Brisbane Lions champion Jonathan Brown’s premature exit from the AFL this week after suffering yet another concussion was in many ways unsurprising. His friends and fans describe him as a “warrior” who…
The use of drugs to improve academic performance goes by a number of names – “academic doping”, “cosmetic neurology”, “neuroenhancement”. A recent survey suggested that Australian university students are…
The pursuit of everlasting life has traditionally been consigned to the realms of fantasy, science fiction or eccentric millionaires. But now, one of the world’s tech giants is behind the venture. Last…
The US National Football League (NFL) recently paid US$765 million to settle a lawsuit with former players who claimed repeated head injuries and concussions while playing the sport led to brain degenerative…
Ever wondered how many athletes are legally allowed to take “performance-enhancing drugs”? You read correctly - many elite athletes are given official permission to use drugs that are otherwise banned…
Athletes and officials in charge of collision sports (such as rugby league, AFL and American football) have an uneasy relationship with concussion; it’s an unavoidable feature of their games and there’s…
The new National Rugby League (NRL) season has quickly shown that the use of performance enhancing drugs is not the only ongoing threat to player welfare. The sight of an unconscious Ashley Harrison from…
It was a bonding session that involved prank phone calls, knocking on doors late at night and other acts of “harmless fun”. The men’s 4x100m Olympic freestyle relay team made it sound like they were boys…
Do so-called “smart pills” enhance performance in students? Are they part of a widespread, growing phenomenon? You would be forgiven for thinking so. In a recent article on The Conversation, Simon Outram…
“He got a free trip to Disneyland.” That’s how Wally Lewis described the knockout of Nate Myles, from the Gold Coast Titans, during a tackle two weeks ago. Rugby league is a tough game with tough players…
