Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Accidental discoveries count 2

Now here for the second accidental discoverie...

LSD:
As part of a large research program searching for medically useful ergot alkaloid derivatives,Swiss chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann LSD was first synthesized Its psychedelic properties were unknown until 5 years later, when Hofmann, acting on what he has called a “peculiar presentiment,” returned to work on the chemical. While re-synthesizing LSD-25 for further study on April 16, 1943, Hofmann became dizzy and was forced to stop work. In his journal, Hofmann wrote that after becoming dizzy he proceeded home and was affected by a “remarkable restlessness, combined with a slight dizziness”. Hofmann stated that as he lay in his bed he sank into a not unpleasant “intoxicated like condition” which was characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination. He stated that he was in a dreamlike state, and with his eyes closed he could see uninterrupted streams of “fantastic pictures, extraordinary shapes with intense, kaleidoscopic play of colors.” The condition lasted about two hours after which it faded away.
 
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