There is No Free Lunch

“The side effect that most neuroscientists fear is not physical discomfort but subtle mental change. Over time, a memory-enhancing drug might cause people to remember too much detail, cluttering the brain. Similarly, a drug that sharpens attention might cause users to focus too intently on a particular task, failing to shift their attention in response to new developments. In short, someone who notices or remembers everything may end up understanding nothing.”

– Drugs That Enhance Students Achievement: Good Kids Making Bad Decisions

                  The author summarizes this passage in 5 words, “There is no free lunch”. One coin has two sides. Even though the so-call “smart drugs” are able to enhance students’ memory and attention, it causes the side effects as well. For instance, the “smart drugs” will lower oneself adaptive ability. Through this passage, students take “smart drugs” in order to increase their learning ability. This phenomenon reveals a fact that students are stressed because they are doubt at self-ability. They would rather to believe that the “smart drug” will grant them strength which help them to overcome the obstacles. In my opinion, the “smart drug” fails us to  adapt in new environment. But these days, economy is developing, if we are not capable of adapting the change quickly, how we are going to survive in this competitive marketplace. There is no free lunch. As educators, we are responsible to let students understand that the “smart drug” may help them to fix the immediate problem; however, it might leave a unpredictable consequent in the future.