Dr Rick Strassman, currently an Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico, is one of the leading pioneers of modern psychedelic research. His studies on DMT, which took place between 1990 and 1995, broke the 20-year gap in psychedelic research. Strassman’s work on DMT, which kickstarted what has become known as…
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The Netflix docuseries How to Change Your Mind, based on Michael Pollan’s book of the same name, explores the history and therapeutic effects of four different psychoactive compounds: LSD, psilocybin, MDMA, and mescaline (with the episodes in that order). Directed by Alison Ellwood and Lucy Walker, and presented by Pollan, How to Change Your Mind…
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Blaise Pascal (1623-62) was a French mathematician, physicist, philosopher, and Catholic theologian. One of his most influential contributions to the philosophy of religion is a philosophical argument known as Pascal’s wager. This idea was published posthumously in Pascal’s Pensées (“Thoughts”). This post will describe how Pascal’s wager can be usefully applied to animal ethics, namely,…
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Ecotourism, a term that emerged in the 1980s, refers to a niche segment of tourism in natural areas. According to David E. Fennell, “Ecotourism is a sustainable form of natural resource-based tourism that focuses primarily on experiencing and learning about nature, and which is ethically managed to be low-impact, non-consumptive, and locally-oriented (control, benefits, and…
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The Fire Within (1963) is a drama film written and directed by Louis Malle, which goes by the title Le Feu follet in French, meaning “The Manic Fire” or “Will-o’-the-Wisp”. It’s based on the 1931 novel Will O’ the Wisp by Pierre Drieu La Rochelle, which itself was inspired by the life of the French…
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