Teatime: Impulse

I'm not particularly interested in drugs. I mean, drugs are cool and all, and I'm told their actions are really fascinating from a biochemical standpoint. Their history certainly is colorful and illuminating; and sure, the social issues surrounding drugs and drug policy are important and thought-provoking. When it comes right down to it, though, psychoactive drugs are just a means to an end for me. If a machine came along that safely and reliably produced a programmable range of similar effects, I'd be an instant convert.

What I'm really interested in is exploring my own mind. I once played a first-person style video game for months before I discovered that there was another setting that allowed me to view the map and action from above. I started kicking ass immediately and I couldn't believe how long I'd managed to somehow get by without ever discovering this important and useful feature. Similarly, I like to tweak my own settings now and then, just to try to figure out what the heck my mind is and to discover what's possible to do with it. It's perfectly natural to want to play with ourselves, and the mind is our most entertaining toy. Or at least it's a contender.