Earth and Fire Erowid, who operate the site, presented a sampling of comments at the symposium and documented the two to five known deaths that have been associated with LSD. Like Herbert, many scientists and engineers also report heightened states of creativity while using LSD. During a press conference on Friday, Hofmann revealed that he was told by Nobel-prize-winning chemist Kary Mullis that LSD had helped him develop the polymerase chain reaction that helps amplify specific DNA sequences.
In his presentation, artist Alex Grey noted that Nobel-prize-winner Francis Crick, discoverer of the double helical structure of DNA, also told friends he received inspiration for his ideas from LSD, according to news reports. The gathering included a discussion of how early computer pioneers used LSD for inspiration. Douglas Englebart, the inventor of the mouse, Myron Stolaroff, a former Ampex engineer and LSD researcher who was attending the symposium, and Apple-cofounder Steve Jobs were among them.
But the symposium wasn't just a census of LSD-using notables. Attendees included psychotherapists and psychiatrists who discussed research into the therapeutic usefulness of psychedelic drugs. Michael Mithoefer presented the preliminary findings of his study in Charleston, South Carolina, which is investigating whether MDMA is effective for treating post-traumatic stress disorder in people traumatized by crime or war.
Harvard University professor, Dr. Psychiatrist Charles Grob says his research group has located six of the needed 12 subjects and is looking for more participants. While the data has yet to be analyzed, Grob told seminar participants that all the participants in the study have shown promising reactions, and he applauded the opportunity to share the data in an international gathering.
My body seemed to be without sensation, lifeless, strange. Was I dying? In fact, when the doctor arrived, he detected nothing more alarming that dilated pupils.
Blood pressure, respiration, pulse were all completely normal. The doctor left his bag shut: No medications were required. He simply put Hofmann to bed and waited by his side. Hofmann began to come to himself. The horror softened and gave way to a feeling of good fortune and gratitude, the more normal perceptions and thoughts returned, and I became more confident that the danger of insanity was conclusively past.
Now, little by little, I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes. Kaleidoscopic, fantastic images surged in on me …. By the time his wife arrived home, Hofmann was able to speak coherently about what happened to him. The next morning he wrote:. Everything glistened and sparkled in a fresh light. The world was as if newly created. All my senses vibrated in a condition of highest sensitivity, which persisted for the entire day.
It was clear that a remarkable discovery had been made. First the drug had to be tested extensively on animals to determine any acutely toxic effects that Hofmann had merely been lucky to survive. Animal tests would eventually provide some curious results. Aquarium fish swam oddly, and spiders altered web-building patterns.
However, with higher doses, the webs were badly and rudimentarily made. The salient fact was this: None of the animals in the tests seemed to suffer acute harm at the active dose, and the lethal dose was a hundred times higher than what was necessary for psychic effect, leaving a wide safety margin.
These experiments showed me the enormous impact of—to use modern terms—set and setting on the content and character of the experience. But he also learned something else: Controlling for set and setting had its limits. The unpredictability of effects is the major danger of LSD. Skip to content Site Navigation The Atlantic. Popular Latest. The Atlantic Crossword.
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