Scott Alexander conducts an experiment playing a word game 800 times under varying CO2 levels, finding no correlation between indoor carbon dioxide and cognitive performance. Longer summary

Scott Alexander describes his experiment to test the effect of indoor carbon dioxide levels on cognitive performance. He played a word game called WordTwist 800 times over three months, recording his scores and the CO2 levels in his room. The CO2 levels ranged from 445 ppm to 3208 ppm. Scott found no correlation between CO2 levels and his game performance (r = 0.001, p = 0.97). He discusses potential confounding factors but argues that his results strongly suggest that CO2 levels don't affect his cognitive performance on this specific task. Scott encourages others to conduct similar experiments with different cognitive tasks and offers to provide CO2 monitors to interested researchers. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander conducts a personal randomized controlled trial of a sleep supplement, finding no significant effect over placebo, but gains insights into his sleep patterns. Longer summary

Scott Alexander conducts a personal randomized controlled trial to test the effectiveness of a sleep supplement called Sleep Support. Initially, he experiences a dramatic improvement in his sleep patterns, but decides to rigorously test this effect. He designs an experiment using placebo pills and blind administration over 24 nights. Surprisingly, the results show no significant difference between the Sleep Support and placebo nights in terms of sleep duration, wake-up time, or subjective measures. Scott concludes that his initial perceived improvement was likely due to the placebo effect and the act of not checking the clock upon waking. Despite the supplement not outperforming placebo, Scott considers the experiment a success as it led to improved sleep habits. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander introduces an 'Anxiety Sampler Kit' for testing various anxiety supplements, aiming to personalize treatment and gather data through self-experimentation. Longer summary

Scott Alexander introduces an experimental 'Anxiety Sampler Kit' designed to test the effectiveness of various supplements for treating anxiety. The kit contains 21 boxes with six different supplements and placebos, arranged randomly. Users try a box when feeling anxious, rate their response, and after completing all boxes, determine which supplement worked best for them. This approach aims to personalize treatment and gather data for a small placebo-controlled trial. Scott discusses the rationale behind personalized medicine and the challenges in predicting individual treatment responses. He invites Bay Area residents to participate in this self-experimentation project, with the condition that they share their results. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander reports on a survey about nighttime ventilation interventions, finding modest overall improvements but some individual success stories. Longer summary

Scott Alexander presents the results of a survey on nighttime ventilation conducted after his previous post on carbon dioxide levels. The survey, with 129 participants, explored various interventions to improve sleep quality by reducing CO2 levels. While the overall results were modest, with an average improvement of 1.4 on a 0-5 scale, some participants reported significant benefits. The most common intervention was sleeping with an open window. Despite the underwhelming results, most participants planned to continue their interventions. Scott concludes that the results are essentially negative, both for nighttime ventilation and for the reliability of informal blog surveys in producing confident data. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander presents results from a survey of 850 people rating various nootropics, showing a range of perceived effectiveness and exploring addiction potential for some substances. Longer summary

Scott Alexander presents the results of a survey on nootropics, substances that claim to improve mental function. The survey gathered ratings from 850 participants on various nootropics. The results show a range of effectiveness, with prescription drugs like Adderall and Modafinil scoring highly, along with LSD microdosing and Phenibut. Some less well-known substances like tianeptine, Semax, and ashwagandha also performed well. The survey also explored addiction potential for certain substances. Scott notes that while the survey lacks placebo control, the large sample size and consistency with previous results lend some credibility to the findings. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander discusses the online forum Longecity, where users organize group buys of experimental chemicals, seeing it as a risky but intriguing counterbalance to slow drug approval processes. Longer summary

Scott Alexander expresses admiration for Longecity, an online forum where users organize group buys of experimental chemicals for self-experimentation. While acknowledging the dangers and irresponsibility of such practices, he finds a certain appeal in how it counteracts potential suppression of wonder drugs by slow-moving institutions. The post discusses examples of ongoing group buys, including attempts to replicate anti-aging experiments in rats. Scott concludes by suggesting that while this behavior is risky, it serves as a safeguard against dystopian scenarios where beneficial drugs are suppressed, reflecting a balance between institutional stupidity and population insanity in Western civilization. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critically examines the concept of self-conditioning, expressing skepticism while considering potential benefits and deciding to experiment with the technique. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses the concept of self-conditioning, specifically the idea of rewarding oneself to reinforce desired behaviors. He initially expresses skepticism, arguing that such methods are unlikely to work due to the brain's ability to predict rewards and the potential for overjustification. He then explores a modified version involving 'victory gestures' instead of tangible rewards. While still skeptical, Scott acknowledges the potential benefits of immediate reinforcement and the intrinsic nature of the reward. He examines evolutionary arguments against self-reinforcement and discusses the limited available research on 'self-consequation'. Despite his doubts, Scott concludes that he will try the technique due to its low cost and potential high value, while recognizing the need for more research in this area. Shorter summary

Scott attempts to test a productivity hack using calligraphy study, but discovers calligraphy itself is captivating, leaving the experiment inconclusive. Longer summary

Scott Alexander humorously recounts his attempt to test a productivity hack starting with 'M' using calligraphy study as a metric. He ends up spending seven hours studying calligraphy uninterrupted during the day, and another five hours late at night. Scott concludes that calligraphy is inherently fascinating, rendering his experiment inconclusive about the effectiveness of the productivity technique. Shorter summary