The data used in making this statement is utterly skewed. I defer to Kuhn to explain why - how many variables were accounted for in any study supporting this conclusion? This doesn't have to be epistemologically far removed - there are real variables I'm sure were not accounted for. For example, the DEA has been on campaign for 2 years to subvert the FDAs authority - where exactly did funding come from and by whom? Also, one has to consider the rapidly shifting economic climate we live in - certainly that would have an effect on performance if it is weighing on a student's mind... Problems with the scope and geolocation of participants are clear. And the article writer forgot to address what is placed at the end of every published scientific study - it's limitations and how the study could have been better. And then there still are all those epistemological problems (infinite variables) still sitting there, glaring....