These and other medications have been shown in lab tests to help sharpen focus and improve memory.But while modafinil and other drugs are now sometimes used (off label) to improve cognition, particularly among test-cramming students and overwhelmed office workers, the improvements in focus and memory are relatively modest.Moreover, many transhumanists and others predict that while new drugs (say, a specifically designed, IQ-boosting “smart pill”) or genetic engineering could result in substantially enhanced brain function, the straightest and shortest line to dramatically augmenting cognition probably involves computers and information technology.As with biotechnology, information technology’s story is littered with important milestones and markers, such as the development of the transistor by three American scientists at Bell Labs in 1947.Transistors are the electronic signal switches that gave rise to modern computers.By shrinking the electronic components to microscopic size, researchers have been able to build ever smaller, more powerful and cheaper computers.