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A stimulating experience

» Using drugs to get ahead

Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

 

Ff’ many college students, a
cup of coffee or an energy
drink is just what they need to
get them through a boring class
or early lecture.

But for some students a little :

bit of caffeine isn’t enough. The
one-cup-a-day habit for them is
more like 10 cups. Often, simple
caffeine isn’t enough. Balancing
classes, homework, a job, social
life, and other commitments

requires an occasional major

available stimulant drugs—
often prescribed by a doctor but
sometimes downright illegal.

Ona typical college or
university campus, it’s not hard
to find prescription stimulants,
often known as “study drugs.”
Used medicinally to treat
Attention Deficit Disorder
(ADD), these prescription
drugs are sold on the black
market to students, who receive
a sudden energy increase that
lasts for hours. Sometimes, even
pharmaceuticals aren't enough:
a shocking number of students
use cocaine, amphetamines,
or “speed” to party or study all
night long.

A student who used
Adderall twice to write an essay
said “It did wonders for me. I
wrote a complete essay in under

: four hours. Everything became
: interesting and the ideas just

: flowed, like the essay just wrote
: itself. One hundred per cent

: worth it and I would use it

: again.”

The use of controlled

stimulants as seen in this

: experience is certainly common
: and seemingly harmless at first
: glance. :
: A former student who asked_ :
: to remain anonymous admitted

: to using “a lot of coffee” and

: cocaine before attending classes
: and studying to stay awake. “As

: muchas I hate to say it, it really

: did help. I managed to complete
boost. That boost comes in freely aie ep school and
summer whilst working two

: jobs. I never would’ve been able

: to without using drugs ... !ended
: up in the hospital with cardiac

: problems and now face a lot of

: health problems.”

Another student

experienced a slight overdose of
: coffee during one challenging

: 36-hour period. Having used

: caffeine constantly throughout

: her six-year degree, she

: explained: “T think I used coffee
; as more of a security blanket

; than anything else.”

Indeed, most stimulant

usage gives students a sense

: of control and reduces stress.

: Perhaps in some way, these

: addictions are very manageable,
: and only a small fraction

: requires modification.

Although most stimulant

But for some
students a little
bit of caffeine isn’t
enough. The one-
cup-a-day habit
for them is more
like 10 cups.

: users do not have situations as
: extreme or dangerous, habits

: can still have many negative

: consequences. Ona long-term
: basis, stimulant use can lead to
: heart problems and dangerous
: body temperatures. They can

: sometimes lead to aggression,

: paranoia, and hostility after

: just one use. Additionally, the

: “crash” of a stimulant high

: and the withdrawal effects

: are particularly unpleasant.

: These effects are present even

: with casual caffeine use and

: withdrawal.

In the end, none of us are

: truly immune to stimulants.

: The vast majority of people

: use caffeine in some form ona
: weekly or daily basis. Until I stop
: being responsible for writing

: articles along with multiple

: essays and classes each week,

: [ll continue to wait in line at

: Starbucks. In the words of the
: Beastie Boys, a famous hard-

: partying, drug-using group: “I
: like my sugar with coffee and

: cream.”

Have an idea for a story? Let us know!
Contact: Sophie Isbister, Life & Style Editor

Mlifeandstyle@theotherpress.ca

www. theotherpress.ca

 

 

 

The changing face of education

» Codecademy provides free platform to learn real-world skills

Patrick Vaillancourt
Columnist

he Internet has made the

professional world much
more competitive, changing
the way individuals go about
their daily lives. Technology
has changed the way we
communicate with each other,
the way we shop, and how we
go about doing our banking.
Despite all of the conveniences

education systems around
the world have been slow to
adapt to the realities of a new
economy.

For the most part, it has

: been left to the private sector
: to come up with innovative

: ways to promote changes

: in education, whether it be

: through the development of
: new interactive educational
: programs or games or

: implementing new learning
: platforms for people to learn
: in-demand skills for today’s

: workforce.

Codecademy is one such

: platform making waves in the
that we’ve come to benefit from, : education world, particularly
: in Britain. Codecademy is a
: website which allows a user
: to learn valuable computer

: skills such as website building,

: programming, and basic

: animations, all without the
: need to register to their website. :
: You can simply access the site
: and start coding using their

: interactive tutorials.

: Most importantly, it works. :
: In my case, I spent much of

: my weekend going through all
: of the tutorials for HTML and
: CSS, essential skills if you are

: looking to design a website.

Codecademy was founded

: in late 20 by Zach Sims

: and Ryan Bubinski, both of

: whom realized while studying
: at Columbia University that

: people tend to learn best by

: exercising their desired skills.

: Codecademy was designed to
: help bridge the gap between

what was being taught in

: schools and what was expected
: of people in the modern
: workforce.

The platform has partnered

: with schools in the United

: Kingdom and offers teaching
: resources, lesson plans, and

: exercises for teachers to

: give to students, in addition

: to providing an interactive

: learning environment for

: anyone willing to learn

: skills such as HTML, CSS,

: programming in PHP and

: Python and basic animations in :
: JavaScript.

Startups designed to

: complement traditional

: educational services are on the
: rise, and Codecademy believes
: that this is because “education
: is broken.” Their mission is

: to rethink education and

: bring more valuable learning

: Opportunities online.

Codecademy is able to

: offer its learning platform free
: to its users, having raised $12.5
: million through investors.

To access Codecademy

: and start learning valuable
: computer skills, go to their
: website at www.codecademy.

com