Quiz 18 10- Questions on what the discoverers of Psychoactive drugs had to say.

Honestly I did not know what to title today's quiz. However, the title will be forgotten but not these quotes.The quiz is admittedly a bit difficult and may require a lot of guess work.

1. It has been used as a pain killer since neolithic times and although Paracelsus did not discover it, he was responsible for its introduction in western medicine where he combined it with gold and pearls. He philosophised " All things are poison and nothing is without poison. The dose alone makes a thing no poison". What?

Paracelsus, Swiss German philosopher, physician, botanist, astrologer, and general occultist. Founder of Toxicology

2. This drug was prepared by Thomas Sydenham by dissolving opium in alcohol and was used to treat pain. The drug was given a Latin name, meaning 'praise'. He described his preparation " Among the remedies which it has pleased Almighty God to give to man to relieve his sufferings, none is so Universally and so efficacious as opium" Which drug did he prepare?

The compound continues to be used today, however it comes it this avatar and is called Opium tincture.

3. First synthesized at Sandoz Laboratory in Switzerland by Albert Hofman, its mental effects were discovered five years later when Hoffman accidentally ingested a small quantity  . He wrote " I was forced to stop my work in the laboratory in the middle of the afternoon and to go home as I was seized by a peculiar restlessness associated with a mild dizziness...characterised by extreme activity of imagination. As I lay in a dazed condition with my eyes closed there surged upon me an uninterrupted stream of fantastic images of extraordinary plasticity and vividness and accompanied by and intense, kaleidoscope like play of colours" Three days later on 19th April, Hofmann intentionally ingested this drug and this day is now known as "Bicycle Day" Which drug?

Albert Hofman.

4. William Brooke  O'Shaughnessy introduced it to western medicine after he studied folk remedies of this psychoactive drug while practising in Calcutta . In 1939 while working with the substance in India he described the following incident " The fourth case of trial was an old muscular coolie, a rheumatic malingerer, and to him half a grain of hemp resin was given in a little spirit. The first day's report will suffice for all. In two hours the old gentleman became talkative and musical, told several stories and sang songs ate the dinner of two persons sought also for other luxuries and finally fell soundly asleep" Which drug?

5. After a lot of testing, he was the first to describe it's mental effect. " I existed in a world of new connection and newly modified ideas. I explained to Dr Kinglake ' nothing exists but thoughts! the universe is composed of impressions, ideas, pleasure and pain.'" His use of the substance did not stop after some trials, infact he developed and addiction to it. He was so fascinated by its psychedelic effects that he did not bother to propagate it and for another 50 years the world was none the wiser about it. He grew so attached to his discovery that he used to use it three to four times a day and eventually in 1829 it killed him. Who and what did he discover?

6. R. Gordon Wasson an amateur mycologist and a photographer were the first white men to record their ingestion. Wasson described it as " a soul -shattering experience. I felt that I was now seeing plain, whereas ordianry vision gives us an imperfect view. I was seeing the archetypes, the platonic ideals, that underlie the imperfect images of everyday life. The thought crossed my mind: could they be the secret that lay behind the ancient mysteries?" What was Wasson describing?

 

Some of the first images of its ingestion and after effects.

7. Gordon Alles synthesized this drug in 1927 and  became the first to study its psychological effects. In 1932 the Benzedrine inhailer was introduced after he noted " its stimulating effect on the central nervous system and its relative lasting effect on oral administration and as an inhalant" . Which drug?

Gordon is also credited with discovering and publishing the psychological effects of methylenedioxyamphetamine (The original ecstasy) .

8. This Cactus is well known for its hallucinogenic effects, used by Native North Americans for spiritual purposes,  and contains at least 28 alkaloids. John Raleigh Briggs,the first to draw scientific attention to this cactus ate one third of it and wrote thus " It is certainly the most violent and rapid of fruits or medicines, known to me. I know of nothing like it except opium and cocaine . The most notable point is the rapidity with which it increases the hearts action. Next, the intoxication and subsequent depression. I think it is well worth the trouble to investigate the matter" Identify the Cactus?

Ken Kesey, while working as a night watchman at a psychiatric ward, was inspired by this cactus to write his novel, 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.'

9. This drug was isolated by Arthur Heffter from the Cactus mentioned in the previous question and wrote about it thus " While reading, green and violet spots appear on the paper. The same occurs when I look up at the bright sky. I have predominantly images of kaleidoscopic figures, patterned carpets and cloth, luxurious articles of clothing and architectural scenes" . Aldous Huxley's book 'The Doors of Perception' deals about his experiences with the drug. Which drug?

(1955, English politician Christopher Mayhew took part in an experiment for BBC's Panorama, in which he ingested 400 mg of this drug and praised the experience, calling it "the most interesting thing I ever did". The show was never aired.)

10. Isolated by Friedrich Wilhelm Adam in 1806, and named after the Greek god of dreams, he reported " In order to subject my previous experiments to a rigorous test, I persuaded three people under the age of 17 to join me in taking it...a response occurred quickly in the three young men and...I shared the same fate. Lying down, I got into a dreamy state." Which alkaloid?

This drug is generally believed to be the first isolation of an active ingredient from a plant and was first marketed commercially by Merk in 1827.