Molly, ecstasy, MDMA: whatever you call it, this drug is blowing up. Some say MDMA can be a legitimate medicine to treat conditions like PTSD. But others reckon it's a dangerous drug that can fry your brain, and even kill you — from just one bad pill. Who's right? That's what we're snorting up today. We talk to psychiatrist George Greer, public health resear ... Show More
Today
Protein-Maxxing: Is It Actually Bad For Us?
Protein is everywhere — tons of us are trying to cram more of it into our diets, and it's showing up in our lattes, our snack bars, even our popcorn. But just as we’re getting on board with protein-maxxing, a bunch of headlines have started saying the opposite: that eating LESS p ... Show More
31m 11s
Aug 27
Sunscreen: Could It Be Toxic??
Sunscreen is supposed to protect us from dangerous stuff like cancer, but all over social media, people are saying that we’ve been getting it all wrong. We’re being told that our sunscreen is full of toxic chemicals, that wearing it could mess with our vitamin D levels — even tha ... Show More
50m 52s
Aug 20
Hank Green: What No One Tells You About the Algorithm
Hank Green is one of the most beloved science creators on the interwebs. He’s been making videos for almost 20 years, spanning LOTS of eras of the Internet, from YouTube prank videos to TikTok dance challenges to AI slop. In this episode, Wendy sits down with Hank to talk about t ... Show More
52m 44s
Jun 2023
The Science of MDMA & Its Therapeutic Uses: Benefits & Risks
In this episode, I discuss Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), which is also commonly known as “ecstasy” or “molly,” including how it works in the brain to cause short- and long- term-shifts in emotional processing and its clinical applications for the treatment of post-traum ... Show More
2h 13m
Dec 2015
MDMA: Pharmacological Healer
<p>In the form of recreational ecstasy, the psychoactive drug MDMA carries with it a stigma of wide-eyed ravers, free love and counterculture pharmacological spirituality. But beyond its cultural legacy, MDMA offers a potent therapeutic tool for doctors and therapists -- if we ca ... Show More
40m 15s
Jul 2019
From the Vault: MDMA, Part 2
Some of you have tried the ecstasy. Others have merely heard about the drug on a TV sitcom, or heard about it in a news report. Either way, MDMA's power resonates through our culture -- and sometimes it's hard to distinguish the truth form the misinformation. But what exactly is ... Show More
41m 23s
May 2024
The Science of MDMA with Ben Rein
<p>Can MDMA make you a better person? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly learn about the neuroscience of empathy, psychopathy, and MDMA in the brain with neuroscientist Ben Rein, PhD. </p><p>NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons can listen to this entire episode comm ... Show More
46m 38s
Oct 2024
Are psychedelics breaking science?
Drugs like ecstasy and mushrooms have shown promise as mental health treatments, but they’re also exposing some major cracks in how scientists study the brain.
Guests: Jonathan Lambert, science journalist; Boris Heifets, professor at Stanford University of Medicine; Amy Mcguire, ... Show More
24m 40s
Aug 2019
#65 - Rick Doblin, Ph.D.: MDMA— the creation, scheduling, toxicity, therapeutic use, and changing public opinion of what is possibly the single most important synthetic molecule ever created by our species
<p>In this episode, Rick Doblin, founder and executive director of MAPS, discusses MDMA, a molecule that has (at a minimum) revolutionary therapeutic benefits for PTSD, but arguably could have, at the highest order, a lasting impact on humanity's ability to peacefully coexist. Ri ... Show More
3 h
Jun 2020
Will Psychedelics Save Mankind?
<p>Psychedelics have gotten very popular in the past few years for their therapeutic properties, but how much do you know about them? In this episode, I am going to talk about MDMA, which has a better success rate for PTSD than anything... ever! If all goes well with the FDA tria ... Show More
22m 59s