Two Brad For You

Psychedelics receive a lot of positive press regarding their potential as tools for introspection, therapy, and lifestyle or health improvements. And rightfully so, there is compelling evidence for their benefit in treating some mental health issues and a ton of anecdotal evidence and writings about the positive benefits both mentally and physically from tripping. But just below the surface of positive headlines there is a sea of unknowns. We really don’t know how these compounds work physically in the brain and why some people seem to benefit from the experience. This also leads to a huge gray area in terms of the systems of therapy and access different jurisdictions are experimenting with. On this episode we talk with Grace Browne, staff writer at Wired UK, about her reporting on the less illuminated corners of the psychedelic renaissance and why it’s important to have these conversations. We talk about everything from the influx of VC money to the dark side of psychedelic cults and the under reporting of negative experiences. Quick disclaimer though. We both believe this research is important and that we should explore psychedelic uses and reconsider the laws surrounding prohibition, but maybe let’s acknowledge just a wee bit more that we really don’t know much about the good, the bad and the strangeness of psychedelics. You can follow Grace Browne on Twitter and check out all of her writing for Wired here. Links to other pieces discussed in the episode:The Therapy Part of Psychedelic Therapy Is a Mess – Grace Browne for WiredPsychedelic Therapy Is Here. Just Don’t Call It Therapy – Grace Browne for WiredDark loops: contagion effects, consistency and chemosocial matrices in psychedelic-assisted therapy trials – Tehseen Noorani, et al.As psychedelics near approval, there’s no consensus on how they work – Olivia Goldhill for STATPeter Gasser: Psychedelic Psychotherapy in Switzerland – Psychedelic Science Sweden YouTube Channel Lower-dose psycholytic therapy – A neglected approach – Torsten Passie, et al. Do people who experienced long-term difficulties after tripping still think psychedelics are worth the risks? – Jules Evans on Medium On philosophy, theology and ‘psychedelic integration’ – Jules Evans on MediumWE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!...

How does one go from believing in every conspiracy under the fake moon to being an atheist activist dedicated to critical thinking and reason? Read the Bible. At least that’s what did it for this episode’s guest Calvin Smith. Calvin is podcaster, Tik Tok’er (check below for all his links and handles) and the social media manager for the Secular Alliance of Michigan. In this episode we talk about his path from self-proclaimed conspiracy theorist to self-proclaimed atheist activist. We discuss the encroachment of religion into US politics and policy and how the Secular Alliance of Michigan pushes back. We also chat about using social media and conversation to reach those lost in the conspiracy rabbit hole and as you’ll see this leads to more than a few yet to be answered questions. When and if public debates are needed or useful? How to deal with alternative sources and how to harness the negativity of social media. You can find Calvin Smith and the Secular Alliance of Michigan below:Tiktok: @UnquestionableCalvinYouTube: @UnquestionableCalvinTwitter: @UWCSPodcastSecularAlliance.orgMichiganAtheists.comYouTube for SAM: @SecularMichiganWE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Every other month it seems there is some news coming out regarding psychedelic assisted therapy. Just recently the FDA posted some draft guidelines for clinical trials. But the topic of today’s episode concerns psychedelics outside of a clinical setting. As some places move to decriminalize or even legalize the use of LSD, psylocibin and other psychedelics there is a looming question. How can a society with very little context or experience with these substances and states of mind incorporate them? If we agree there is the potential for positive outcomes from there use how best to achieve it? These are strange and powerful experiences and not easily explained or put into context especially when society as a whole has demonized them for a long time. One group I’ve seen who is talking about these questions and attempting to offer answers with their Beyond Experience Workshop is the MIND Foundation. I’ve reported on and interviewed members of MIND before and was granted access to this workshop to see what it was all about and how it might help with the so-called integration or enculturation of psychedelics into a naïve society. Surprisingly this story turned out to be more difficult and personal to tell…. Music in the episode by Freak Motif, Brad van Paridon and MichaelBandacExtra ReadingOn philosophy, theology and ‘psychedelic integration’ – Jules EvansPsychedelic integration: An analysis of the concept and its practice – Bathje, et al.Acceptance and Commitment Therapy – Psychology TodayWE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

How can AI improve upon the design of mRNA vaccines? How much is too much when it comes to sperm donations? Turns out the Netherlands has a problem with serial donators. And a quick note on some interesting patterns in data associating smartphone usage with adolescent depression, anxiety, self harm, and suicide. Plus, a special debut of an excellent new track by friends of the show The Dust Collectors.This episode is a mix of stories and were chosen for different reasons. The first is a more positive look at AI rather than a lot of the doom and gloom stuff that has dominated the conversation recently. It also offers an interesting perspective on the complexity and beauty of biology. The story of one Dutch man fathering upwards of 500 children via sperm donations is troubling and reminds us of the ethical challenges involved with medicine and biotech. Finally, an interesting look at some international data regarding adolescent mental health and smartphones hints that the problem isn’t as clear cut as we might think. It also gives a nice example of how data is used to generate new questions and challenge assumptions. Very big thanks to The Dust Collectors for providing their new track ‘Waiting Game’ as the outro music. Check out live show dates and the debut album release on their website or by following them on Instagram and/or Spotify. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Links‘Remarkable’ AI tool designs mRNA vaccines that are more potent and stable https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01487-y#ref-CR1Algorithm for Optimized mRNA Design Improves Stability and Immunogenicity https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06127-zDutch court orders sperm donor to stop after 550 children https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/28/dutch-court-orders-sperm-donor-to-stop-after-550-childrenDutch serial sperm donor case raises questions in Belgium https://www.brusselstimes.com/487914/dutch-serial-sperm-donor-case-raises-questions-in-belgiumSuicide rates for girls are rising. Are smartphones to blame? https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2023/05/03/suicide-rates-for-girls-are-rising-are-smartphones-to-blame 

Whether or not you think bugs (including spiders) are gross or awesome you probably have some bias about these animals. This episode we talk with Dr. Catherine Scott (@Cataranea) about black widows specifically and how our biases influence the way we think about and research species like spiders and bugs more generally. Catherine studies black widow mating strategies and was featured in an upcoming CBC The Nature of Things documentary titled Bug Sex: It's Complicated (@bugsexthedoc). She talks about overcoming a fear of spiders and becoming a araneaologist, i.e., a spider scientist, the amazing ways widow spiders find mates, how environment shapes the evolution and behavior of animals, and the many ways spider misinformation spreads online. Check out Catherine's blog spiderbytes.org and look for Bug Sex the movie March 10 on CBC. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Don't forget to check out www.newsly.me and download the Newsly app to make the Internet listenable. Stop scrolling and start listening. Use promo code TwoBrad for a 1-month free premium subscription.

We’ve all seen The Last of Us right? The hit franchise is based on the real life Cordyceps fungus, but did you know the fungus doesn’t take over the brain? The true mechanism behind the zombie fungus is perhaps more terrifying. Also, there is actually a more compelling example of zombie parasites that receives shockingly little attention. In response to listener messages about The Last of Us, Brad puts his Ph.D. studying zombie parasites to work and explains the stories behind Cordyceps, Dicrocoelium and why Toxoplasma might not be all it’s cracked up to be. Relevant reading Adaptive host manipulation by Toxoplasma gondii: fact or fiction?You Know Those Parasites That Control Our Brains?Don't forget to check out www.newsly.me and download the Newsly app to make the Internet listenable. Stop scrolling and start listening. Use promo code TwoBrad for a 1-month free premium subscription. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Patent law is not front of mind for most people with an interest in psychedelics it is an important story to follow. Just like cannabis before it or pharmaceuticals like painkillers and insulin, companies are looking to patent not only psychedelic molecules but peripheral technologies like delivery methods and in some extreme cases therapy protocols too. Graham Pechenik is a registered patent attorney and founder of Calyx Law, a firm specializing in patents in the cannabis and now psychedelic field. He explains how the patent process works, why it's in place, and how the world of pharmaceutical patenting resembles the psychedelic one. He also points out some of the potential abuses of the process and the ways some are pushing back. Follow Graham on Twitter @calyxlaw to keep up with this quick moving and important area of the psychedelic movement. A great overview of the topic can be found here by former guest and premier reporter on the psychedelic beat Shayla Love - Psychedelic Patents are Broken Because the Patent System Is BrokenWE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Don't forget to check out www.newsly.me and download the Newsly app to make the Internet listenable. Stop scrolling and start listening. Use promo code TwoBrad for a 1-month free premium subscription.

Friend of the show and go to source for weird internet stuff, Jared Cuthbertson, is back for our last episode of the year. This episode started as an experiment in Brad joining Tik Tok and seeing where the algorithm would take him. The guys chat about all things Tik Tok and social media. What is the future of content creation? Will Tik Tok replace YouTube? What are the most annoying social media sub cultures and what do we rage watch the most? It's always fun and weird when Jared is on the pod and it's a great way to end the year! Happy holidays and happy New Year to everyone!WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Don't forget to check out www.newsly.me and download the Newsly app to make the Internet listenable. Stop scrolling and start listening. Use promo code TwoBrad for a 1-month free premium subscription.

Play. We all do it and we all know it when we see it. But what is play and why is it so crucial for brain development in a select group of animals (humans included) that do it?Dr.Sergio Pellis has studied play and specifically 'rough and tumble play' for decades and joins us to break down exactly what play is, how you study it and how it affects development. The question of nature versus nurture features prominently and Dr. Pellis recounts experiments that show behaviors like learning are more hard wired than you think. Plus the age old question....do animals have emotions??WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe , donate and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Don't forget to check out www.newsly.me and download the Newsly app to make the Internet listenable. Stop scrolling and start listening. Use promo code TwoBrad for a 1-month free premium subscription.

Brad is solo this month and digging into his favorite topic...infectious disease! There is a report of possible 'herd safety' for COVID-19, a debate on the transmission route for monkeypox (is it sexually transmitted or just transmitted during sex and why that matters), plus a few interesting tidbits regarding hemorrhagic fevers Ebola and Marburg virus. Also, the show is now available on the Newsly App! Newsly curates articles and podcasts on topics of your choosing and get this, reads those articles to you, making the whole web listenable for the first time. Download and use Newsly for free or use the promo code TwoBrad to try out the premium version free for 1-month.Sources for this episode:Are we approaching 'herd safety' with COVID-19? - MedPage TodayWe can fight monkeypox without homophobia or hysteria - NY TimesSex between men, not skin contact, is fueling monkeypox, new research suggests - NBC NewsThe classification of monkeypox should include its STI status - MedPage TodayInfectious disease alerts and reports - International Society of Infectious DiseasesMusic by Matt Walkey and Freak Motif

Jonathan Pettit, professor at the University of Aberdeen joins to discuss the amazing story of how C. elegans, a rotting plant eating worm, changed biology. This is a story of an intrepid group of researchers who set out to "tame a metazoan" and ended up with one of the most important model systems for developmental biology, genetics and more! You can find Jonathan on Twitter @genotripe WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun. Music by Freak Motif

The great Jay Ingram, author, broadcaster, and science communicator returns to talk about the latest season of Anthropomania, his fascinating podcast that explores the weird and complex ways humans interact with wildlife. Brad and Jay discuss a range of topics that come up on season 2 of Anthropomania, from our relationship with chickens, to the coming insect apocalypse. They spend a lot of time mulling over de-extinction and whether it’s worth the effort and explore the many ways trash is influencing animal populations around the world. You can find Anthropomania wherever you get podcasts and at their website www.anthropomania.com.WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Surprise, surprise, the latest big, well controlled, credible trials of ivermectin for COVID-19 found no effect. But this episode isn't about the illogical and frankly wrong arguments of the ivermectin for COVID booster club. Instead Brad and veterinarian / research scientist Dr. John Gilleard are here to restore the reputation of the anti-parasitic wonder drug by recounting the amazing story of it's discovery and the fascinating way in which it works. Basically everything we know and don't know about it. And then yes, they dive into why there was such a controversy and what might be done to avoid similar situations in the future. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Marvin Däumichen from the Mind Foundation joins to talk about uniMIND, an international network of journal clubs discussing all things related to psychedelic research and the uniMIND Symposium 2022 Synergies & Crossroads taking place Friday April 9th 2022 in Maastricht. Marvin also gives his take on the importance of the scientific approach for investigating the complicated topics of consciousness, spirituality and altered states as well as a why a new generation of people are interested in psychedelics and pursuing it as an intellectual career.Learn more about uniMIND and how to get involved here: https://mind-foundation.org/research/unimind/How to attend / register online for the symposium: https://mind-foundation.org/event/unimind-symposium-2022/WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Brad is joined by Ethan Brown, founder and host of the funniest podcast about climate change, The Sweaty Penguin. They discuss using humor as an approach to serious topics like climate change, how honesty and nuance need to be embraced for truly honest discussion and some specifics about climate change and climate change solutions that show it's not all bad news. Check out The Sweaty Penguin wherever you get podcasts, on social media and via their website thesweatypenguin.comWE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

The panel of regular, everyday citizens reconvenes to discuss the ridiculousness that is the protest/occupation in the capital city of Ottawa. Why are they there? What are the many reasons this protest cannot be taken seriously? How worrisome is it that conservative politicians both provincial and federal seem ready to embrace this madness and attempt to use it for their own political gains? All serious topics concerning a very ridiculous, uninformed movement. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Brad and Brad reconvene in 2022 to discuss the many ethical questions surrounding the first ever pig to human heart transplant. Brad also calls attention to a deadly virus and the hope of a vaccine against it (no not that one). They also pay tribute to the humble old magnet and give a quick update on fusion technology. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

The usual end of year episode is hear and the Brads unite to talk about their picks for the big stories of 2021 and some quick thoughts on what's in store for 2022. Thanks everyone for the listens and support. Have a happy new year!!WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Malaria is quite possibly the deadliest infectious agent of all time, possibly playing a major role in human history and quietly killing half a million people a year. Finally, a vaccine has been developed to help fight this parasite. To explain why it's been so hard to develop a vaccine for malaria and just how this one works Brad spoke with immunologist and parasitologist Dr.Constance Finney from the University of Calgary. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.

Brad once again travelled to Berlin for the MIND Foundation conference on psychedelic research, Insight 2021. Through a series of interviews with speakers at the conference he explores what we actually know about the benefits of psychedelic's for society as whole, meaning outside of clinical applications. And asks what are psychedelics and what aren't they, what should we expect from altered states and what shouldn't we? In doing so he uncovers interesting insight into the biological mechanisms of these drugs, the public health data regarding their benefits and some troubling facts about the stories we often tell about the ancient widespread use of psychedelics. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Head to www.twobradforyou.wordpress.com to subscribe to, donate to and follow the show on social media. You can also leave a comment, send an email or voice message. We read/listen to them all and will put them on air. This is your show too so get involved and don't let Brad have all the fun.