The Drug Addict Norn Project
Norns can help combat the huge problem of substance abuse. One reason drugs make such headway is that gratification is immediate while the harmful effects are long term. If potential human addicts could see the process speeded up, they might become less susceptible to substance abuse. But how could this done without harming humans or animals?  Enter artificial life. I have created a "Magic Drug" cob and  genetically engineered a Norn to make it susceptible to it. Spike straight after a fix Spike after the high has worn off The "Magic Drug" is intensely pleasurable but the effect wears off very quickly. It is toxic in the long term. Poor Spike. In the first picture he has just emptied the pill bottle and is so high he is positively beaming. In the second, the drug has worn off and a new pill has magically appeared in the bottle. Over time Spike became less interested in the world around him. My daughter, Rachel, drew a picture for him that you can see in the background. Norns like looking at pictures, but for Spike, this pleasure became insufficient for his insatiable appetite. As his drug addiction worsened he became increasingly obsessed with the Magic Drug. Eventually, he popped pills every few minutes. Between fixes he lies on the ground clutching his pill bottle and shivering. He never made it to adulthood. The simulation is so life-like that one easily enters into the pathos of this one little Norn's life.   My hope is that those seeing the dramatic effects of substance abuse on artificial life will be encouraged to say no to drug abuse.
Download C1 Magic Drug Addict Norn	Has extra genes to ensure susceptibility to drug addiction. Make sure you make a copy as this norn  will not live for very long.
C1 Magic Drug Dispensor	There is high pleasure and reward in the short-term, but a buildup of glycotoxin in the long-term.
C2 LSD Drug Addict Norn	The genes for drug addiction work differently to the C1 drug addicts. As before, make sure you make a copy as this norn will not live for very long.
C2 LSD Dispensor	LSD is hallucinogenic. There is high pleasure and reward in the short-term, later the norn thinks it sees Grendils. There is a build up of toxins in the long-term. The drug bottle can be smashed.
	Video clip of Joey who is seriously addicted to LSD! The pills are no longer very effective in producing short term pleasant effects. This is why he looks so cross.
C2 Norn Skeleton Cob	When norns die and go to heaven, they leave a skeleton behind. The skeleton is removed after a while. Use this cob to really bring home the dangers of drug abuse.

Magic Drug addiction and the meaning of life

Poor Spike found out that drugs are big on short-term promise, but small on long-term delivery. As he became caught up in immediate pleasures, he forfeited life as a whole.  It is uncanny how this mimics the human experience. How often have you heard of the man who makes money the chief aim of life. At the end of his life he looks back and realises that somehow he missed it.  Others seek for sexual pleasure , or fame,  or  happiness or whatever. There is nothing wrong with these things. The problem emerges when one makes them the centre of one's life. What is the true centre or meaning of life? Are you looking for answers? Contact me 

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