Science & technology | Well informed

The drug is hugely addictive but it does boost mental performance

A cigarette with the smoke in the shape of a brain
Illustration: Cristina Spanò

|3 min read

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “What nicotine does to your brain”

From the September 20th 2025 edition

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In front of the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China’s first tokamak donated to the Institute by the Soviet Union.

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