I don't know about the exact nature of drug laws in the States, but I happen to live in one of the countries with draconian(and coldly efficient) drug laws. In fact, its a hanging offence to be caught with more than a miniscule amount of a large number of restricted substances. I can thus speak with some confidence that 99.99% of the geeks here are disappointingly lucid.:)
Is this Good or Bad(tm)? I don't know, since I haven't the opportunity to partake of any substance to comment on the effects of drugs on coding etc. All I know is that the mainstream in my society is where most drug users come from, and since geeks are normally quite deviant from what is percieved as cool by the Average Young Joe(tm) here, the drug culture doesn't exactly mesh with the Geek Value Code here....in fact, I can't even see any longhair friends around me(bummer)!!:)
Oops, what I meant to say was that Dune was the premier case in science fiction where beneficial drug use figures prominently in an alternate world scenario. Not trying to justify any drug use in real life.....:-)
Don't know if I recall my Dune-ish stuff correctly, but I think the spice came from the growth of sandtrout (little maker) to sandworm; the by-products(water?) of the transformation chemically changes a pre-spice mass into melange. The worms are thus attracted to spice patches, naturally.
If there is anything in science fiction to say drugs are good, it's in Dune. Melange allows for
1) extended life (300+ years)
2) expanded mental processes(even prescience for some)
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Is this Good or Bad(tm)? I don't know, since I haven't the opportunity to partake of any substance to comment on the effects of drugs on coding etc. All I know is that the mainstream in my society is where most drug users come from, and since geeks are normally quite deviant from what is percieved as cool by the Average Young Joe(tm) here, the drug culture doesn't exactly mesh with the Geek Value Code here....in fact, I can't even see any longhair friends around me(bummer)!! :)
Oops, what I meant to say was that Dune was the premier case in science fiction where beneficial drug use figures prominently in an alternate world scenario. Not trying to justify any drug use in real life.....:-)
If there is anything in science fiction to say drugs are good, it's in Dune. Melange allows for
1) extended life (300+ years)
2) expanded mental processes(even prescience for some)
3) safe, instantaneous space travel
4) immunity to certain poisons
5) Cool eyes of the Ibad(blue on blue) :)