Anthropology

Mushroom enthusiasts discover two new psilocybe species

Van der Merwe and colleagues’ paper documents the two discoveries, while also featuring insights on the medicinal use of P. maluti by Basotho traditional healers. Van der Merwe and colleagues’ paper documents the two discoveries, while also featuring insights on the medicinal use of P. maluti by Basotho traditional healers… this study is the only recorded firsthand report of…

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Anthropology

Narco-deforestation and its climate impact in Central America

Recently the growing connection between deforestation and drug trafficking in Central America has led to what researchers from Oregon State University have called ‘narco-deforestation’. Increasingly, evidence suggests that increased drug trafficking networks are linked to forest losses in Central America: this is most likely accelerated by the fact that 86% of global cocaine transits through this region before reaching…

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Anthropology

Connecticut lawmakers weigh another bill to decriminalize small amounts of psilocybin

Connecticut lawmakers are considering another push to decriminalize psilocybin – a psychedelic substance often called magic mushrooms – after a similar bill stalled late in last year’s legislative process amid skepticism from Gov. Ned Lamont. Julia Bergman, a spokesperson for the governor, said Monday [1/8/24] that it was too soon to speculate whether Lamont would…

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Anthropology

New bipartisan Washington bill would legalize psilocybin… for veterans and first responders

The new limited measure would require nonprofits to use psychedelics facilitators licensed “by the state of Oregon… …or another state with with a state facilitator license and licensure requirements that meet or exceed the Oregon state requirements with regard to required training, background checks, and licensing examination.” Original Article (Marijuana Moment):New bipartisan Washington bill would…

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Anthropology

…embracing change

Confronted with financial barriers, alongside the fact treatment centers don’t implement practices from other therapies or shamanistic traditions, others have found a way to utilize psychedelic healing… like psilocybin… here in Eugene. When exploring psychedelic therapy, James Hin realized treatment centers were not accessible to a diverse clientele and saw value in creating a space…

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Anthropology

Harvard launches new study of psychedelics in society and culture

The $16 million gift will include an endowed professorship with a broad focus on human health and flourishing… These fellowships in Psychedelics, Transcendence, and Consciousness Studies, based between Harvard and the University of California, Berkeley, will engage researchers from different fields to forge cross-disciplinary research. Original Article (Harvard University):Harvard launches new study of psychedelics in…

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Anthropology

…terror at music festival…

The Supernova Sukkot Gathering was a weekend-long outdoor trance music festival that began on 6 October 2023. Thousands of young men and women gathered at a vast field in southern Israel near the Gaza border to dance without a care. Old and new friends jumped up and down, reveling in the swirl of the bass-heavy…

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Anthropology

Magic mushrooms… San Francisco…

Hodges said his church, which has nearly 92,000 members, is accepting new members only at its original location in Oakland. Dave Hodges, the founder of Zide Door… his organization is not relying on the Board of Supervisors’ 2022 resolution for legal protection and is instead relying on the federal government’s First Amendment right to freedom…

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Anthropology

Drugs and religion have been a potent combination for millennia, from cannabis at ancient funerary sites to psychedelic retreats today

What led our prehistoric ancestors to these powerful plants and fungi, and why did they use them over and over? It would be very easy to project contemporary desires onto them: to battle depression or escape everyday life; to heal wounds, both physical and mental; to get high and just feel good; to self-medicate; to…

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