Like the other students, Stern said his primary motive was monetary.

"I chose them because they were high paying. It's not worth the effort of seven dollars for one hour. If I wanted that, I could just get a job. I like the one fat lump sum," Stern said.

The "fame" that came later was merely an added bonus.

"The really cool thing was that one day I looked at the cover of the [Harvard] Gazette and saw the doctor who had run the experiment and he was making headlines with his research. And I was one of the subjects who allowed him to figure out how memory works," Stern said.

Even Stern, however, said that he would be unwilling to participate in a study which required him to be hooked up to rectal temperature sensors while staying up for 38 hours straight.

"I would never consider such a thing. Never, never, never, never ever. There's not enough money in the world," he said, before asking how much it paid.

While students universally opposed the idea of participating in such a study, members of the administration said that the risk to students in most of these experiments is minimal.

Experiments conducted at the College that may present a risk to the participants require approval by the Standing Committee on the Use of Human Subjects in Research. Additionally, the Committee on Student Research Participation must approve studies that would use students as participants.

"What we look for is that the research is warranted, the solicitation of subjects is appropriate and consistent with University rules, and that students aren't deceived or mistreated or asked to do things that require an excess time commitment," said Charles P. Ducey, director of the Bureau of Study Council and chair of the committee on student research participation "The harm or risk is relatively minimal with these studies," Ducey said