SUMMARYIn an attempt to clarify an issue rendered equally confusing by over‐enthusiasm on the one hand and a legacy of negative bias on the other, the author undertook to evaluate the respirogenic acitvity in man of the newer stimulants doxapram, ethamivan, methylphenida‐te, prethcamide, dimefline, and benzquinami‐de, and to compare this activity with that of the older “classical” agents caffeine, bemegri‐de, alpha‐lobeline, aminophylline, coramine, and pentylenetetrazol, as well as with a placebo, normal saline. The results of this study show that doxapram is by far the most potent and selectively respirogenic of all twelve of the active agents studied, and at the same time, that this drug alone was virtually free from side effects, the incidence of these being less than that seen with the placebo. In view of these findings, the authors propose three new uses for such a specific pharmacolog