JC #18: From many to one: Meditation and the plasticity of the predictive mind

In this journal club, Ruben Laukkonen will discuss his recent paper “From many to one: Meditation and the plasticity of the predictive mind”. AbstractHow profoundly can humans change their own minds? In this paper we offer a unifying account of meditation under the predictive processing view of living organisms. We start from relatively simple axioms. […]

The Market of Non-hallucinogenic Psychedelics: Patentable Molecules for the Sober-minded

By Alberto Cantizani López MA Student of Medical Anthropology at UvA In the last years, psychedelic science has regained relevance in the field of psychiatric treatments with a radical idea. Research is showing that altered states of mind induced by psychoactive substances can in fact be healing for those suffering from mental health disorders. But […]

“Psychedelic Militancy in the 1980s” – Lecture by Christian Greer (PhD)

On February 13th, 2021, Christian Greer (PhD) will give a lecture on the topic of his dissertation: “Psychedelic Militancy in the 1980s”.The psychedelic dimension of religious experience occupies a marginal position in the scholarship of American culture. For the last seven decades, scholars have viewed the psychedelicist church movement as, variously, an excuse for taking […]

Dangers for the psychedelic Renaissance

Opinion. Written by Marco Aqil (PhD Cand., APRA founder). A recent viewpoint paper from the Griffiths Lab delivers a cautionary note on some trends which, according to the authors, might jeopardise the ongoing development of the psychedelic Renaissance in science and medicine. The authors provide a warning about the necessity of keeping psychedelic research as […]

Journal Club #17 – Aidan Lyon: “Psychedelic Philosophy”

In this journal club, Aidan Lyon (PhD) will present a new approach to philosophy, which he calls psychedelic philosophy. What makes this approach to philosophy distinctive is that it deploys what he call psychedelic methods for attaining wisdom. These methods stand in contrast to those of other approaches to philosophy — such as analytic philosophy, […]

Journal Club #16 – Steven Voges: “Oxytocin-dependent reopening of a social reward learning critical period with MDMA”

In this Journal Club, Steven Voges, currently a PhD candidate at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, will present the recent paper “Oxytocin-dependent reopening of a social reward learning critical period with MDMA”. You can use this link to read a summary of the full article. Where: Online (Zoom address communicated via members email newsletter). This […]

Journal Club #15 – Rudolf Faust (PhD): “Deep posteromedial cortical rhythm in dissociation”

In this Journal Club, Dr. Rudolf Faust, currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, will present the recent paper “Deep posteromedial cortical rhythm in dissociation” (Vesuna et al., Nature, 2020). See this link for a summary of the full article. Where: Online (Zoom address communicated via members email newsletter). This is a […]

Remembering Martin Fortier

A scholarly journey Written by Michiel van Elk and George Fejer (edited by Marco Aqil) Martin Fortier was an anthropologist by training, but he also had a strong background in philosophy, cognitive science, developmental psychology, neuroscience and psychedelic research. His broad background gave him a perfect overview of different fields and allowed him to approach […]

How can psychedelic substances facilitate research into and treatment of psychiatric disorders?

How can psychedelic substances facilitate research into and treatment of psychiatric disorders? Essay by Josephine Marschall. Edited by Marco Aqil. Researchers in biological psychiatry are currently progressing within a ‘third wave’ of discussions, as described by Henrik Walter [1], to develop new approaches for investigating and classifying psychiatric disorders. According to Walter, the first […]

Journal Club #14 – W. Rietdijk (PhD): “A Microphenomenological Study of Mindfulness Meditation”

Our 14th Journal Club installment will be hosted by Willeke Rietdijk (PhD). The title is “A micro-phenomenological study of processes and mechanisms of mindfulness meditation”. See below for more details Where: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Medical Faculty (MF) Building, Room A307 When: Thursday, February 20th, 5:30 pm (presentation will start ~5.45pm). RSVP: Facebook event Entrance is […]