intechgration
Rising Star
Hello all!
I ran across this forum some months ago when looking to expand my knowledge of the science of entheogens. I read the Nexus forums and wiki for some time, and was continually impressed by the quantity and quality of information. As I read more, I began to recognize members as they contributed to new threads. I started to get drawn into the interaction between members and was repeatedly intrigued by the resulting conversations. In all my time floating about the interwebs, I've never found such an amazing community; it simply blew me away. The amount of knowledge that they possess, their innovative spirit, helpful attitude, and general understanding of everything surrounding this subject is unrivaled. It seems like everything here is well thought-out, from the organization of the forum and wiki, through the deft moderation of threads, right down to the construction of individual posts. But not only do these people have a powerful understanding of the science of the spirit molecule, they seem to have a deep understanding and respect for the spiritual and symbolic aspects that inevitably accompany such a substance. Having found such a wondrous place, I quickly developed a desire to get involved with the Nexus community.
A little about me:
I'm from the Midwest US, and I'm currently at university studying biochemistry and electrical engineering. I plan on attending graduate school after my undergraduate education is complete. I desire a career as a researcher, ideally studying the brain and the fascinating phenomenon of consciousness.
In high school I was initially very intrigued by physics. I wanted to grow-up to become a physicist and help unravel the mysteries of the universe. However, as I began to study chemistry and biology in their most basic forms, I was intrigued by the staggeringly complex chemical systems that enable life. As I learned the fundamentals of the life sciences, the mysteries of the brain and consciousness interested me the most. I soon came to believe that what we know of reality is based entirely upon our own perception. I thought that if humanity is ever to understand the universe that it inhabits, it must first fully understand itself (which we clearly do not). If humanity's only way of interacting with an external universe is through the mind, then the mind must be understood if there is to be any hope of truly understanding that which the mind observes. I then decided that if I wanted to unravel the mysteries of the universe, the first step was to unravel the mysteries of the brain. That decision has been guiding my life ever since.
During my middle-school and early high-school years, I was bombarded on all sides by the anti-drug propoganda prevalent in modern America, while at the same time seeing my friends experimenting with drugs. I had a plethora of opportunities to try various drugs, and I was hearing great things about them from my friends. I wasn't going to let anybody tell me what to think, so I set out to form my own opinion. As I gathered all information I could about drugs, I was naturally attracted to the chemistry of drugs. The pharmacology of psychoactives was one of the most interesting things I had ever encountered. After I'd read all that I could bear, my curious, fledgling-scientist attitude led me to decide that I couldn't form a truly educated opinion without some personal experimentation.
So began my life with psychoactives.
In the past few years of my life, I've tried most recreational drugs available. I've had a good number of experiences with some of the more accessible hallucinogens. I've developed a cautious, but generally positive outlook about drug-use. I think that the key to safe drug use is to know yourself and to exercise self-control.
I think that psychoactives are the key to understanding the brain and consciousness. Not only do such chemicals cause interesting and potentially revealing changes in brain activity, they provide great insight into the subjective nature of consciousness and allow valuable exploration of the self. I think that such exploration is absolutely necessary to live a full and rewarding life.
Unfortunately, the world as we know it tends to demonize the use of psychoactives. This, even more unfortunately, has led to a severe lack of study of these chemicals. The legal status of these chemicals makes it very difficult, at least in America, for extensive research to be performed upon them. As a result, I believe it is quite beneficial for a community like this to study these chemicals on their own terms. Even though the methods of such an underground community may be less sophisticated than if they had the resources of the whole scientific community, DMT-Nexus is nonetheless providing a wealth of reliable experimental data concerning the chemistry and bioactivity of psychoactive compounds. The experiments and results recorded here have been thoroughly demonstrated as repeatable, even though they may not be as rigorously standardized as the modern scientific community would require.
I believe that there is a dire need for study of psychoactives, so if legal and social red-tape is preventing the scientific community from doing such work, it is the duty of communities like DMT-Nexus to do the work until widespread research becomes possible. I think that DMT-Nexus is doing an exemplary job of fulfilling this responsibility, and that is why I want to get involved.
I ran across this forum some months ago when looking to expand my knowledge of the science of entheogens. I read the Nexus forums and wiki for some time, and was continually impressed by the quantity and quality of information. As I read more, I began to recognize members as they contributed to new threads. I started to get drawn into the interaction between members and was repeatedly intrigued by the resulting conversations. In all my time floating about the interwebs, I've never found such an amazing community; it simply blew me away. The amount of knowledge that they possess, their innovative spirit, helpful attitude, and general understanding of everything surrounding this subject is unrivaled. It seems like everything here is well thought-out, from the organization of the forum and wiki, through the deft moderation of threads, right down to the construction of individual posts. But not only do these people have a powerful understanding of the science of the spirit molecule, they seem to have a deep understanding and respect for the spiritual and symbolic aspects that inevitably accompany such a substance. Having found such a wondrous place, I quickly developed a desire to get involved with the Nexus community.
A little about me:
I'm from the Midwest US, and I'm currently at university studying biochemistry and electrical engineering. I plan on attending graduate school after my undergraduate education is complete. I desire a career as a researcher, ideally studying the brain and the fascinating phenomenon of consciousness.
In high school I was initially very intrigued by physics. I wanted to grow-up to become a physicist and help unravel the mysteries of the universe. However, as I began to study chemistry and biology in their most basic forms, I was intrigued by the staggeringly complex chemical systems that enable life. As I learned the fundamentals of the life sciences, the mysteries of the brain and consciousness interested me the most. I soon came to believe that what we know of reality is based entirely upon our own perception. I thought that if humanity is ever to understand the universe that it inhabits, it must first fully understand itself (which we clearly do not). If humanity's only way of interacting with an external universe is through the mind, then the mind must be understood if there is to be any hope of truly understanding that which the mind observes. I then decided that if I wanted to unravel the mysteries of the universe, the first step was to unravel the mysteries of the brain. That decision has been guiding my life ever since.
During my middle-school and early high-school years, I was bombarded on all sides by the anti-drug propoganda prevalent in modern America, while at the same time seeing my friends experimenting with drugs. I had a plethora of opportunities to try various drugs, and I was hearing great things about them from my friends. I wasn't going to let anybody tell me what to think, so I set out to form my own opinion. As I gathered all information I could about drugs, I was naturally attracted to the chemistry of drugs. The pharmacology of psychoactives was one of the most interesting things I had ever encountered. After I'd read all that I could bear, my curious, fledgling-scientist attitude led me to decide that I couldn't form a truly educated opinion without some personal experimentation.
So began my life with psychoactives.
In the past few years of my life, I've tried most recreational drugs available. I've had a good number of experiences with some of the more accessible hallucinogens. I've developed a cautious, but generally positive outlook about drug-use. I think that the key to safe drug use is to know yourself and to exercise self-control.
I think that psychoactives are the key to understanding the brain and consciousness. Not only do such chemicals cause interesting and potentially revealing changes in brain activity, they provide great insight into the subjective nature of consciousness and allow valuable exploration of the self. I think that such exploration is absolutely necessary to live a full and rewarding life.
Unfortunately, the world as we know it tends to demonize the use of psychoactives. This, even more unfortunately, has led to a severe lack of study of these chemicals. The legal status of these chemicals makes it very difficult, at least in America, for extensive research to be performed upon them. As a result, I believe it is quite beneficial for a community like this to study these chemicals on their own terms. Even though the methods of such an underground community may be less sophisticated than if they had the resources of the whole scientific community, DMT-Nexus is nonetheless providing a wealth of reliable experimental data concerning the chemistry and bioactivity of psychoactive compounds. The experiments and results recorded here have been thoroughly demonstrated as repeatable, even though they may not be as rigorously standardized as the modern scientific community would require.
I believe that there is a dire need for study of psychoactives, so if legal and social red-tape is preventing the scientific community from doing such work, it is the duty of communities like DMT-Nexus to do the work until widespread research becomes possible. I think that DMT-Nexus is doing an exemplary job of fulfilling this responsibility, and that is why I want to get involved.
