hallucinogen

Santa and His High-Flying Reindeer

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:07:20 +0000

Let’s talk about flying reindeer. And to start, let’s travel to the snow covered fields of Lapland and Siberia, where the legend of Santa Claus may have originated. Hundreds of years ago the inhabitants of these barren lands tried to domesticate reindeer. But herding these animals was not a simple task, at least not until the herders found a most unusual ally in the form of a little red and white mushroom. Reindeer, it seems, just loved Amanita muscaria, or Fly Agaric, as it is better known.

Can psychedelic drugs help with depression?

Christopher Labos MD, MSc — Fri, 29 Sep 2023 10:00:00 +0000

This article was originally posted in the Montreal Gazette.

Is there a scientific explanation behind Moses and the Burning Bush?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 19:21:28 +0000

Suggestions have been made that the Dictamnus albus plant, found throughout northern Africa is a candidate for the burning bush. In the summer, the plant, also known as the “gas plant,” exudes a variety of volatile oils that can catch fire readily and may give the impression that the bush is burning. So was Moses witnessing the combustion of a mix of terpenes, flavonoids, coumarins and phenylpropanoids? An interesting hypothesis about the burning bush, but one that can be readily doused.