••• ISION, RTICLES, EVIEWS, TORIES, NFORMATION, HOUGHTS AND WHAT OU WANT TO READ ••• The Independent Student Newspaper est. 1947
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Friday 24th February 2012 Issue No 755 | varsity.co.uk
Science: Coffee habit
14 Music: Jarvis Cocker discusses his lyrics, and draws a distinction between poetry and pop
Drug survey: the score
63%
● Varsity survey reveals 14 per cent of Cambridge students have sold drugs for profit ● Students take drugs to relax with 36 per cent taking prescription drugs recreationally by Matt Russell NEWS EDITOR
Over 60 per cent of Cambridge students admitted to having taken illegal drugs, a Varsity survey reveals. The online survey was open to all members of the University, but was taken almost entirely by undergraduates. It paints the picture of a scene of mixed perceptions with students disagreeing strongly over whether there is much of a drugs scene or problem among Cambridge students. According to the results, 63 per cent of students have taken illegal drugs, with 45 per cent of them having experimented before they even turned 16. Forty-five per cent of those who take drugs admitted to buying illegal drugs for their friends. Alarmingly, 14 per cent also admitted to having sold drugs for a profit, which would be considered dealing drugs in the eyes of the law. More students seemed to see a problem in others rather than themselves as STUDENTS SPEAK “Cambridge students hide their habits much better than elsewhere.” “I’ve found that psychedelic drug use makes Cambridge look like Vegas.” “The relative affluence of Cambridge students seems to lend itself to drug taking. I’m more worried, though, about the student alcoholism I see than about drug taking.” “Like everything in Cambridge drugs are done to a new level of intensity. Work hard play hard.” “I would never do drugs during term time here. The intensity of the work means I could not spend ‘time out of mind’ and keep on top of the course!” 1CM 1CM 2402_003433
35 per cent of people felt that at least one of their friends had a serious drug problem. The responses, though, suggest that there is no serious drug problem in Cambridge with students believing any drug scene to be “pretty relaxed” and “more chilled than at other universities”. This is despite 14 per cent of students who had taken drugs saying that they had been hospitalised or requried professional medical attention as a result. Only 5 per cent of respondents admitted to using illegal drugs daily, with 78 per cent of them taking drugs, at most, on a monthly basis. This is reflected in the type of drugs taken with marijuana unsurprisingly being the most popular. Marijuana was used more commonly than other drugs by 61 per cent of students, with 55 per cent of all students believing it to be the least harmful of the listed drugs, including tobacco. Less than 1 per cent of students say they take heroin more frequently than any other drug, while cocaine is the most commonly taken Class A drug. This was reflected in the comments with several students remarking how Cambridge was more noticeable for its cocaine use than other universities and that there was “an awful lot of cocaine use in comparison to other universities I’ve studied at.” The findings suggest that not much has changed in the four years since Varsity found evidence of cocaine use at eight colleges as well as other popular student venues. Though Cambridge’s drug scene may not be prolific, the comments revealed a protective attitude towards drugs, often comparing it favourably against alcohol. Despite the survey not including alcohol as an option for ‘most dangerous drug’, many participants took pains to outline the health threat alcohol poses, despite its socialisation. One survey
17 Art: This week’s ‘Hidden
HAVE TAKEN ILLEGAL DRUGS
Treasures’ from Kings
“When I went to war I didn’t just go there as a bloodthirsty photographer wanting to make a living for myself. I went there aware of my humanity.”
35%
THINK THEIR FRIENDS HAVE SERIOUS DRUG PROBLEMS
Interview: Don McCullin
10
45%
participant identified Cambridge as “a city where students ‘overdose’ on alcohol on a regular basis’” and this is “overwhelmingly more of a problem” than drug abuse. Several identified the social scene as alcohol-fuelled, with friends who may not be drug addicts but are identified instead as alcoholics. It was further explained how, “Drugs are still very much misunderstood... people prefer to get smashed on alcohol, a drug that ruins a huge number of lives. I’d say I admire drugs from afar – most people here seem to terrified of them, but regard alcohol as something safe and normal.” These comments on alcohol often accompanied calls to legalise cannabis. A common theme was how drugs affect work as 70 per cent of students claimed that using illegal drugs did not affect their ability to work, while 20 per cent of those asked said that they had
MUSIC
Sleigh Bells, Anais Mitchell
HAVE BOUGHT ILLEGAL DRUGS FOR THEIR FRIENDS
BOOKS
The Spider King’s Daughter
taken drugs to manage the stress or workload. This was reflected in the comments as well: “I think drugs are used sensibly by students in Cambridge. It is unsurprising in such a high stress environment that so many students use drugs as a way to relax and completely disconnect from this.” Indeed, one student went as far to suggest that they, and others, chose what drugs they took based on the Cambridge workload: “Ketamine seems to be getting more popular because you can get really mashed but feel OK to study the next day. However, most students insist that they refrain for the sake of their work. And, as if to prove that the drugs don’t work: “Someone took 2CB the night before a maths exam and got 1 per cent, another guy took so many uppers for a sustained period of time that his skin started to shed like a snake.”
FILM
A Dangerous Method
ART
Unbridled Conversations
THEATRE
The Priory, Les Justes
WEEKEND WEATHER
PS. Oh, is this the way they say the future’s meant to feel?
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