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March 8, 2001: Psychoactive and Healing Plants - Dr. Dennis McKenna
Published 1 year, 5 months ago
Description
Art Bell welcomes Richard C. Hoagland to discuss the growing controversy over Senator John Glenn's UFO-related remarks on the television comedy Frasier. Hoagland reports that the show's production company claims Glenn approached them, not the other way around, and argues the statement functions as a trial balloon for disclosure. NBC posts partial video clips online, and Hoagland notes that two major newspaper reporters plan to investigate further.
Dr. Dennis McKenna, brother of the late Terence McKenna, then joins for a wide-ranging discussion on psychoactive plants and ethnopharmacology. Dennis reflects on his brother's legacy and expresses gratitude for listener support during Terence's illness. He explains the pharmacology of DMT and ayahuasca, how Amazonian peoples combine two plants to make DMT orally active, and describes his fieldwork in Peru and Colombia during the 1970s and 1980s.
The conversation turns to the war on drugs, where Dennis argues for distinguishing between plants and purified compounds. He discusses endogenous DMT in the human brain, Rick Strassman's research showing a spike in DMT production on the 49th day of fetal development, and the possible connection between naturally occurring tryptamines and near-death experiences.
Dr. Dennis McKenna, brother of the late Terence McKenna, then joins for a wide-ranging discussion on psychoactive plants and ethnopharmacology. Dennis reflects on his brother's legacy and expresses gratitude for listener support during Terence's illness. He explains the pharmacology of DMT and ayahuasca, how Amazonian peoples combine two plants to make DMT orally active, and describes his fieldwork in Peru and Colombia during the 1970s and 1980s.
The conversation turns to the war on drugs, where Dennis argues for distinguishing between plants and purified compounds. He discusses endogenous DMT in the human brain, Rick Strassman's research showing a spike in DMT production on the 49th day of fetal development, and the possible connection between naturally occurring tryptamines and near-death experiences.