A Massachusetts lawmaker filed three new psychedelics reform bills, including proposals to legalize substances like psilocybin and reschedule MDMA pending federal approval while setting a price cap on therapeutic access.

The measures from Rep. Nicholas Boldyga (R), who describes himself as the “most conservative” member of the legislature, are the latest examples of psychedelics reforms lawmakers in the state are pursuing this session. Here’s more: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/the-most-conservative-massachusetts-gop-lawmaker-files-three-psychedelics-reform-bills-including-measure-to-legalize/

MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, announced preliminary findings from the observational study Long-Term Safety and Persistence of Effectiveness of Manualized MDMA-Assisted Therapy for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. According to MAPS, these preliminary findings “show that participants in this study demonstrated a durable response at least six months, and in some cases a year or more, after their final MDMA-assisted therapy session during the Phase 3 study.” Check it out: https://bit.ly/43er3MQ

Can psilocybin effectively treat Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)? Researchers recently published their findings from a study to pilot test the feasibility, tolerability, safety, and efficacy of psilocybin treatment of adults with BDD. Here’s what they found: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022395623001504

Did you know that in August 2000, a paper published in the journal of the Royal Society, titled Geometric visual hallucinations, Euclidean symmetry and the functional architecture of striate cortex, explored why we often witness truly captivating geometric visual hallucinations?

The researchers used math and shape theory to make a convincing argument that parts of our retinal visual cortex and associated neuronal circuitry are what cause our psychedelic visuals. They proposed that the “patterns of connections” between these elements may be responsible for classic hallucinations following ingesting psychedelics. Even though this is hard to explain, they found something interesting which could be explored further.

The striate cortex is a pivotal brain area responsible for deciphering visual information. It houses cells particularly attuned to various elements such as lines, edges, and orientations that are organized in an orderly fashion, so neighboring cells respond similarly to these features. This structure not only makes it simpler for the brain to process what we see but also enables it to do its job with impressive efficiency.

Here’s more: https://psychedelicspotlight.com/why-do-we-see-geometric-visuals-when-we-trip-on-psychedelics-heres-the-math/