The article is about modulating orexins in the brain. Orexin receptor agonism was thought to be a mechanism of modafinil/armodafinil but this isn't mentioned anywhere in the article. Modafinil is mentioned as a mere stimulant. It sort of makes me want to dismiss the article as manufactured hype for a new class of modafinil successors.
Tiredness is a signal that the body/brain needs rest so the glymphatic system can go to work. You can lose the signal but still need rest. If your brain doesn't flush metabolic waste periodically you develop brain fog, bad memory, and increased risk of Alzheimer's, and you'll eventually die, as sleep deprivation studies have found.
Caffeine doesn't actually do any of the things sleep does to your brain. If you drink coffee during a late night, you won't feel as tired, but your brain performs worse, your reflexes are slower, you're less likely to remember things, etc. It's like painting over a rusted car instead of properly maintaining it, basically.
Not to take away from the broader point, but modafinil is lumped in with methylphenidate as a stimulant that "increase[s] the activity of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine". Modafinil does also stimulate the orexin system and is part of why it's so effective for wakefulness and not as a stimulant in the medium/long-term.
It sounds to me like something that's quite dangerious. Maybe it helps people with narcolepsy but maybe it will be another thing people abuse like amphetamines?
It’s some shit a guy called Taleb came up with. It’s a useful indicator because someone quoting Taleb unironically is someone who can’t tell that Taleb is a midwit.
I get the vibe, but I wouldn't say shocked, merely disappointed. The Black Swan's point would fit on the book's cover even if printed in the font used for the author's name, the work felt to me like 99% was just garrulous "look at me aren't I smart" padding.
Two things you'll always find someone to defend with vigor are sleep and death. A lot of humans seem to despise living in general. It's fascinating to see.
Sleep is less surprising for me to see people defend than death, to the extent that I'm not sure if I myself have or not done so.
I mean, I can directly feel the benefit of a good sleep that refreshes me in the morning, whereas there's those who have passed on whom I miss.
If I didn't need sleep, really didn't, I wouldn't seek to re-invent it; but of the two it is old age that I'd actively pay money to hold back, if treatments for both existed at the same cost per extra hour of consciousness in my lifetime.
https://archive.is/WoHuY
The article is about modulating orexins in the brain. Orexin receptor agonism was thought to be a mechanism of modafinil/armodafinil but this isn't mentioned anywhere in the article. Modafinil is mentioned as a mere stimulant. It sort of makes me want to dismiss the article as manufactured hype for a new class of modafinil successors.
I feel like I'd want the opposite of this - something that mimics the cleaning process of sleep that you could use in the afternoon for a nap or etc.
[delayed]
By mimic do you mean it does the cleaning process or just that you feel like it did? If it was the former, that would be very interesting.
The latter is how caffeine works. Blocks adenosine receptors so you don't feel tired even though you are.
If you don't feel tired, are you really? I'm curious what are the objective metrics to determine someone is tired
Tiredness is a signal that the body/brain needs rest so the glymphatic system can go to work. You can lose the signal but still need rest. If your brain doesn't flush metabolic waste periodically you develop brain fog, bad memory, and increased risk of Alzheimer's, and you'll eventually die, as sleep deprivation studies have found.
Isn't the answer yes if people still die from overwork despite being caffeined up?
Caffeine doesn't actually do any of the things sleep does to your brain. If you drink coffee during a late night, you won't feel as tired, but your brain performs worse, your reflexes are slower, you're less likely to remember things, etc. It's like painting over a rusted car instead of properly maintaining it, basically.
If I’m on morphine is my leg even still broken?
Consider: Beggars in Spain. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68333.Beggars_in_Spain
Not to take away from the broader point, but modafinil is lumped in with methylphenidate as a stimulant that "increase[s] the activity of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and norepinephrine". Modafinil does also stimulate the orexin system and is part of why it's so effective for wakefulness and not as a stimulant in the medium/long-term.
https://archive.is/WoHuY
general question: is there an alternative to archive.is ? it seems to be blocked in my country.
there are variations but some are shady... archive.ph, archive.today, etc. there's probably a central list somewhere.
Isn't the problem with lack of sleep (and what causes death with enough deprivation) oxydation that happens in the gut and spreads to the organs?
If I'm not mistaken there was an experiment using fruit flies where they fed them antioxidants and that made them not die from lack of sleep.
It sounds to me like something that's quite dangerious. Maybe it helps people with narcolepsy but maybe it will be another thing people abuse like amphetamines?
Modafinil is available for ages, acts close to this (it's mentioned in the article), and I don't hear of people abusing it.
looks like potential for abuse is low - people with normal orexin activity could even experience diminished capacity by these drugs
Previous post: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49206165
The brain may be about to have its Algernon moment
FTFY
Title implies people will flock to a pill that makes them shed gray matter
It's probably the default clickbait title for any article about a new drug.
I like my brain fatty /s
You reminded me I need to buy more Omega 3
Sleep is Lindy... obesity and constant wakefulness are not.
The sad fact is that people will be pressured into taking this.
Is "Lindy" a typo or have I missed another linguistic innovation?
Another linguistic innovation[0] -- the idea that things that have been around for a long time are more likely to persist for another long time.
[0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_effect
This feels like a stupid heuristic to use if applied to biological forces.
In the definition of it, living things are specifically excluded.
It’s some shit a guy called Taleb came up with. It’s a useful indicator because someone quoting Taleb unironically is someone who can’t tell that Taleb is a midwit.
I was kind of shocked how bad some of his writing and "logic" were after hearing people rave about his books for years.
I get the vibe, but I wouldn't say shocked, merely disappointed. The Black Swan's point would fit on the book's cover even if printed in the font used for the author's name, the work felt to me like 99% was just garrulous "look at me aren't I smart" padding.
Seems like it predates him significantly:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_effect#History
Aging and cancer are also Lindy.
Two things you'll always find someone to defend with vigor are sleep and death. A lot of humans seem to despise living in general. It's fascinating to see.
Sleep is less surprising for me to see people defend than death, to the extent that I'm not sure if I myself have or not done so.
I mean, I can directly feel the benefit of a good sleep that refreshes me in the morning, whereas there's those who have passed on whom I miss.
If I didn't need sleep, really didn't, I wouldn't seek to re-invent it; but of the two it is old age that I'd actively pay money to hold back, if treatments for both existed at the same cost per extra hour of consciousness in my lifetime.
What has anything in this article to do with Ozempic? Is mentioned in the title once and never again. Engagement bait?
Ozempic is the poster boy for peptides.
Ozempic == GLP-1 which the first visible paragraph is discussing.
Your brain is gonna lose so much weight!