Psychedelic neurophenomenology: ancient molecules, modern methods, and the dialogue of mind and matter.

This presentation will explore the rationale, results, and implications of our neurophenomenological, psychedelic studies with short acting tryptamines from the DMT Research Group at Imperial College London’s Centre for Psychedelic Research, and the UCL Centre for Consciousness Research. Just as modern particle colliders have advanced scientific perspectives on the underlying structure and qualities of our physical universe, our research operates under the rationale that psychedelic plants, molecules, and medicines are a vital tool for perturbing and studying human consciousness and its relationship to the brain.

First, we will map the interdependent web of people, plants, technologies, and ideas that co-created the emergence of this research, before then showing results on the micro-phenomenology of lived experiences with DMT and 5-MeO-DMT, and concurrent EEG brain activity. Both lab and naturalistic (retreat-based) work will be covered, including our pioneering research with continuous infusion DMT. Finally, the presentation will explore the micro-phenomenological method and its potentials for mapping out the state space of psychedelic consciousness, first describing the particulars of the method and the depth and precision with which it allows researchers to explore participants’ lived experiences, before then discussing the importance of structure-focused phenomenological approaches, and their potential to enrich the ethnobotanical study of entheogenic plants and fungi.