11 replies to this topic

[LaurenLikesTo]

Hello everyone
I'm studying for the GREs and when I get to the math part..well lets just say I am one confused mofo. I'll be reading the answer explanation and thinking wow..I would've never came up with that myself. I'm ordering a batch of nootropics but would like to know which one specifically is great for problem solving, equations, algebra, math, quantity comparisons..that kind of thing. Any help would be appreciated

[renfr]

Sulbutiamine has been great to me for logical understandting including math.
Theorically piracetam, oxiracetam and pramiracetam could work as well.

[norepinephrine]

This is actually a question I'm fairly interested in myself, as I'm an economics student and considering a math minor. Needless to say, all of my classes this term are mathetmatical.

The best things I've found are:
-Noopept and piracetam seem to subtly improve my understand and cut down on time to learn new concepts, albeit very slightly. The same can be said for ginkgo/gotu tincture and ALCAR.
-Aerobic exercise and sleep both noticeably improve my ability to learn new information in class, moreso than racetams.
-Meditation always seems to invariably improve my attention to detail while solving problems - e.g., not making basic mistakes on arithmetic, not forgetting to carry over things like a negative side from one page to the next in my work.
-Stimulants generally correlate with an attitudal change in me wherein working on problems suddenly becomes much more interesting and fulfilling; in that regard, espresso, high quality green tea, the CILTEP stack and Adderall all improve this mechanism to varying degrees. This, in turn, makes me much more motivated to tackle novel material. Coupled with the usual effects of stimulants, I approach an understanding of said material more rapidly given higher focus and attention. (Caveat: I was diagnosed with ADD around age 5, but did very little in the past for treatment.)
-Ashwagandha, theanine from green tea and to a lesser extent, piracetam both seem to cut down a little on exam anxiety, although this is something that has to be held tightly in balance. Cut down too much and I don't care about the exam anymore(!)
-Correcting a vitamin D imbalance has actually had quite an improvement on my motivation and energy.

As well, anything that really improves working memory will without a doubt help you on things that require remembering multiple steps while focusing in on a single one, though I believe GRE math is pretty basic and doing well at it involves mainly being very quick with mental arithmetic. I'm still searching for something that really improves my own working memory, as neither creatine, omega-3's nor any of the stuff listed above seems to have had much of an effect. (I'm open to trying dual-n-back or similar exercises.)

[Sir Chugalot]

I've tried all the major 'racetams, when it comes to pure cold ass logic, Aniracetam is by far the winner for me, followed by Pramiracetam, be warned though they do can come at a bit of a cost in terms of putting you in a bit of a 'spock' mode, emotions definitely get dampened.

Edited by Sir Chugalot, 06 March 2013 - 10:51 PM.

[norepinephrine]

With aniracetam, I found that I'd get brain fog for around the first half-hour to hour, followed by clarity afterwards. The problem for me was definitely the Spock-effect, as well as depressive episodes that seemed to increase in severity with the dosage. Couldn't take the trade-offs but your mileage may vary.

[brainslugged]

From what I understand, a large part of intuitive math ability depends on the Parietal lobe of your brain.

So far, we have racetams that primarily effect the frontal and temporal lobes, but not the back two AFIK. However, I think I remember something about anabolic steroids damaging the parietal lobe and consequently spacial ability, and testosterone seems to have some sort of effect on it, in some cases good and in some cases bad. Don't take my word on that, though, ha ha.

Increasing your frontal and temporal ability will certainly help, so I would say it would be good to take pi and oxiracetam. Also, I believe I read somewhere that exercise helps with spacial ability, so that may be affecting the parietal lobes and thus math ability, I am not sure if it was due to parietal lobes, though, or if it was due to increased spacial working memory from frontal stimulation.

[middpanther88]

I recommend pyritonol and pramiracetam for this function.

[soulfiremage]

TDCS on both parietal lobes, then dlpfc and frontal - left for both (at least in right handers, dunno for lefties :P).

Uncertain as to the best delay between treatments, though 13-20 minutes is considered optimal in one experiment.

[middpanther88]

Pyritinol*

[Rethar]

Pramiracetam all the way. It makes your brain go into this kind of "pure logic" mode with laserlike-focus and a huge increase in the ability to remember what you're learning. For me I also needed some supplemental choline along with it or my memory would actually get worse. Drawbacks is that the powder tastes godawful and talking to other people while on it can be a bit strange when you're only thinking logically.

[stablemind]

+1 for Pramiracetam, along with dopamine metabolism cofactors like Phenylalanine/Tyrosine and a Choline source such as eggs/soy milk.

I've found it really easy to memorize numbers when on Pram and it really helps my logic, and the effects seem much stronger if I add the cofactors/ Choline source.

[Mind_Paralysis]

This thread is quite fascinating... I have dyscalculia myself, and if there is a noot that increases your number sense, and makes it easier to handle basic Arithmetic, then that would definitely be a PERMANENT addition to my regimen.

 

Pramiracetam you all say... going to have to look into that compound.

Edited by Stinkorninjor, 04 October 2014 - 06:44 PM.