Hacker News Reader

Having been on Adderall I agree with most here that it increases my executive function but doesn’t really make me smarter.

I have a long history of experimenting with both legal and illicit drugs and the only one I found to actually significantly increase my cognitive ability to solve complex problems is low dose Ketamine. Low dose lsd/shrooms as well but to a much lesser degree.

View on HN

I've found that small amounts of psilocybin mushrooms appear to calm me and allow me to "get in the zone" a lot better, as well as radically increase my creativity. I also found that low-dose MDMA, taken after eating, dramatically increased my focus and productivity while somewhat dulling my creativity. I've never tried LSD or Ketamine though.

Generally, there is no drug that can make you smarter. Psychedelics can help you explore different perspective, but thats just being equivalent to a Monte Carlo approach to problem solving.

That being said, if you are ADHD, stimulants can essentially make you more efficient, which will make you appear smarter.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com