Welcome to Psychedelic Neuroscience

What is Psychedelic Neuroscience?

The ultimate aim of neuroscience is to understand the physical mechanisms through which the human mind is generated. For 2000 years, we believed the human spirit flowed through five large empty chambers in the brain to produce what we think, what we imagine, and what we feel (first presented by Herophilus of Alexandria then formalized by Greek physician Galen). Neuroscientists of the scientific revolution began to challenge this view, finding that damage to select regions of brain matter can impair speech, memory, emotion, and even personality, suggesting that cognitive abilities previously ascribed to the soul require the physical matter of the brain. This trajectory has continued, and modern neuroscientists now assume the mechanisms of cognition, emotion, and consciousness are attributed to the physical arrangement and dynamic interactions of neurons. Neuroscience still has much to uncover about the physical basis of human consciousness, but new advances in experimentation and computational analyses are producing an exciting time in history. We may soon be able to understand the physical mechanisms through which the human mind is generated.

Psychedelics provide a promising opportunity in this respect. This class of drugs appear interact with neurological systems responsible for the foundational aspects of the human psyche. With reports of spiritual awakenings, psychosis, and profoundly long-lasting remission from mental illness, psychedelics allow us to stimulate systems of deep psychological transformation. Research into these compounds promises to teach us about sensory perception, learning & memory, language, creativity & cognitive flexibility, spirituality, mental health, and finally, human consciousness. This podcast will centralize the scientific discussion of how psychedelics produce their transformative and perplexing experiences, taking us closer to our ultimate goal of understanding the human mind.