British scientists have a pill to make you less racist
Baku, March 9 (AZERTAC). By Alex Moore 1 day agoRacism: a plague as old as humanity. Now, British scientists claim to have have stumbled upon a “cure” of sorts—a new miracle pill to sap the bigot right out of you. And the real miracle? They didn`t even have to invent a new pill to do it. NY Daily News reports via the Telegraph that researchers at Oxford University discovered in tests that a heart disease medication, Propranolol, which is used to lower blood pressure, has the surprise effect of mellowing attitudes of racial prejudice. In the study, a group of 18 white students were given 20 mg doses of the drug before taking a test to gauge prejudice attitudes, while another group was given a placebo. In one part of the test, volunteers were asked to sort pictures of black and white faces into categories along with positive and negative words, such as “happy” and “sad.” In another segment, the test-takers were asked to report how “warm” they felt toward certain groups, including black people and Muslims. Results showed the group that took propranolol showed lower “implicit” racist feelings, meaning they appeared less racist on a subconscious level. The scientists apparently believe that the drug affects racial prejudice because it works on the part of the brain that processes fear and other deeply embedded emotional responses. But, point out other scientists, taking a drug that impacts the brain`s fear processor doesn`t necessarily make it a bigot-blocker. “We don`t know whether the drug influenced racial attitudes only or whether it altered implicit brain systems more generally,” said Dr. Chris Chambers. In other words, calling Propranolol an anti-racist pill may be like calling ecstasy a “happiness” pill—broadly accurate, but too broad to really count. However, if accurate, this will be the second major unintended side effect of blood pressure medication to become a boon to mankind: Minoxidil used to be taken orally to lower blood pressure until it was accidentally discovered to also regrow hair. Now it`s the main ingredient in Rogaine.
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