 2013, 409 newly identified bodies were interned at the annual memorial service.

Another feature of their learning experience was the Annual Peace March, or Mars Mira as it is more commonly known to the region. The Peace March is a commemorative walk in honour of the 15,000 men who formed ‘The Column’ and embarked upon a perilous 63-mile walk from Srebrenica to Tuzla, in an attempt to escape Serbian persecution.

‘Remembering Srebrenica’ describe the three-day walk, starting on 7th July each year, as open to participants from all over the world to “march in protest over the outstanding arrests and prosecution for those responsible for the Srebrenica genocide and the numerous war crimes committed during the conflict in Bosnia”.

The girls are helping to raise awareness of the Srebrenica genocide by promoting the Memorial Day, held on 11th July each year. A vigil will be held on Memorial Day in Manchester. They will also visit local high schools and colleges within the Manchester region to share the lessons they learnt from their trip whilst encouraging people to support the work of Remembering Srebrenica.

In speaking on the trip Zainab Ahmed said to the Mancunion: “This visit is something I will never forget, it most definitely has been an insight that has changed my perspective on tackling hate and the importance of promoting unity between all nations, what was significant is regardless of all the atrocities the victims have been through their desire for revenge is non existent.

“One of the mothers I met specifically said ‘’hating on the Serbs will not bring my son back, all I want is for the world to know what happened to us and that we are never forgotten’’. Seeing the strength these mothers hold is unbelievable.  When they see young delegates come to visit they see their children in them, and gives them hope that we will never let their sacrifice be unrecognized.

“As delegates we feel the responsibility and duty to raise awareness and let everyone in the United Kingdom know what happened to ensure anything of the sort ever happens again.

“This experience has made me grow as a person, it really does teach you what is important in life and what is not, it humbles you and makes you appreciate all those things you take for granted.”

Why Russell Brand has been good for British politics

Russell Brand encourages us to talk about things that matter.

I must admit, I cringed a little when Russell Brand appeared on BBC Question Time talking about politics. It didn’t seem right and I thought (and still think, to an extent) that what he had to say lacked substance with regard to democracy and voting. However, politics is something that young people on the whole don’t want to engage with, and the idea prevails that political discussion is best left to more intelligent people who know what they’re talking about. Russell Brand is changing these static ideologies about participation in politics, and in my opinion, this can only be a good thing.

In fact, I sometimes worry about our generation, when it seems we’re more interested in Miley Cyrus’ VMA performance than what’s really going on in the world that’s truly affecting people’s lives.

At first I was disappointed when Brand came along selling his new ‘Revolution’ and encouraged people to abstain from voting. I still disagree with him and actually think that using one’s vote is integral to a functioning democracy. Thus I immediately jumped on the Brand-hating bandwagon, though what I was really doing was tuning out because honestly, I didn’t want to take political advice from a comedian.

There may have been a worry his political emergence would create a “Russell Brand wore army pants and flip-flops, so I wore army pants and flip-flops” situation whereby the entire 18 – 30s population would be hiding away when it comes to the general election later this year. Realistically, this is not the case. It’s just refreshing to hear from someone who’s a bit different.

I think many of us have a bad attitude towards Russell Brand because he doesn’t fit the mould of what your typical individual in an influential position should look like. It’s been drummed into us for years, subconsciously if nothing else, that judges, ministers and Members of Parliament have to be smart, white, middle class and male with not a blip on their records. It’s got to the point where we don’t want to learn from or trust anyone who doesn’t fit this stereotype with important societal issues.

I know Russell Brand isn’t exactly “one of us” in terms of wealth, but I do think he has a greater understanding of the needs of people in the UK than many people in Parliament.

Lord Fink’s statement last week serves as the perfect example. He commented that he took “vanilla tax avoidance” measures and that “everyone avoids tax at some level”. What he failed to see was that most of us don’t have the desire or opportunity to avoid paying tax, partially because HMRC are like a dog with a bone when it comes to collecting every last penny with the general public. This bizarre statement showed just how out of touch with the real world those in power can be. No, we don’t all avoid paying tax and no, we don’t all have the opportunity to do so even if we did want to.

With this in mind, I quite like it now when Brand sits there amongst politicians with his unbrushed, bird’s nest hair and sleeve of tattoos. He is incredibly respectful of other people’s opinions in interviews and is clearly well-informed on a wide range of subjects. In particular, after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, he showed a sensitivity which not many people did on asking questions about religion and how personal actions can affect and marginalise others. He also raised issues about both terrorism and the causes of terrorism. He discussed acts of the government in general on his video blog and how we should question and be free to criticise their decisions.

He often talks about subjects that we leave to the experts. Young people especially are disengaged with world affairs and politics, with celebrity gossip being more interesting (and perhaps more ‘cool’ to talk about.) However, I hope Brand encourages young people that we are moving on from days where everyone in power has to look and talk in a certain way, and that we can all participate in democracy through political discussion.

I think the fear was that people would blindly follow his opinions because he had a large long-standing fan-base he could influence, but in reality I think it’s opened up a more general debate about the government and world affairs, especially amongst young people.

Celebrities stand in a unique position of influence in society. They especially affect the way young people live in a number of ways; their appearance, manners, fashion-sense, music preferences and general interests. Brand has started to use his influence to engage people in healthy discussion and debate which in my opinion can only be a positive thing.