The UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics (BCSP) is embarking on a groundbreaking study to explore how psilocybin influences human perception. In this study, healthy participants will consume psilocybin and perform simple visual tasks while their brain activity is monitored using fMRI. The research aims to uncover how psilocybin affects the visual cortex, potentially providing insights into the broader impacts of psychedelics on the human mind. According to Michael Silver, the study’s leader and director of BCSP, this research could deepen our understanding of psychedelics as therapeutic agents and offer a glimpse into the fundamental workings of the human brain and consciousness.
This upcoming study is distinctive because it focuses on the neurobiological mechanisms of psilocybin rather than its clinical outcomes. By testing the REBUS (Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics) hypothesis, which posits that psychedelics reduce the influence of pre-existing patterns and assumptions, researchers hope to understand how these compounds could help reconstruct healthier cognitive frameworks. This rigorous exploration in the visual system could enhance our comprehension of how the brain constructs reality and pave the way for new treatments and protocols.
Discoveries await…
