Piracetam supposedly helps with memory and cognition by increasing blood flow to the brain or something... I got some to play around with and will let you guys know if anything interesting happens.
Piracetam works by influencing acetylcholine. Vinpocetine and ginko-biloba are examples of vasodilators (work by increasing blood flow to the brain).
I (strongly) recommend adding a choline supplement when supplementing with piracetam (and the other *racetams). You burn through choline more quickly when using them and so can end up with mediocre results and sometimes a headache if you neglect a choline supplement.
Also give the piracetam a couple of weeks before you expect to feel the full impact.
The imminst.org forums have a useful subforum on nootropics that is worth checking out.
Thanks for the info.
I was planning on trying it without the choline first to see if it was really needed.
Any ideas on how to actually test performance?
I've often had half-finished LW post ideas and crossed them off for a number of reasons, mostly they were too rough or undeveloped and I didn't feel expert enough. Other people might worry their post would be judged harshly, or feel overwhelmed, or worried about topicality, or they just want some community input before adding it.
So: this is a special sort of open thread. Please post your unfinished ideas and sketches for LW posts here as comments, if you would like constructive critique, assistance and checking from people with more expertise, etc. Just pile them in without worrying too much. Ideas can be as short as a single sentence or as long as a finished post. Both subject and presentation are on topic in replies. Bad ideas should be mined for whatever good can be found in them. Good ideas should be poked with challenges to make them stronger. No being nasty!