Glossary
active placebo: A type of placebo used in drug trials to fool the volunteer into thinking he has
received the psychoactive drug being tested. In the psilocybin trials, researchers have used niacin,
which produces a tingling sensation, and methylphenidate (Ritalin), which is a stimulant.
ayahuasca: A psychedelic tea made from a combination of plants native to the Amazon basin,
typically Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis (or chacruna), and used sacramentally by
indigenous peoples of South America. The chacruna plant contains the psychedelic compound
DMT (N,N-dimethyltryptamine), but it is deactivated by digestive enzymes unless it is ingested
with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor such as Banisteriopsis. In 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court
affirmed the right of the Brazil-based UDV Church to use ayahuasca as a sacrament.
Beckley Foundation: The organization established by Amanda Feilding in England in 1998 to
support research into psychedelics and advocate internationally for the reform of drug laws. The
organization is named for Feilding’s ancestral estate in Oxfordshire (BeckleyFoundation.org).
Council on Spiritual Practices (CSP): A nonprofit organization established by Bob Jesse in 1993
and “dedicated to making direct experience of the sacred more available to more people.” CSP
helped organize and fund the first experiments in psychedelic research at Johns Hopkins; CSP
also supported the suit that resulted in the 2006 Supreme Court decision recognizing ayahuasca
as a sacrament in the UDV Church. In 1995, CSP developed and published the “Code of Ethics for
Spiritual Guides” that many underground psychedelic guides have adopted (csp.org).
default mode network (DMN): A set of interacting brain structures first described in 2001 by the
Washington University neuroscientist Marcus Raichle. The default mode network, called that
because it is most active when the brain is in a resting state, links parts of the cerebral cortex with
deeper and evolutionarily older structures of the brain involved in emotion and memory. (Its key
structures include, and link, the posterior cingulate cortex, the medial prefrontal cortex, and the
hippocampus.) Neuroimaging studies suggest that the DMN is involved in such higher-order
“metacognitive” activities as self-reflection, mental projection, time travel, and theory of mind—
the ability to attribute mental states to others. Activity in the DMN falls during the psychedelic
experiences, and when it falls most precipitously volunteers often report a dissolution of their
sense of self.
DMT (or N,N-dimethyltryptamine): A rapid-onset, intense, and short-acting psychedelic
compound sometimes referred to as “the businessman’s trip.” This tryptamine molecule is found
in many plants and animals for reasons not well understood.
empathogen: A psychoactive drug that produces a heightened sense of connectedness, emotional
openness, and compassion. MDMA, or Ecstasy, is such a drug. Also sometimes called an