Don: Time again for the A Moment of Science mailbag.

Yaël: A listener writes in . . .

     Dear AMOS,

     I read somewhere that in the 1960s scientists used to be interested in psychedelic      drugs like LSD. Do scientists today still study these drugs?

D: Good question. And until recently the answer was basically "no." LSD was seen as a      recreational drug and not worth serious research.

Y: But in the last few years some scientists have been giving LSD and other psychedelic      drugs another look. One thing that's really interesting about psychedelics is that, more      than any other drug, they alter how we see, hear, smell, and think about our      surroundings. So the more scientists learn about how LSD works in the brain, the      more they could know about how the brain works to create consciousness.

D: There have also been studies done on how psychedelic drugs could be useful in      medicine. Some research has shown that LSD can help cancer patients cope with      pain and anxiety. There's also evidence that LSD could work as a sort of supplement      to talk therapy by helping people see their problems from other perspectives.

Y: To be clear, we're not saying that people should run out and try LSD. It's still an      illegal drug and can be dangerous when not used properly. And current research on      the drug is still in the early stages, so it's far from clear whether psychedelic drugs      really will prove useful in medicine and provide insights into the human mind.

D: But the possibilities are intriguing. At the very least, these drugs are worth scientists'      attention.  

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