"Moderate alcohol consumption"—which I'm sure we can all agree to define as "not quite two drinks"—was shown to enhance performance on tests of creative thinking in a recent University of Illinois at Chicago study.

  • dragonfrog

    Can we all agree on that definition?

    When I was in Germany many moons ago, in the articles one always sees linking 
    “moderate alcohol consumption” (however defined) with a range of modest health benefits, I quite enjoyed how different the definition of  ”moderate” was from what I was used to from apparently strait-laced sober Canada. I seem to recall one such study used something more like “less than two litres of beer a day”

    • http://www.creaturesoflight.com dagfooyo

      I remember back shortly after that study came out saying that a glass of wine a day reduced risk of heart attack, a spoof article came out in the Weekly World News, supposedly by a Russian scientist who argued about the astounding health benefits to be had from drinking a bottle of vodka a day.

  • http://www.creaturesoflight.com dagfooyo

    This is known as the “Ballmer Peak” and the tech industry has been aware of it for years:  http://xkcd.com/323/

    • Lupus_Yonderboy

      Came here for a reference to that comic, leaving satisfied.

  • http://www.fagerland.org tofagerl

    Original source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Zj50DmBFp0

  • tylersweeney

    yeah right. alcohol makes you stupid.

  • RedShirt77

    I think you need to connect a measure of time to the amount.

    But yes, and it really helps my darts game.

  • digi_owl

    No wonder, alcohol basically short circuits self-criticism. As such you do not spend as much time second-guessing yourself or checking potential faults in your decisions.

    • ocker3

       I’ve had bad experiences with large amounts of alcohol (which somehow tend to follow attempts at drinking small amounts of alcohol), so I’ve focused on checking my decisions once, then sticking with them. It works out well overall.

  • Cowicide

    I see your “two drinks” and raise you one bong hit of a top shelf sativa or a wicked hybrid, you drunktards.

  • Lisa_Wade

    That’s why I wrote much of my dissertation in a bar.  Obviously. :)

    • Antinous / Moderator

      I had several studio critiques in a bar.  It never hurts to buy your teacher a drink.

  • Brainspore

    “Moderate alcohol consumption”—which I’m sure we can all agree to define as “not quite two drinks”

    You mean before or after my morning coffee?

    • dragonfrog

      In the coffee itself, I think.  Unless you’re also eating breakfast, in which case it’s a beverage with a meal, and doesn’t count as alcohol consumption.

      • Guest

        unless its two Guinness’, which is a meal

  • jhertzli

    Why are we taking seriously a study with a sample size of 40?