Reason TV: In Praise of Psychedelics

In 1985, despite its widespread reputation as an effective therapeutic tool, the DEA classified MDMA as a Schedule I drug. The following year, Rick Doblin founded the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) with the goal of developing psychedelics into legal prescription drugs.

Today, MAPS researchers are finding that MDMA can be a therapeutic aid for people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and that psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, can be effective at helping addicts. Reason TV talked to Doblin and other psychedelic researchers at the 2013 Psychedelic Science Conference in Oakland, California, to learn more.