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Lots of revived interest in psychedelics that is finally coming front and center in no small part due to Michael Pollan's recent book "How to Change Your Mind".

Lots of revived interest in psychedelics that is finally coming front and center in no small part due to Michael Pollan's recent book "How to Change Your Mind". Rolland Griffiths plays a pivotal role in the book (and in the real life advocacy and study of psychedelics) and Pollan probably seeded the ideas of psilocybin's potential into the right ears around Berkeley and on his book tour [1]. Think there's a ton of potential here and looking forward to what research comes out of this new group. [1] The center's operational expenses for the first five years will be covered by private funding from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation and four philanthropists: Tim Ferriss, author and technology investor; Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress; Blake Mycoskie, founder of the shoe and accessory brand TOMS; and investor Craig Nerenberg.

colechristensen 7y ago
Pollan's book pushed something that was obviously growing fast over the edge into a lot of popular awareness. That awareness is probably what is necessary to really get these things started and accepted socially which translates into regulatory acceptance. Sadly everything is a popularity contest.
gravelc 7y ago
Suspect Joe Rogan has also been a fair influence too. His podcast has a massive and varied fan base, and he's a pretty consistent promoter of the benefits of psychedelics.
- imesh 7y ago
  I think it's just the world. Joe Rogan is popular because currently "Joe Rogan Things" are growing (Weed, fitness, nutrition, MMA, psychadelics). These are all trending.
  - cjhveal 7y ago
    There's likely a feedback loop involved. Commentators who happen to talk about trending topics become popular; their popular platform can bring those topics to a broader audience; that broader audience stokes the hype around the trend and builds the audience further through (social media-amplified) word of mouth.
  - magashna 7y ago
    It's still rare for a celebrity to be as gung-ho and upfront about drug use, while also being very healthy. Usually drug use and celebrities are mentioned together in tabloids along with calls for them to go to rehab.
- Ididntdothis 7y ago
  For me he definitely made psychedelics from something I vaguely had heard about and only crazy people use into something normal people could use.
- gooddadmike 7y ago
  Tim Ferris donated a lot of his personal wealth directly to this cause and promoted it on his podcast frequently as well.
scottlocklin 7y ago
They all have blood on their hands. Some people may benefit from these drugs. Some people destroy themselves with them. It's far from clear what the ratios are here, and attempting to popularize yet another mind-bending "soma" in a culture that can barely deal with beer is wildly irresponsible. And as for all y'awl self congratulatory bozos who think this stuff is "just so amazing" -I've used enough of them to know they're not. It's fundamentally a mentally masturbatory experience; something that confuses people in a way that increases their self regard. I suppose some psychotics also have high self regard.
milchek 7y ago
For those interested, there is a fantastic documentary called, "The Substance: Albert Hofmann's LSD" which was released in 2011 (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2075352/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2075352/) that covers a lot of the history of how LSD was discovered and then made its way to the US, and then subsequently how the proliferation of the drug shaped a lot of the cultural landscape in the US.
stevenicr 7y ago
I was very impressed with the info in "Sacred Knowledge: by William A. Richards" There is so much info about many different issues that can be treated, and the info coming from the doctors / scientists at Johns Hopkins that's in the book, is awesome. I find it is a great bridge for those who are in the medical community / or lean towards not believing there is therapeutic uses.. scientific proof from JH is proof. However this book is also extra beneficial to those who already believe or understand some of the 'magical effects' - as it gets into some of the studies and some of the methods - and opens the doors to furthering the use in many ways.

colechristensen 7y ago

Pollan's book pushed something that was obviously growing fast over the edge into a lot of popular awareness. That awareness is probably what is necessary to really get these things started and accepted socially which translates into regulatory acceptance. Sadly everything is a popularity contest.

gravelc 7y ago

Suspect Joe Rogan has also been a fair influence too. His podcast has a massive and varied fan base, and he's a pretty consistent promoter of the benefits of psychedelics.

imesh 7y ago
I think it's just the world. Joe Rogan is popular because currently "Joe Rogan Things" are growing (Weed, fitness, nutrition, MMA, psychadelics). These are all trending.
- cjhveal 7y ago
  There's likely a feedback loop involved. Commentators who happen to talk about trending topics become popular; their popular platform can bring those topics to a broader audience; that broader audience stokes the hype around the trend and builds the audience further through (social media-amplified) word of mouth.
- magashna 7y ago
  It's still rare for a celebrity to be as gung-ho and upfront about drug use, while also being very healthy. Usually drug use and celebrities are mentioned together in tabloids along with calls for them to go to rehab.
Ididntdothis 7y ago
For me he definitely made psychedelics from something I vaguely had heard about and only crazy people use into something normal people could use.
gooddadmike 7y ago
Tim Ferris donated a lot of his personal wealth directly to this cause and promoted it on his podcast frequently as well.

scottlocklin 7y ago

They all have blood on their hands. Some people may benefit from these drugs. Some people destroy themselves with them. It's far from clear what the ratios are here, and attempting to popularize yet another mind-bending "soma" in a culture that can barely deal with beer is wildly irresponsible. And as for all y'awl self congratulatory bozos who think this stuff is "just so amazing" -I've used enough of them to know they're not. It's fundamentally a mentally masturbatory experience; something that confuses people in a way that increases their self regard. I suppose some psychotics also have high self regard.

milchek 7y ago

For those interested, there is a fantastic documentary called, "The Substance: Albert Hofmann's LSD" which was released in 2011 (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2075352/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2075352/) that covers a lot of the history of how LSD was discovered and then made its way to the US, and then subsequently how the proliferation of the drug shaped a lot of the cultural landscape in the US.

stevenicr 7y ago

I was very impressed with the info in "Sacred Knowledge: by William A. Richards" There is so much info about many different issues that can be treated, and the info coming from the doctors / scientists at Johns Hopkins that's in the book, is awesome. I find it is a great bridge for those who are in the medical community / or lean towards not believing there is therapeutic uses.. scientific proof from JH is proof. However this book is also extra beneficial to those who already believe or understand some of the 'magical effects' - as it gets into some of the studies and some of the methods - and opens the doors to furthering the use in many ways.