LSD was developed in 1938 by Arthur Stoll and Albert Hofmann, Swiss chemists hoping to create a headache cure. In 1943 Hofmann accidentally ingested some of the drug and discovered its hallucinogenic effect. In the 1960s and 70s it was used by millions of young people in America; its popularity waned as its reputation for bad trips and resulting accidents and suicides became known. In 1967, the federal government classified it as a Schedule I drug, i.e., having a high abuse potential and no accepted medical use, along with heroin and marijuana. In the early 1990s it again became popular, presumably because of its low cost. It is produced in clandestine laboratories.
BibliographySee publications of the Drugs & Crime Data Center and Clearinghouse, the Bureau of Justice Statistics Clearinghouse, and the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information.
The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
Hallucination, false perception characterized by a distortion of real sensory stimuli. Common types of hallucination are auditory, i.e., hearing voices or noises and visual, i.e., seeing peopl...
Alkaloid, any of a class of organic compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and usually oxygen that are often derived from plants. Although the name means alkalilike, some alkaloids ...
Leary, Timothy Francis, 1920–96, American psychologist and educator, b. Springfield, Mass.; B.A., Univ. of Alabama, 1943; M.A., Washington State Univ.; Ph.D., Univ. of California at Berkeley, ...
Kesey, Ken Elton, 1935–2001, American novelist and counterculture figure, b. La Junta, Colo.; grad. Univ. of Oregon (1957), Stanford Univ. (1960). While a student he volunteered for a hospital...
Ergot, disease of rye and other cereals caused by the fungus Claviceps purpurea. The cottony, matlike body, or mycelium, of the fungus develops in the ovaries of the host plant; it eventually ...
Serotonin, organic compound that was first recognized as a powerful vasoconstrictor occurring in blood serum. It was partially purified, crystallized, and named in 1948, and its structure was ...
Grateful Dead, The, American rock music group formed in 1965 by guitarists Jerry Garcia, 1942–95, and Bob Weir, 1947–, harmonica player Ron Pigpen McKernan, 1945–73, bassist Phil Lesh, 1940–, ...
Huxley, Aldous Leonard, 1894–1963, English author; grandson of Thomas Henry Huxley. Educated at Eton and Oxford, he traveled widely and during the 1920s lived in Italy. He came to the United S...
Drug poisoning, toxic effects caused by an administered drug. Worldwide more than 9 million natural and synthetic chemicals have been identified; fewer than 3000 cause more than 95% of acident...
Hallucinogenic drug, any of a group of substances that alter consciousness; also called psychotomimetic (i.e., mimicking psychosis), mind-expanding, or psychedelic drug. The group includes mes...
|
|