culturallynumb

[culturallynumb]

Young Blood Therapy: Californian longevity startup Ambrosia is strikingly vampiric

By David Sharp

Every now and then, ancient folklore will ring eerily true in modern times, usually bearing a dystopian slant on things. Our latest instalment is a business venture that seems to be distinctly borne out of vampire lore.

Various incarnations of vampire folklore date back to Mesopotamia, ancient Greece and medieval Europe, with further vampiric superstitions inherent across all corners of the earth. Vampires even appear in Jewish scripture. By the 19th century, English literature drew on the body of mysticism surrounding vampires, giving way to archetypes such as Dracula - ancient undead humans in search of new blood.

Perhaps vampire mysticism was onto something, by accident or otherwise. Beyond the age-old phrase "fresh blood", modern medicine has a burgeoning history of blood treatments. Stem cell treatments have made great strides, from stem cell injections to repair torn cartilage to stem cell infusions during stronger chemotherapy treatments. But, while these treatments are geared towards eradicating a specific ailment, a new startup is offering a transfusion service as a speculative attempt to achieve longevity - an act of vampiric entrepreneurship at its most pure.

The company, which is named Ambrosia, after the Greek mythological notion of a 'food of the gods' that granted mortality, is an American company that markets (in its own words) a "young blood treatment" to the elderly.

The Guardian's Gavin Haynes mused "What we now call “intergenerational fairness” has suffered a lot lately, and it’s not about to be improved by the news that the Baby Boomers are sucking the blood of the young. Although, in fairness, they are only after the plasma", adding that Ambrosia "has emerged, offering transfusions of human plasma: 1.5 litres a time, pumped in across two days, harvested uniquely from young adults."

The theory of "young blood" procedures has been tested in mice, with Scientific American highlighting a 2014 study and a 2017 study which both suggest the possibility of neurological benefits from plasma infusions - which could offer a new frontier in treating conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.

These studies offer hope for the imminent future of medical innovation. However, Ambrosia's $8,000-a-pop treatment may price out the less well-heeled - particularly if it requires regular treatment sessions to actually be effective in the long term (Dracula should be fine though, he was a nobleman). As a result, the idea of a blood-sucking outlier feasting off of the innocent youth for sustenance may have already mutated from ancient superstition to thriving industry.

[culturallynumb]

Elon: A dreamer, a doer, an architect of the 21st century

By David Sharp

At 46 years old, Elon Musk is just getting warmed up.

Musk has achieved a staggering amount in such a short space of time. His résumé extends far beyond simply being 'The Tesla Guy'. Like Amazon's Jeff Bezos, he gained notoriety in the 1990s as a mover and shaker in the tech scene, first with Zip2, a "city guide" service that had contracts with newspapers such as the New York Times (which was later acquired by Compaq) and then with X.com (a pioneering online payment company which merged with PayPal).

While the Jeff Bezos comparisons were apt during the 1990s, at the turn of the century, Musk seems destined towards becoming a Steve Jobs-meets-Tony Stark-like visionary.

SpaceX, and the Colonisation of Mars

After Compaq bought Zip2 and X.com merged with PayPal, Elon Musk's ambitions only gained momentum: the dreams only got bigger - by orders of magnitude. First up was 'Mars Oasis', a bold (and barely feasible) idea, telling WIRED "The idea was to send a small greenhouse to the surface of Mars, packed with dehydrated nutrient gel that could be hydrated on landing. You’d wind up with this great photograph of green plants and red background—the first life on Mars, as far as we know, and the farthest that life’s ever traveled. It would be a great money shot, plus you’d get a lot of engineering data about what it takes to maintain a little greenhouse and keep plants alive on Mars."

This otherworldly compulsion had monumental challenges along the way, though. Musk continues "I suddenly understood that my whole premise behind the Mars Oasis idea was flawed. The real reason we weren’t going to Mars wasn’t a lack of national will; it was that we didn’t have cheap enough rocket technology to get there...Rocket technology had not materially improved since the ’60s—arguably it had gone backward! We decided to reverse that trend."

The research for his 'Mars Oasis' concept set about a line of inquiry that diverted Musk away from his initial idea and, serendipitously, towards SpaceX. He had provided himself with his own crash course on the logistics and challenges of space exploration, and he had lit another fire under himself to drag space travel into the 21st century.

Today, SpaceX's innovation has slashed the cost of space travel, and it made it the dominant front runner in the field, with 2017 being a banner year for the company, following numerous successful launches (and rocket 'reuses').

A profile of Elon Musk in GQ highlighted that, at the heart of SpaceX, a fundamental driving force behind what SpaceX does - beyond merely the human exploration of Mars - is the potential and desire for humans to colonise Mars (which could significantly reduce the chances of a human extinction event). On this topic, Musk is attributed as saying: "You back up your hard drive.... Maybe we should back up life, too?"

Revolutionising Cars and Energy with Tesla

In conjunction to running SpaceX, Elon Musk is the CEO of Tesla, which has a relatively short history, despite its seismic impact on the auto industry, which is chronicled by TechCrunch in its "A Brief History of Tesla" piece.

Musk heralded Tesla and helped gain financial backing after Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning founded the in 2003. The company unveiled its Roadster in 2006, after signing a production deal with Lotus. After a shaky and unprofitable start, Tesla gained headway in the auto industry following the launch of its Model S, as well as a $465m loan from the US government and a strategic partnership with Daimler AG.

But, after a rocky developmental phase, under Musk's guidance, Tesla has completely disrupted the market. In April 2017, Quartz reported that Tesla "which saw its value surpass Nissan in February, is on a tear. After stumbling in late February, Tesla’s stock has rebounded and the company is now taking on the biggest car makers well ahead of schedule. Shares in the 14-year-old Tesla closed up more than 7% on Monday, giving it a market cap of $48.6 billion, 7% higher than that of 113-year-old Ford."

In 2016, Tesla completed the $2.6bn purchase of SolarCity, a US solar energy giant, which would further leverage Tesla's vision of drivers sustainably charging electric vehicles from their homes through solar technology. From August 2016 onwards, Tesla's acquisition of SolarCity also separated the company from its competition in another key sense: Tesla wasn't just a car company anymore.

In a 2017 address, Elon Musk gave his vision of the future, and remained bullish about the continued rise of the electric car, self driving technology, and the adoption of shared autonomous vehicles (saying "it's just a question of when"). Musk also predicted that Tesla would eventually disrupt fossil fuel consumption because of its increased efforts with solar and lithium-ion battery production.

Reinventing Transport with Hyperloop and The Boring Company

Musk has also shown a passion to explore new means of public and inter-city transport with Hyperloop and The Boring Company. With these two ventures, he is aiming to combat long commutes across vast expanses of land, and also finite road space within built up areas. Firstly, Hyperloop claims it "will reinvent transportation to eliminate the barriers of distance and time. Hyperloop One will move people and goods, and unlock unprecedented value for governments, businesses, and consumers." Simply put, Hyperloop will bring its own brand of ultra-high speed trains.

As it pertains to cars, if Elon Musk has his way, the future of travel is not a Jetsonsesque flying car, but a conventional car that utilises underground links, which would decongest deadlocked roads in heavily populated cities such as Los Angeles. This is the sole initiative of The Boring Company, which takes a "3D" approach to car travel, whereby, below the top surface, cars can be lowered underground by elevators and attached to a platform resembling a sled, which will carry the car to its destination. What's more there could be numerous underground levels implemented, leading it to be a multi-story network underneath the world's major cities.

Much criticism has been focused on these two ventures, with questions being asked regarding the financial viability of undertaking the projects, as well as other hurdles associated with negotiating and being granted building permission from state to state. Both ventures are at a relatively early stage at present, so their success remains to be seen.

But progress is being made. Hyperloop One recently successfully trailed a test track in Nevada, and Musk has also claimed that he has reached a verbal agreement with the government to commence a Washington-to-New York Hyperloop (which will take just 30 minutes to travel).

The Most Significant Technology Ever Created

His non-profit, OpenAI, which, aims to develop "artificial general intelligence" (or AGI) which could exponentially impact medicine, and limitless other fields. The organisation describes the development of AGI as "the most significant technology ever created by humans." As well as Elon Musk and Sam Altman, OpenAI has serious backing, from individuals such as Reid Hoffman and Peter Thiel, along with numerous corporate sponsors, including Amazon and Microsoft.

Like OpenAI, Google has also pursued AGI, as opposed to just AI, which gives computers the ability to learn in the same way that humans do. As The Guardian reports, AGI development allows computers to acquire skills - which bridges a significant gap between human a computer intelligence.

After OpenAI released its Universe software, and has continued to reveal more on its methodology, including the use of reinforced learning. TechCrunch wrote "Every parent’s worst nightmare is a student spending more time playing video games and surfing the web than studying for school. But the team over at OpenAI believes that a “fun parent” approach could actually bring us all one step closer to the elusive generalized intelligence. Its new tool, Universe, was created to train and measure AI frameworks with video games, applications and websites."

Brain Implants, Telepathy, and Beyond

In addition to OpenAI, Musk's Neuralink, founded in 2016, is a neurotechnology company "developing ultra high bandwidth brain-machine interfaces to connect humans and computers." The company is reportedly focused towards medical endeavours, but its long-term goals seem generally open-ended.

WIRED reported that "the firm's goal is to turn cloud-based AI into an extension of the human brain. The company will aim to create (and bring to market) a product that can help those with severe brain injuries. It's product, which will be developed within the next four years will eventually lead humans to be able to communicate by 'consensual telepathy'."

With radical technological upheaval that is brought about by ventures such as Neuralink, pessimism - and even hysteria - are likely to follow. As Musk revealed more about Neuralink, lively debate among critics and advocates of brain implant technology began to boil over - a debate on RT featured a news anchor fielding questions and concerns about Neuralink to technology experts. However, until hard evidence and greater detail about Neurolink's technology (and the benefits and flaws of its application) is presented, the debate is subject to theory and bias, which is difficult to draw conclusions on.

Elon Musk: A Polarising Presence

Elon Musk, his vision for the future and his journey to turn his dreams into a reality is a remarkable, mind-blowing story so far. The industries that he has entered and endeavoured to pioneer are incredibly wide-ranging - to the extent that it is barely conceivable that this is the work of just one person. He has thrown serious financial and intellectual weight behind his various undertakings that he will undoubtedly leave his mark on the 21st century. His habit of dreaming out loud has brought much skepticism regarding his ability to deliver on his numerous bold promises, and yet he continues to dream and, more importantly, do.

[culturallynumb]

Tony Robbins is slaying the wolves of Wall Street.

By David Sharp

Tony Robbins isn't just a man on a mission, he's a force of nature. He has made a career out of staring difficult situations dead in the face, and searching for meaningful and effective solutions. In the Netflix documentary 'Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru', he described his motivation for what he does stemming from an "obsession to help", which provides him with a sense of "deep meaning” in life.

Throughout a career spanning more than forty years, Robbins has reached millions through his self-help seminars, and when the 2008 financial crisis hit - and left a path of immeasurable devastation in its wake, with few solutions - he was left in a unique position: he witnessed first-hand the tragic tales, the lost college funds and retirements that went up in smoke, as well as the varied ways in which Wall Street had fleeced the everyday investor, with minimal repercussions. Robbins was left both angered by Wall Street and aggrieved by the plight of the average investor: It seemed that corporatocracy had trumped democracy, and the victims were tasked with bailing out the offenders.

The Tipping Point

In a 2014 interview, he told Tim Ferriss "What triggered me was I saw this documentary called Inside Job," and that "at the end, you're either extremely pissed off or you're really depressed, depending on your personality, and I was pissed off, because they show how a small number of people basically put the entire economic world at risk - and when they put us to near imploding, the punishment for that was to reward them by putting them in charge of the recovery, printing more money and then taxing everyone else on earth, and giving them their money back. It's the greatest thievery that's happened in human history."

As the years passed and the fallout had sunk in, that innate "obsession to help" that Robbins has began to draw him towards personal finance - and so, for the first time in twenty years, he was compelled to write a book - but not just any book - a book that would take four years to research. He'd use his connections and cache to gain access to the elusive "1%" of finance, and distill all of these key insights into a bible that would democratise investing.

The end result came in the form of his 2014 book 'Money: Master the Game' - as well as his 2017 followup 'Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook' (a more abridged update). Combined, the two books arm the everyday / novice investor with an accessible, invaluable crash course in wealth-building (which is attained primarily through low-cost index funds and a more passive, long term approach to investing).

It should be noted that the "passive investing" approach that Robbins advocates has drawn the ire of "active investing" managers, but Robbins sets out a comprehensive - and brutally honest - rational for his approach (which is set out in Section 2 of his 2014 book). His approach that he advocates has also been vindicated with praise from elite financial players such as Warren Buffett and Jack Bogle.

Bear in mind that much of the criticism stems from the Wall Street middlemen that his approach aims to circumvent.

Master the Game

'Money' is comprised of seven main sections, each of which focuses on Tony's '7 Simple Steps to Financial Freedom'. In Section 1, Robbins sets the table, while also urging the reader to begin the 7 steps by identifying a percentage of your earnings to invest (ideally, an automatic monthly contribution).

Once that initial commitment is in place, Section 2 delves into the trade secrets and myths associated with Wall Street, and Robbins lays into "actively managed" mutual funds that underperform and overcharge. He reveals that 96% of mutual funds fail in beating the S&P 500, however their fees are hugely above that of low-cost index funds. This section includes nine myths (that all investors should be made aware of) which Robbins expertly navigates through. Then, in Section 3, the third step is designed to set out goals and actually take a look at the numbers, which will vary from person-to-person. Once your goals and roadmap is set out, this section also highlights the ways in which you can speed up the process.

After you've cleared the first three hurdles, Section 4 and Section 5 sets out your asset allocation, as well as investment strategies (such as dollar-cost averaging and portfolio rebalancing). It's at this point that Robbins goes beyond just stocks and bonds, and discusses a wide range of investment options, such as REITs and annuities.

Then Tony drops a bombshell, and recounts how he (somehow) convinced Ray Dalio to lay out the ideal "all seasons" asset allocation plan. With an exemplary track record, Dalio is the founder of the largest hedge fund in the world. Previously, you'd be required to have a net worth of $5bn, with a minimum investment of $100m to gain access to this simple, yet hugely effective asset allocation plan. However, Tony made it available for the price of his book, which is a stunning achievement when you think about it (which is borne out of that "obsession to help" that burns within him).

From the scores of interviews that Robbins conducted for his 2014 book, Section 6 is comprised of 12 of the key interviews, from 12 money 'masters', including Carl Icahn, David Swensen, Jack Bogle, Warren Buffett, Paul Tudor Jones, Ray Dalio, Mary Callahan-Erdoes, T. Boone Pickens, Kyle Bass, Marc Faber, Charles Schab and Sir John Templeton. Given the credentials of each of these interviewees, 'master' is more than appropriate: From academics to activist investors to finance pioneers to evergreen investing gurus, these masters are the elite of the elite, and most of the body of insight accrued in this section of the book deserves the attention of any investor - from seasoned veterans to curious novices alike.

And it wouldn't be a Tony Robbins book if he didn't equip you to achieve emotional wealth along with your financial wealth! By Section 7, which is entitled "Just Do It. Enjoy It. And Share It!", the financial gameplay is ready to be put into practice - and Robbins takes the opportunity to bring the book to a close with an inspirational, rallying salvo.

The book is densely packed with four years of hard research and, therefore, there's a lot to digest - which means that there's a lot to forget, so Tony encourages the reader to "give yourself the gift of going back", noting that "Repetition is the mother of skill. Action is where all your power is found."

Unshakable

His 2017 book, 'Unshakable', is a streamlined update to his mountainous bible, 'Money'. Unshakable has been trimmed down significantly to encourage a wider audience to pick up the book (so if you skip the big book, you will be missing out).

However, while the second book draws heavily from the Money, Robbins hasn't simply regurgitated information - he has continued his inquiry into making investing more accessible and fair, and he offers a revelation (regarding fiduciary advisors) that he discovered after the 2014 book, which most experienced investors will be shocked to learn. Indeed, Tony's crusade - which is part exposé, part crash course in finance - has only gathered steam.

The book is set out in nine chapters, with the three sections of the book titled "Wealth: The Rule Book", "The Unshakable Playbook" and "The Psychology of Wealth". The book was also co-authored by Peter Mallouk, which gives the book an added dimension of insight from.

Beyond the Books

Robbins went beyond the books on his crusade to "make the game winnable" for the average investor, by offering a number of additional resources, which are available at Unshakable.com, including:

https://www.unshakeable.com

The "Money" app The "Unshakable" podcast A number of companies designed to cater to readers of the book (such as free reports)

It should be noted that, while these resources are useful, there aren't any shortcuts. In both 'Money' and 'Unshakable', Tony Robbins has put forward a wealth of information along with a cohesive plan to get your investment affairs in order - it's a holistic body of work which will, most importantly, allow you to take action.

The overall investment philosophy that Robbins advocates is designed primarily to level the playing field, in order to give average investors a realistic chance of financial success, while also shedding light on some of the predatory tactics that are considered to be part and parcel, industry standards of the investment world.

Armed with Tony's advice, you can begin trading on the stock market without having to overpay for the underperforming mutual funds and, for Wall Street, that egg will be difficult to unfry.

[culturallynumb]

France's election, and its implications on Brexit.

By David Sharp

In 2017, we're living in an age of political chaos, created, largely, by the aftereffect of the global financial crisis of 2008, and the wave of Islamist terror over the last two years - the Western world's discontent at being worse off from the 2008 crash, as well as the anger and insecurity resulting from 'lone wolf' ISIS terrorism, has made us - collectively - a meaner society, and in many cases, a divided society.

In the US, President Donald Trump, an orange-haired billionaire on a mission to "Make America Great Again," has taken an aggressive approach to ridding America of South American immigrants, while also attempting to dismantle Obamacare and put a halt to climate change activity and regulation. He has also upped the nation's military budget, and removed protocols that allow the military to be less accountable, and more trigger happy. Everything Barack Obama strived to build has been torn down by his successor, infuriating one of the nation, and delighting the other. Unbelievably, this is all in the space of just four months.

Then there's the Assad-Putin alliance. The Syria crisis escalated when Assad launched an attack on his own people - and in 2017 - the only thing that has changed is that the attacks have gotten worse, with an untold pileup of casualties and refugees, and Russia and America's relationship teetering on the edge over the management of the situation.

Meanwhile, in Turkey, President Erdogan, after almost falling victim to a military coup in 2016, gained increased executive powers, which, critics have warned, brings the country closer to a dictatorship than a democracy.

It doesn't get much better in South America, with NBC News reporting that "Venezuela, which up until 1998 was South America's most stable democracy, has the largest oil reserves in the world. Yet inflation is in triple digits and there are massive food and medical shortages affecting residents of all income brackets." As a result, violent protests have ensued. On the same continent, after Brazil impeached their president for corruption last year, the economy has remained in the basement, and massive social and political unrest remains (in May 2017).

Over in Asia, Filipino President Duterte unleashed a genocidal massacre on his own people in a bid to "clean up the streets," while North Korea's Kim Jong-un has China and the US on notice, with threats of unprovoked nuclear action.

And Then There’s Brexit...

And then there's Brexit, which causes all kinds of chaos and instability. As a result of the Britain's EU referendum, which means the U.K. is on the verge of leaving the European Union, Prime Minister David Cameron, a devout 'remainer', has stepped down, with an unelected Theresa May stepping in, along with a brand new (again, unelected) cabinet of ministers. With the first phase of Brexit (the pre-Brexit) showing inflation and a flat economy, a corporate exodus has began - and the days of London's position as Europe's financial power base look to be in jeapody.

Theresa May, who jumped at the chance of succeeding Cameron, now faces a thankless task in the Brexit divorce negotiations - neither the UK nor the EU stand to come out as 'winners' once the UK leaves the EU. Both sides will likely be worse off, which would leave May in an untenable position if she ran for office after Brexit, so she decided to run before the negotiations begin - and so a 'snap election' is underway.

Jeremy Corbyn, the opposition's leader, is an idealist, socialist Labour leader, however he lacks specific ideas that inspire the Labour Party's core territories, and his low approval rating indicates that his threat as a viable leader of Britain is marginal at best. Meanwhile, the far right outfit UKIP has lost steam, whereas the Liberal Democrat's platform, similarly to Labour's, isn't aligned with some of the territories of support. In Scotland, while the SNP has gained popularity, they remain a minority party: Theresa May and the Conservative Party face a landslide win, with a growing monopoly forming within England.

The state of British politics is disconcerting in the near term: Parties are stale with mediocre leadership - and with minimal substance as it pertains to key issue, including the diminishing middle class, the effects of austerity on social care and an economy that has remained flat since 2007.

As well as a Conservative monopoly, the UK's impending election faces another problem: Public fatigue. The country just elected a prime minister in 2015, then had the EU referendum in 2016, and the prospect of going to the polls again already isn't appealing to the masses. The end result will likely come in the form of a low turnout on vote day, and a one-sided Theresa May win.

And that is the rationale behind springing a snap election on everyone: May, while being a fairly plain and unambiguous choice, would face one of the biggest upsets ever if she lost the election. It's hers to lose.

But the election is the least of Britain, and indeed, the EU's worries. There is still the small matter of the French presidential elections. Emmanuel Macron goes head-to-head with Marine ale Pen, in perhaps the most pivotal election in the European Union. If Macron, a 'moderate', is victorious, Britain and the EU breathe a sigh of relief. But if the far-right Le Pen upsets the odds, she'll most likely hit a hammer blow on the EU in the form of a Frexit.

For the EU, the pressure of Britain and France leaving simultaneously might be a one-two blow which could put the institution on the verge of collapse. They could survive one leaving, but two? An exodus would be on the cards.

For the UK, a Frexit-induced EU collapse would make a difficult and complex divorce infinitely more so: where Britain becomes entangled in a divorce with 27 ex wives.

So, with that in mind, now we wait...

[culturallynumb]

Exercises in Longevity

By David Sharp

Vitality and longevity are two basic human wants, that any reasonable person would hope to have and, as we get older, we all age over time, but the key to long-term vitality and longevity is to age well. Sure, modern medicine can keep you alive, but it's the quality of life that counts, and that is achieved by a.) accumulating less damage (i.e. from smoking, drinking, working long hours and generally living unhealthily), and b.) being smart and proactive about your health and wellbeing (i.e. eating a reasonable diet, exercising regularly, being able to relieve stress and getting a good night's sleep).

On the market today, you'll find a great many products and services that promote long-term vitality and longevity, such as CBD oil, or cryotherapy sessions - but, while these are effective and worthwhile, they cost money - something that we don't have a substantial amount of to explore health and wellbeing resources with. But, there are legitimate alternatives - that aren't costly and are relatively easy to implement into your daily life (with minimal planning required, so you can begin as soon as you like). These include the alkaline diet, a deep-breathing technique, as well as the 'James Bond Shower', all of which promote good health and supports your immune system.

The Alkaline Diet

Of the many diets recommended to us by doctors and nutritionists, the alkaline diet has garnered much attention and acclaim as a simple, easy-to-adopt, yet revolutionary smart diet. The idea behind the diet is to reduce the body's acidity by reducing the daily intake of acidic foods, in favour of alkaline-forming foods, such as lemons, grapefruit, cucumber, brown rice, Lima beans and coconuts, as well as drinks such as almond milk, redbush tea and ionised alkaline water. For a breakdown of alkaline foods to consider, Energise for Life has provided a fantastic list of alkaline versus acidic and 'neutral' foods.

As noted in a Self.com piece on the alkaline diet, it is important to have a good balance of nutrients in any diet - and therefore you do not have to abandon all acidic foods (such as chicken or eggs), therefore the optimal alkaline diet would typically be alkaline heavy, supplemented by nutritious acidic foods (many nutritionists recommend an 80% alkaline, 20% acidic balance).

Marie Claire reports that an alkaline diet can counteract "arthritis, diabetes and cancer, as well as slowing the ageing process," and that "the diet can improve energy levels and memory and help prevent headaches, bloating, heart disease, muscle pain and insomnia. Alkaline foods are easier for the digestive system to break down and therefore vitamins and minerals are more easily absorbed." In addition, 'The Alkaline Diet: An Evidence-Based Review', Authority Nutrition sets out a comprehensive and helpful guide to the rationale behind the diet.

Just Breathe!

Stanislav Grof, a twentieth century Czech psychiatrist, explored breathing techniques purely for the purposes of exploring alternative psychiatric treatments, as well as meditation and consciousness expansion. Grog had previously experimented with psychedelics, and developed holotropic breathing as a means of achieving a psychedelic state - without psychedelics. In brief, holotropic breathing is simply a series of controlled deep breaths, typically at a slightly increased pace than a normal rhythm of breathing.

An account (from Reset.Me) detailed the experience of holotropic breathing during one of Grof's breathing seminars, writing "I’m not used to breathing like this and after a couple of minutes I feel my body start to tingle. I keep breathing. Soon my whole body feels like it’s buzzing, a pleasant vibration that begins to distract me. The euphoria tempts me to take it further, but I slow my breathing, content with this physical sensation. The feeling begins to fade and I ask my guide to help me to my feet so I can use the restroom. My conscious state certainly feels non-ordinary; my gait is unsteady and though my vision seems fairly unaffected, my surroundings appear as if I have just woken up from a dream."

Wim Hof, a Dutch practitioner of breathing techniques, championed holotropic breathing and developed his own Wim Hof Method (seen in the video below), which consists of 25 deep breaths, followed by a period of no inhilation, then a large inhalation, held and then released. The Wim Hof Method, which has been the subject of numerous academic studies, increases the body's alkaline level as a result of increased oxygenation, which is considered to signicantly support the body's immune system. Hof, an eccentric owner of several world records, has made one of his missions in life to present the benefits of holotropic breathing, as a means of fighting both physical and mental illness.

The James Bond Shower

As well as his breathing method, Wim Hof is also a strong advocate of cold water therapy, which leads us to the James Bond Shower, which is an ideal starting point for beginners. A great feature by the Art of Manliness on the James Bond Shower notes that the  use of ice baths and cold showers extends from Ancient Greece all the way to modern Scandinavia. The James Bond novels noted the James Bond Shower as a conventionally hot shower to start off with, followed by a few minutes of freezing water.

According to Medical Daily, a daily cold shower can have a wide range of benefits, including "improve circulation by encouraging blood to surround our organs, which can then help combat some problems of the skin and heart. As cold water hits the body, it's ability to get blood circulating leads the arteries to more efficiently pump blood, therefore boosting our overall heart health, according to Dr. Joseph Mercola, a natural health expert. It can also lower blood pressure, clear blocked arteries, and improve our immune system." The report also states that cold showers can benefit hair and skin, aid muscle recovery, combat stress and depression, as well as facilitating weight loss (through longer cold water sessions).

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 8: Further Reading

By David Sharp

The reading list below is a collection of the articles and books used in the writing of this series. There is a vast amount of literature on each of the individual issues covered throughout the series - with many prolific writers - and countless rabbit holes to explore. However, to fully explore every issue that falls under the umbrella of psychedelics would take years, so this collection acts as a starting point on which to explore seminal research, as well as relevant, objective and thoughtful material on the use and effects of psychedelics.

Books:

* DMT: The Spirit Molecule by Rick Strassman * The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley * Food of the Gods by Terence McKenna * Hallucinogenic Plants by Richard Evans Schultes * Ketamine: Dreams and Realities by Karl Jansen * LSD and the Divine Scientist by Albert Hofmann * The Pot Book: A Complete Guide to Cannabis by Julie Holland * Simulations of God by John Lilly * Soma: Divine Mushroom of Immortality by R. Gordon Wasson * Supernatural by Graham Hancock * Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out by Timothy Leary

Articles:

* Acid Redux: The Life and High Times of Timothy Leary -- The New Yorker -- http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/06/26/acid-redux * Beatles' Acid Test: How LSD Opened the Door to 'Revolver' -- Rolling Stone -- http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/beatles-revolver-how-lsd-opened-the-door-to-a-masterpiece-w436062 * Drugs: The Sacred Mushroom -- The New York Times -- http://www.nytimes.com/1970/09/26/archives/drugs-the-sacred-mushroom.html?_r=0 * John Lilly: 1915-2001 -- Ketamine.co.uk -- http://www.ketamine.co.uk/john-lilly.html * LSD doesn't just treat mental illness, it could actually heal the brain -- WIRED -- http://www.wired.co.uk/article/khaliya-mental-health * Out of LSD? Just 15 Minutes of Sensory Deprivation Triggers Hallucinations -- WIRED -- https://www.wired.com/2009/10/hallucinations/ * Poll shows little regret in Colorado over legalizing marijuana -- The Denver Post -- http://www.denverpost.com/2016/09/20/legalize-marijuana-poll/ * Six incredible things that happened when Portugal decriminalized drugs -- Business Insider -- http://uk.businessinsider.com/what-happened-when-portugal-decriminalized-all-drugs-2016-3?r=US&IR=T * Steve Jobs Had LSD. We Have the iPhone -- Time -- http://healthland.time.com/2011/10/06/jobs-had-lsd-we-have-the-iphone/ * Talking dolphins and the love story that wasn’t -- New Scientist -- https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25751-talking-dolphins-and-the-love-story-that-wasnt/ * The Ketamine Secrets of ‘Ecco the Dolphin’ -- VICE -- https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/the-ketamine-secrets-of-segas-ecco-the-dolphin-347

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 7: A Grown Up Approach to Psychedelics

By David Sharp

While the societal dogma of psychedelics is largely childish and based on ignorance, there is also evidence to suggest that there is an Orwellian component to the suppression of organic, spiritually-enriching psychedelics, and the tolerance for damaging, addictive depressants, such as alcohol. So, if we are to evolve our approach to psychedelics, what has to change?

Terence McKenna, as noted in Part 1 of this blog series, felt strongly that we only have one solution as a global community, stating "only legalisation can be the basis for a sane drug policy." and, while a wholistic decriminalisation of drugs seems like an extreme and daunting task to undertake, some countries have already taken action - and have seen positive results. Portugal, who decriminalised all drugs at the turn of the century, serves as an ideal case study. Most notably, drug related deaths, drug related HIV and drug related crime all decreased massively as a result of Portugal's decriminalisation of drugs.

In the US, Colorado legalised cannabis, which killed the black market and allowed cannabis to be properly regulated and safely consumed, with the state also reaping the economic benefits. In 2016, The Denver Post noted "A majority of Colorado voters say legal cannabis has had a positive impact on the state and its economy and they would not support a repeal..."

Education should also go hand-in-hand with legalisation, in order to harness the potential of psychedelics, and for societies to look at hallucinogens in a grown up way. While psychedelics have been demonised by most governments, research has shown their wide-ranging medicinal potential - in terms of curing addiction, treating mental health, as well as healing physical conditions. One of the advantages that psychedelics have when compared to 'traditional' pharmaceuticals is their organic make-up and, as a result, the minimal long-term side effects that they have. So, with the costliness of big pharma - and the lack of actual cures to serious diseases, psychedelics may be an untapped source in advancing medicine in the twenty first century.

A recent Wired piece pointed to Khaliya Khan's call for more attention on the benefits of "Psyciliciban, LSD, MDMA, Ayahausca and 5-MeO-DMT" due to the success rate that these hallucinogens have in dealing with mental health - and the possibility of these compounds actually repairing the brain itself. Research from Rick Strassman, David Nutt and Rick Doblin is also worth noting. The overarching message of psychedelic advocacy - from a research standpoint - is to challenge governments and critics to at least take notice and even recommend further research before blindly condemning psychedelics.

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 6: Graham Hancock on Ibogaine

By David Sharp

In his 2005 book Supernatural, Graham Hancock begins with a recollection of his ibogaine experience, which took place at his home, in the company of his wife, a doctor and an experienced ibogaine administrator (Hancock was compelled to get a first hand account of ibogaine in the name of authenticity and pure research). Ibogaine, "The Plant that Allows Men to See the Dead" - found in the iboga plant in various African countries - proved to be an arduous ordeal with a profound after effect.

For the first hour, nothing happened, but then Hancock notes an inability to use his legs, as well as a "feebleness" of his arms. He adds that any attempts to move would bring on "uncontrollable tremors". His sense of balance was also completely gone. Next, there was "giddiness and nausea", followed by ringing in the ears, and his eyesight became obstructed. He writes "There was a great deal of pain, weakness and discomfort. It was as if my body was slowly and systematically being smashed and dismembered."

Eventually, visions appeared when he closes his eyes, but vanished once he opened them. He experienced dizziness, and more visions, and when he opened his eyes, Hancock was confronted by a "heavily built blond young man" whose "skin was pallid and his brow blotched in patches of green mould." He was then visited by a large group, most of whom gazed at the floor, but he noticed someone at the back of the crowd staring at him, after which, he fell into a "dream state for a very long time", but could only partially remember it. The experience spanned two days - with his faculties slow to return.

Hancock considers the ibogaine experience to have profoundly impacted him, in the sense that it seemed to cure his depression and the grief for his father, who had recently passed away. He also notes its therapeutic use for treating alcoholism and heroin addiction, amongst other physical addictions.

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 5: Terence McKenna on Psilocybin, Cannabis, Ayahuasca, DMT, Shamanism and 'Partnership Societies'

By David Sharp

After considering Huxley and Hofmann's takes on mescaline and LSD, as well as Lilly’s take on ketamine, Terence McKenna's book Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge serves as a great means to cast our psychedelic net further afield. McKenna became synonymously attached to his Stoned Ape Theory, where he hypothesises about the role of hallucinogenic plants in human evolution.

Regarding psilocybin (a compound found in mushrooms), McKenna writes "The ambience of psilocybin is different from that of LSD. Hallucinations come easier, and so does a sense that this is not merely a lens for the inspection of the personal psyche, but a communication device for getting in touch with the world of the high shamanism of Archaic antiquity."

On cannabis, McKenna states "The history of cannabis in the United States...was at first a happy one. Cannabis use was neither stigmatised nor popularised...until the early 1930s, when the crusade of Harry J Anslinger...created a public hysteria." He then lauds the ego-dissolving, introspective qualities of cannabis, and writes "If every alcoholic were a pothead, if every crack user were a pothead, if every smoker smoked only cannabis, the social consequences of the 'drug problem' would be transformed."

McKenna describes an ayahuasca session as providing "extremely rich tapestries of visual hallucination that are particularly susceptible to being 'driven' and directed by sound." (which is usually in the form of an 'icaro'). Through his travels to the Amazon, McKenna discerned that the potential of ayahuasca is not limited to spirituality, and that ancient tribal methods of using ayahuasca ceremonies for physical and psychological healing is an area of research that is barely touched upon and deserves attention.

On the DMT experience, he writes "The world becomes an Arabian labyrinth...vast with motifs that flood the gaping mind with complex and wordless awe. Colour and the sense of a reality-unlocking secret nearby pervades the experience. There is a sense of other times, and of one's own infancy, and of wonder, wonder and more wonder." and that the 'realm' of DMT is "a convincingly real, apparently coexisting alien world." McKenna teases a 'chicken and egg' dynamic between the evolutionary relationship of DMT and human biochemistry, and, in particular, the quickness in which DMT synergises with the brain, as well as DMT's similarity to human serotonin.

Terence McKenna was also a strong advocate for the role of psychedelics and shamanism, and writes in-depth about the importance that 'partnership' between humans and hallucinogens has on maintaining a spiritual equilibrium - which has largely been lost in modern society (as the overarching theme of Food of the Gods meticulously and compellingly argues).

McKenna says that the pushback towards hallucinogens "is not unlike that of the sixteenth century when the telescope was invented and shattered the established paradigm of the heavens." He decries the impact of biblical rhetoric against psychedelics, and points to the story of Adam and Eve as an example of a monotheistic religion suppressing access to consciousness-enhancing drugs.

He also sets out a comprehensive history of the western world's 'acceptable' addictions over recent centuries, from alcohol and sugar to even television, and he uses these examples as fuel to highlight the irrationality of allowing destructive, 'depressive' drugs, while prohibiting organic, benign hallucinogenic plants. As stated earlier, McKenna describes the situation as "sickeningly Orwellian", concerted governmental effort.

McKenna believes that regaining a "partnership society", where psychedelics are freely allowed and shamanism can be implemented would benefit society, and be an overall evolutionary step in the long term - writing that psychedelic agents can "reunite us with the earth while simultaneously carrying us to the stars."

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 4: John Lilly, Ketamine, Sensory Deprivation, Interspecies Communication and Dogma

By David Sharp

John Lilly is something of a maverick, in the sense that his theories and research methods are gung-ho, radically unique and often controversial. He is known, most notably, for his research with dolphins, as well as his experimentation with ketamine and sensory deprivation.

After experimenting with LSD, Lilly was introduced to ketamine, which he initially used in small doses to cure his chronic migraines. After being impressed by the effects of ketamine, Lilly began pushing the boundaries of risk in order to  discern it's potential, and began using ketamine in larger doses (to the extent that he required resuscitation on at least one occasion). He would later acknowledge the danger involved and state, unequivocally, that ketamine, in high doses, should be taken under medical supervision.

Regardless of his potential irresponsibility with high doses of ketamine, whatever he experienced was undoubtedly profound. On ketamine, Lilly describes interacting with an external, "extraterrestrial", source of intelligence, which became the basis of his ECCO theory.

Lilly explored the potential of sensory deprivation with the use of isolation tanks. These tanks comprised of a large rectangular, bath-like tank with an overhead door, which was enclosed throughout the experience. The tank is also filled partially with water and Epsom salts, which allow users to gain more buoyancy in order to experience weightlessness. Lilly's work popularised the use of flotation tanks as a means of relaxation, meditation and/or psychedelic exploration. His rationale was that, by eliminating external inputs, he could explore new depths of consciousness and, naturally, he began experimenting with sensory deprivation during high-dose ketamine sessions.

Lilly also became a pioneer in exploring interspecies communication through his work with dolphins. He recognised the intellectual potential of the species and his aim was to communicate with dolphins in English. Lilly's research emanated from a renovated villa in the Virgin Islands, and he used numerous routes of inquiry which, of course, partially involved psychedelics.

A New Scientist article details NASA's interest in Lilly's work with dolphins, stating that "Some of the funding for Lilly’s research came from NASA. Through the 1950s and 60s the agency, and radio astronomers in general, took increasingly seriously the possibility that there were other technological civilisations in our galaxy. If Lilly could establish communication with another animal species on Earth, lessons from his work might help humanity understand radio messages from extraterrestrial intelligent life."

However, despite an enthusiasm for the research, financial backers weren't satisfied with the return on their investment. While progress was being made, the project was frustratingly time-consuming and expensive. Lilly experimented with the dolphins by giving them LSD - to no avail (interestingly, Albert Hofmann initially thought LSD to be useless, and abandoned researching it for five years, after the substance had little-to-no impact on animals).

Margaret Howe, who was on-site during the research, sparked controversy and widespread criticism. She was tasked with engaging the dolphins to learn and communicate in English - and when one of the dolphins delayed the sessions because of its sexual appetite, Howe masturbated the dolphin to speed up research. The project seemed doomed. The New Scientist feature notes that in 1966 "funding for the dolphin speech experiments had dried up. St Thomas dolphin house was shut down, and the three dolphins were relocated to a research lab in Florida." While Lilly's work showed promise and highlighted future areas of research, the manner in which the project fizzled out was disappointing, leaving more questions than answers.

At a glance, Lilly's dolphin experiment sours his image and leaves him looking like more of a mad scientist than anything. However, he has made important contributions and considerations on the issue of psychedelics throughout his career. To completely discredit his work might be seen as throwing the baby out with the bath water.

In Simulations of God: The Science of Belief, Lilly highlights how "established" and "acceptable" belief systems impact society (much in the same way that Terence McKenna did in Food of the Gods). Lilly touches on the damage that societal dogmas does, especially when they bleed into fields such as medicine, which can manifest into lazy and ineffective treatment methods, writing "In the United States we are brought up to believe in our doctor as an expert. If he prescribes a pill for a particular illness, we take the pill without question. The doctor in this case has the power of the old priesthood in the sense that we do not have the knowledge to question his decisions."

As an example, he discusses the discovery and use of tranqilizers in the 1950s, he writes "Slowly, but surely, the tranquillisers were accepted by Establishment medicine and put on prescription.", however, these are a "chemical straitjacket" and "behavioural control chemicals which did not cure anything but merely prevented the patient from acting out..." Lilly also cites Sigmund Freud, and his medicinal cocaine practices - which he used to attempt to cure morphine addiction.

Lilly further emphasises the deeply flawed "acceptable" behaviour that is allowed by the establishment, which undermine's their moral authority over psychedelics, writing "There are those who cannot sleep without barbiturates, who cannot wake up without an amphetamine, and who obtain their drugs through their legal prescriptions. There are those who cannot function in our society without tranquillisers; these people number in the hundreds of thousands if not the millions. There are millions who can't get along without their afternoon drink...There are those who must smoke tobacco to obtain the effects of the various resins and the nicotine...these also number in the millions."

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 3: Mescaline, According to Aldous Huxley

By David Sharp

Mescaline, the psychedelic alkaloid derived from peyote (as well as numerous other plants) bears a close similarity to LSD, in terms of giving users a long-lasting, hallucinogenic experience and, in his 1954 book, The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley begins by reflecting on his first experience with mescaline. Huxley ingested four tenths of a gram of mescalin as an experiment, accompanied by two observers (Humphry Osmond, along with Huxley's wife, Maria).

Huxley's mescalin experience came on gradually, but lasted for approximately eight hours. While it was not the visually-miraculous, vibrant experience that he initially expected, he noted that his mind's inability to visually articulate dreams may have also hindered his hallucinogenic capacity to see enhanced visuals while on mescalin. However, Huxley's experience was still profound.

He intensely focused on the flowers in his study, and obsessed over office furniture, and the folds in his trousers, and the depth of visually-rich paintings. Huxley surmised that, perhaps, through his mescaline experience, he was afforded the ability to see, or perceive, what great artists were gifted enough to perceive in their everyday life. He also noted a distinct separation from his body (even though he could move around, interact with people and eat a meal with general ease).

While he delighted in being taken to another 'world' by mescalin, he came to the profound realisation that the place (or mental state) that he was visiting could be a realm in which, an unlucky few, sit, permanently, stranded. He wrote "It was inexpressibly wonderful, wonderful to the point of being terrifying. And suddenly I had an inkling of what it must feel like to be mad. Schizophrenia has its heavens as well as its hells and purgatories." and adding "Most takers of mescalin experience only the heavenly part of schizophrenia."

He also added, that, throughout the experience "The mind was primarily concerned, not with measures and locations, but with being and meaning. And along with indifference to space there went an even completer indifference to time." When asked by Osmond, the observer, what he though about the concept of time, Huxley replied "There seems to be plenty of it." and later reflected "Plenty of it, but exactly how much was entirely irrelevant. I could, of course, look down at my watch; but my watch, I knew, was in another universe."

After detailing his experience, he then writes about peyote culture among Native Americans, and contrasts that to western religions, most notably, Christianity, and reflects on church rituals as being boring, unfulfilling, and not as profound in contrast to a Native American peyote session.

Huxley also decried the western world's prohibition on psychedelics such as peyote (which stands to this day), writing "A tree with such satisfactory fruits cannot be condemned out of hand as evil. In sacramentalizing the use of peyote, the Indians of the Native American Church have done something which is at once psychologically sound and historically respectable."

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 2: Albert Hofmann, Serendipity and the Birth of LSD

By David Sharp

Speaking of LSD, one of the seminal figures in psychedelic research is Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann, known most notably for his work with LSD, psilocybin and psilocin. His final book, LSD and the Divine Scientist is a short - yet incredibly potent - varied entrée of Hofmann's lectures and writing on the natural sciences, philosophy and psychedelics. He begins in Chapter 1 by highlighting Hofmann's belief that chemical research is a serendipitous game of chance, where a route of inquiry about one thing will lead you to an accidental discovery of something completely out of the realm of what you were initially looking for.

He illustrates the point by telling the story of how he 'accidentally' synthesised a powerful psychedelic, LSD, while experimenting with ergot. Amazingly, after he initially synthesises LSD-25, he then catalogues it in the lab and sets it aside to pursue other lines of inquiry.

Then, it is five years later, that he finally returns his attention to LSD, and unwittingly unlocks the powerful psychedelic. He writes, at first, he was completely oblivious, but then "fell into a strange, dreamlike state", so he took the afternoon off, went home and lay down to experience "a fantastic play of colour and forms." After several hours, the experience wore off. The next day, he set about identifying which of the substances he had been working on that had caused the psychedelic episode - eventually realising it was LSD.

Hofmann was compelled to attempt a second LSD trip, and stated that "Being a cautious man, I began my self experiment with the suspect substance using the smallest amount from which an effect might be expected, namely 0.25mg," which he later found out was perhaps five times stronger than necessary. Hofmann continued, "I figured I would cautiously increase the dosage from there. But I never got that far." He says the 0.25mg of LSD "caused a state of intoxication that lasted around twelve hours" and at first he wasn't even sure if he'd return to a normal state of reality. But, as the drug wore off, he began to relax and enjoy the experience.

Hofmann then brings his point of serendipity in research back home, highlighting that, after the unforeseen discovery of LSD, scientists brought psychoactive Mexican mushrooms to his lab's attention, and his subsequent research on mushrooms birthed new medications (which underpins the untapped potential of psychedelic compounds from a medical standpoint).

Regarding the rest of the book, the second chapter features Hofmann's 1989 lecture which touches on the notion of reality as a subjective experience, before turning his attention to the human quest for happiness and meaning in the third chapter. Chapter 4 is titled 'The Use of Psychedelics for the Great Transition', citing a dying Aldous Huxley ingesting LSD and contemplating the power of psychedelics as a source of end-of-life therapy.

[culturallynumb]

Hyperdimensional Part 1: Altered States, Spiritual Rediscovery and the War on Consciousness

By David Sharp

In Illegal Smile, John Prine sings "You may see me tonight with an illegal smile. It don't cost very much, but it lasts a long while. Won't you please tell the man I didn't kill anyone. No, I'm just tryin' to have me some fun." The song is the first track on his 1971 debut album, yet its relevance remains intact to this day.

Societal attitudes toward psychedelic substances are, in the main, dismissive to say the least. But, as the old saying goes; "Condemnation, without investigation, is the height of ignorance." Adding insult to injury, a great body of evidence and thorough investigation has already been set out for society's convenience. And, hilariously - or tragically - research has proven that some of the hallucinogens that have been persecuted and outlawed are actually endogenous to the human body. This is the case, for example, with DMT (and further research has highlighted its organic presence in the pineal gland of rats).

Some of the foremost researchers and writers in the field include Richard Evans Schultes, Albert Hofmann, Rick Strassman, Valentina and R. Gordon Wasson, Timothy Leary and Aldous Huxley - and their work has created a good base on which to draw from when advocating for further research, as well as a thorough revision of the laws surrounding psychedelics. Leary, in particular, became a central figure in the field - an American psychologist who popularised the counterculture maxim "Turn on. Tune in. Drop out." The New Yorker described him as "a grinning, charismatic, completely irresponsible Lord of Misrule." - an ideal poster boy for the psychedelic movement.

But, despite their best efforts, decades of inquiry into the pharmacological, psychiatric and spiritual benefits of psychedelics has fallen on deaf ears by the overwhelming majority. Governments and societies alike have taken, at face value, outrageously false and ignorant propaganda, and subsequent dogma, which has been passed down to them by their parents.

The end result is a phenomenon that writer Graham Hancock has termed "The War on Consciousness.", where natural plants and legitimately beneficial synthetics have been demonised and banished from the mainstream, with unwavering, irrational policies being put in place. Terence McKenna described the situation as "sickeningly Orwellian", strongly contending that "the psychedelic issue is a civil rights and civil liberties issue" and "only legalisation can be the basis for a sane drug policy."

A point of contention that McKenna had is the manner in which psychedelics are categorised. They are thrown in under the umbrella of "drugs", along with destructive and harmful substances such as meth and crack cocaine - which serves only to reinforce the dogma that causes the suppression of psychedelics.

In Simulations of God, Dr John Lilly adds "These laws were made in a hurry, in a panic about the consequences...of these drugs. Few if any of the legislators understood the issues involved, and whenever researchers who best understood the issues attempted to speak up they were discredited."

Nevertheless, even in the face of its demonisation, psychedelics have enriched western culture in immeasurable ways, and some of the foremost contributors to the West - in fields ranging from music and literature to technology - have been heavily, and positively, influenced by psychedelic experiences.

The Beatles, in particular, were heavily influenced by psychedelics, and literature such as The Psychedelic Experience by Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner and Richard Alpert. Similarly, Steve Jobs of Apple - perhaps this century's single most influential man in technology and business - said LSD gave him "a profound experience, one of the most important things in my life." and that it "reinforced my sense of what was important; creating great things instead of making money."

[culturallynumb]

Grey Skies and Warm Hearts: A 70 Year Voyage through British Sound

By David Sharp

From Shakespeare to Darwin, Britain as a nation, has contributed significantly to world culture and science - dating back centuries. But, as we look to the modern age, one of the feathers in its cap is the body of music created in the 20th and 21st century. Within British music lies a vast expanse of genres, generations and themes, underpinning the country's zeitgeist, as well as capturing the hopes, dreams, angst, romance and defiance of its people.

Britain's modern music history was birthed in the post-WWII era and, for all intents and purposes, got off to a fairly disorganised and modest start. The advent of the LP and, thereafter, television, created a new world to explore and indulge in, however, there was a slight problem. The UK's modern pop scene was beginning from scratch, and while bands and solo artists were performing up and down the country, legitimate British stars were in short supply, which meant that the pop scene comprised largely of imported acts from America - and, throughout the forties and fifties, the UK's threadbare pop and rock scene was perpetually in a state of playing catchup. On the burgeoning scene, Ewan McColl and Jimmy Young were standouts of the time.

By the 1960s, British pop and rock had came of age, and while American music remained in vogue, a vibrant, new generation of bands - led by the likes of The Beatles, The Kinks and The Rolling Stones - ascended to global acclaim, and ventured off into a brave new world of popular culture - led by new ideas, new technology, new fashion, and new drugs. Despite the infinite burst of new acts and styles of music, the heady wave of 'Beatlemania' was the single most polarising, overarching phenomenon of the decade.

Seventies Britain brought the advent of punk and new wave, and with it, a rebellious undertone, led by The Clash and Sex Pistols, and - as it pertains to new wave - Duran Duran, The Cure and The Human League. The decade also featured seminal music from Elton John, Fleetwood Mac, Genesis and Queen, and the UK's metal scene kicked into high gear, with the likes of Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and Motörhead leading the way.

With the eighties came the post-punk era and the emergence of the New romantics - The Smiths, The Police, Eurythmics, Kate Bush, Pet Shop Boys, New Order and The Stone Roses epitomised the various genres of the country's eighties music scene. Technology was also changing, and it was not only influencing the sound of music, but also how it was consumed. While LPs were still in demand, cassettes were now available to buy, and cassette tapes were also being used to record tracks directly from the radio, in order to create personal mix tapes.

By the 1990s, Britain had accrued a rich and diverse musical tapestry over the preceding thirty years, and the nineties had that heritage ingrained in its music, despite having a unique identity of its own. Oasis are a great example of this, who were heavily influenced by The Smiths and The Beatles. Oasis, along with Blur, heralded the 'Britpop' era, which dominated the zeitgeist of the nation and the decade. Along with Britpop, house music also came of age in the nineties, and became part and parcel of British nightlife and the embodiment of '90s excess.

The initial years after the turn of the millennium brought with it an underwhelming feeling of emptiness, much like like the UK's forties and fifties pop scene brought with it. All of the nation's flagship music icons were ageing, and the new seminal acts were few and far between. Britpop was slowly being replaced by shit pop. History was also beginning to repeat itself, which threatened the future of the music business. By the 2000s, LPs and cassettes - as well as many record stores - had came and went, and although CDs were still on sale to the masses, the internet presented a new medium of music piracy.

Mixtape and bootleg rip-offs were a thing of the past, but illegal MP3 downloads from file-sharing websites had hit the music business hard, threatening the existence of record labels, retailers, and hitting artists financially in the process. Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, had the answer, which came in the form of an online music store - iTunes, along with the advent of the iPod, a high-spec MP3 player. While it saved (or, at least, salvaged) the music business, it was also the technological and commercial coup of the 21st century.

While 'shit pop' prevailed, by the mid-2000s, a new generation of artists and bands had emerged, and began the unenviable task of following in the footsteps of The Beatles et al of the 20th century. Nevertheless, Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, The Enemy, Courteeners and The Cribs were all exemplary British bands of the decade, with prolific solo artists such as David Gray, Frank Turner, Beans on Toast and Ed Sheeran emerging on the men's side, and Adele, Amy Winehouse, Duffy, Estelle, Paloma Faith and Amy Macdonald bursting onto the scene on the women's side. The 21st century also saw British rap and grime come to prominence, with Giggs, Roots Manuva, The Streets, Skepta, Mikill Pane and Example being just a cross section of acts that were the UK's colloquial version of America's rich hip hop scene.

By the 2010s, music 'streaming' cannibalised the industry further, as Spotify, Apple Music and even YouTube capitalised on the opportunities presented by both technology and the subsequent vulnerability of the music business, paying artists and labels pennies on the dollar - all in the name of 'exposure'. As a result, touring and merchandise became the artists' bread and butter, to replace the shortfall of record sales. By the late 2010s, vinyl did make a comeback, but it was largely treated as an object of novelty and nostalgia, and the sales of vinyl couldn't negate the irreparable damage that was done by music piracy and streaming.

But, somehow, music didn't die, and new bands and artists emerged, including Pure Love, The Vaccines, The Last Shadow Puppets, Tribes and Peace. In addition, Bring Me the Horizon, Enter Shikari and Bullet For My Valentine gave British metal a new lease of life, while James Bay, Jake Bugg, Ben Howard, Birdy, Lucy Rose and Jess Glynne added to the new generation of British solo artists.

The end result - when you step back and take in the various genres and eras of modern British music - is an overwhelming burst of music history, a partially living, partially dead seventy-year culmination of what is and what was. But how do you define and appreciate something so massive? A playlist, of course. A massive, 150-track playlist that begins in the 1940s and ends in the 2010s and celebrates the UK's rich tapestry of pop, rock, folk, metal, punk, house, grime and merged variations that lie in between.

1. Dirty Old Town by Ewan MacColl 2. The Man from Laramie by Jimmy Young 3. Baby My Heart by The Shadows 4. Love Potion Number Nine by The Searchers 5. How Do You Do It by Gerry and The Pacemakers 6. The House of the Rising Sun by The Animals 7. Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones 8. Baba O'Riley by The Who 9. In My Life by The Beatles 10. Glad All Over by The Dave Clark Five 11. All Day and All of the Night by The Kinks 12. Wild World by Cat Stevens 13. Itchycoo Park by Small Faces 14. The Air that I Breathe by The Hollies 15. Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin 16. Children of the Revolution by T Rex 17. Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd 18. You've Got Another Thing Comin' by Judas Priest 19. Highway to Hell by AC/DC 20. Run to the Hills by Iron Maiden 21. Mountain Energy by The Fall 22. War Pigs by Black Sabbath 23. Victory or Die by Motorhead 24. Photograph by Def Leppard 25. Invisible Touch by Genesis 26. Imagine by John Lennon 27. Live and Let Die by Paul McCartney 28. Together in Electric Dreams by The Human League 29. Still Ill by The Smiths 30. Step On by Happy Mondays 31. Under Pressure by Queen 32. Ordinary World by Duran Duran 33. Modern Love by David Bowie 34. Sledgehammer by Peter Gabriel 35. Everyday is Like Sunday by Morrissey 36. Transmission by Joy Division 37. True Faith by New Order 38. Relax by Frankie Goes to Hollywood 39. Ever Fallen in Love by Buzzcocks 40. God Save the Queen by Sex Pistols 41. Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick by Ian Dury and The Blockheads 42. Layla by Eric Clapton 43. Up the Junction by Squeeze 44. Dreams by Fleetwood Mac 45. Moonlight Shadow by Mike Oldfield 46. I Only Want to Be With You by Dusty Springfield 47. Running Up that Hill by Kate Bush 48. Here Comes the Rain Again by Eurythmics 49. Everything She Wants by Wham! 50. West End Girls by Pet Shop Boys 51. Personal Jesus by Depeche Mode 52. Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me by Elton John 53. A Message to You Rudy by The Specials 54. Greetings to the New Brunette by Billy Bragg 55. In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins 56. Walk of Life by Dire Straits 57. Train in Vein by The Clash 58. Boys Don't Cry by The Cure 59. Every Breath You Take by The Police 60. This is the One by The Stone Roses 61. Going Underground by The Jam 62. If You Tolerate This Your Children Will be Next by Manic Street Preachers 63. Sit Down by James 64. There She Goes by The La's 65. Do You Remember the First Time by Pulp 66. Creep by Radiohead 67. Trash by Suede 68. The Day We Caught the Train by Ocean Colour Scene 69. Set You Free by N-Trance 70. There's Nothing I Won't Do by JX 71. Deepest Blue by Deepest Blue 72. Pretty Green Eyes by Ultrabeat 73. There's No Other Way by Blur 74. Slide Away by Oasis 75. The Only One I Know by The Charlatans 76. Yellow by Coldplay 77. Lucky Man by The Verve 78. Handbags and Gladrags by Stereophonics 79. F.E.A.R. by Ian Brown 80. Born Slippy by Underworld 81. Go by Moby 82. Blinded by the Lights by The Streets 83. The Very Best of Neil Diamond by Super Furry Animals 84. Flowers in the Window by Travis 85. Growing On Me by The Darkness 86. Time For Heroes by The Libertines 87. When the Sun Goes Down by Arctic Monkeys 88. Praise You by Fatboy Slim 89. Baby's Got a Temper by The Prodigy 90. Swastika Eyes by Primal Scream 91. Chelsea Dagger by The Fratellis 92. I Predict a Riot by Kaiser Chiefs 93. Empire by Kasabian 94. Fire by The Music 95. Living for the Weekend by Hard-Fi 96. Borders by The Sunshine Underground 97. Golden Touch by Razorlight 98. Bedshaped by Keane 99. Out of Luck by The King Blues 100. Sheila by Jamie T 101. This Year's Love by David Gray 102. Either Way by The Twang 103. Foundations by Kate Nash 104. No Substitute Love by Estelle 105. Set Fire to the Rain by Adele 106. Mr Rock & Roll by Amy Macdonald 107. Picking Up the Pieces by Paloma Faith 108. Tears Dry On Their Own by Amy Winehouse 109. Mercy by Duffy 110. Broke Up the Family by The Milk 111. Little Lion Man by Mumford & Sons 112. It's My Own Cheating Heart that Makes Me Cry by Glasvegas 113. Mountains by Biffy Clyro 114. Misery by Gallows 115. Lockdown by Johnny Marr 116. We Share the Same Skies by The Cribs 117. Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors by Editors 118. We'll Live and Die in These Towns by The Enemy 119. Sycophant by Courteeners 120. Denial by James McCartney 121. Bury My Bones by Pure Love 122. Bright Lights by The Ghost of a Thousand 123. All in White by The Vaccines 124. The A Team by Ed Sheeran 125. End Credits by Chase & Status 126. Stay Awake by Example 127. Witness by Roots Manuva 128. Whippin Excursion by Giggs 129. That's Not Me by Skepta 130. GNGSTRS by Mikill Pane 131. Anaesthetist by Enter Shikari 132. Drown by Bring Me the Horizon 133. Don't Need You by Bullet for My Valentine 134. The Age of the Understatement by The Last Shadow Puppets 135. We Were Children by Tribes 136. Float Forever by Peace 137. Lightning Bolt by Jake Bugg 138. History by The Rifles 139. Mountain at My Gates by Foals 140. Wings by Birdy 141. Real Love by Jess Glynne 142. Under the Shadows by Rae Morris 143. Yours by Ella Henderson 144. Shiver by Lucy Rose 145. The Hunter by Slaves 146. Let It Go by James Bay 147. Keep Your Head Up by Ben Howard 148. The Next Storm by Frank Turner 149. The War on War by Beans on Toast 150. Lullaby by Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes

[culturallynumb]

Britain's Legalisation of Cannabidiol (CBD): Malevolent or Clumsy?

By David Sharp

Cannabidiol, often referred to simply as CBD, is a non-psychoactive component of cannabis, which can be sourced by extracting from the flowers, leaves and stalks of hemp plants. Once CBD has been isolated, it can be consumed orally as an oil (with a mouth dropper) or as a pill, and it can also be vaped or applied to your skin.

CBD interfaces with your body's endocannabinoid system and has been shown to have a number of uses, both as a dietary supplement, as well as a medicine to treat and manage a wide variety of conditions, from physical pain, emotional imbalances, as well as supporting immunity.

Despite the capabilities that CBD has, especially with the lack of side effects that it has in comparison to traditional Medicean, it has been much maligned and discredited at governmental level, in part due to a knowledge gap on the makeup and efficacy of CBD, in addition to industry pushback from pharmaceutical power players. Advocates of CBD have also had to contend with misconceptions between CBD and THC (the psychoactive component of cannabis), as well as the stigma associated with CBD being extracted from cannabis, which remains an illegal drug.

So it was to the surprise of many that Britain officially announced that CBD would be legally recognised as a legitimate medicine. The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a statement on the use, sale and regulation of medicinal products containing CBD in late 2016, saying "We have come to the opinion that products containing cannabidiol (CBD) used for medical purposes are a medicine. Medicinal products must have a product licence (marketing authorisation) before they can be legally sold, supplied or advertised in the UK, unless exempt. Licensed medicinal products have to meet safety, quality and efficacy standards to protect public health."

However, while it appears on the surface to be a forward step for users, manufacturers and distributors, the MHRA's ruling brings with it heavy regulation. The BBC reported in October 2016 (when the ruling had been officially made) that the MHRA had contacted 18 CBD companies advising them to apply for a licence to either manufacture or sell CBD - anyone caught selling CBD without a licence could be liable to pay an uncapped fine, as well as jail time. What's more, the criteria for being granted a CBD licence appears to be vague and subjective. At the time of the BBC report, of the 18 companies that the MHRA contacted, only one had been granted a licence.

Because it has been recognised as having medicinal properties, CBD is now being treated in the same way as a hard drug, which CBD vendors have universally criticised, arguing that the measures and requirements are unnecessarily strict, costly and abrupt. Some have even asserted that the new protocols in the CBD market have been implemented to protect the commercial interests of UK's big pharmaceutical companies (which are one of the few thriving industries in Britain since the 2008 financial crisis).

Whether the UK's regulatory requirements are a result of malevolent protectionism or simply ill-thought-out, clumsy lawmaking, there is still optimism from some in the CBD market. Jordan Owen of MediPen, in particular, was confident in his company's ability to continue to succeed and contribute to the body of evidence to support the potential of CBD.

Even if it may have been mismanaged, and the licensing requirements could force some companies out of the market, CBD use (both as a dietary supplement and as an actual medicine) is still in its infancy - and over time, with more research, it is assumed that, in theory, regulators will increasingly understand and accept CBD. In reality however, for the CBD market, the clock is ticking.

So, while the UK's legalisation of CBD hasn't killed the market, it has undoubtedly disrupted the market in a negative way. The more pertinent question about the legalisation process might be 'What was the government's intentions?'

[culturallynumb]

Bitcoin’s Second Coming: Is BTC the New Gold?

By David Sharp

Well, kind of, but that hasn't affected the price of gold, which, whether Spot Gold is trending upwards or down, always seems to stabilise eventually, and gravitate back to where it was (and has been for decades).

Perhaps it might be overstating things to say that Bitcoin is the 'new gold' (because it isn't necessarily replacing it), but, for a number of reasons, you can make the case that Bitcoin has emerged, not as the 'new gold', but, instead, as 'another gold'.

Bitcoin, a globally-adopted peer-to-peer, digital 'cryptocurrency' entered the mainstream in 2013, after being created in 2008 by an enigmatic, unknown creator. It wasn't the first currency of its kind, but, because of the design of the currency, the rise of the internet (and the 'dark web'), and a host of other factors, Bitcoin became the first of its kind to go viral, causing widespread intrigue, adoption and, in some cases, suspicion.

After initially being dismissed and considered worthless by people 'in the know', Bitcoin's adoption turned skeptics into believers, then back into skeptics. The cryptocurrency's trading value exploded in 2013, with early adopters cashing out to accrue massive sums of wealth. However, numerous kinks in the Bitcoin ecosystem - both in the design of its 'blockchain', as well as security breaches in Bitcoin 'exchanges', hurt its value.

Another issue which dampened mainstream enthusiasm for Bitcoin was the fundamental issue of people not knowing how the hell the currency worked - the less tech savvy were baffled by the very notion of a cryptocurrency, and wrote Bitcoin off as a fad, which, until recently, it appeared to be.

So its value plateaued - until very recently.

Given the West's political volatility of 2016 and 2017, gold, as a commodity, became back in vogue, with the UK's Brexit vote in June 2016 spiking spot gold, and numerous other political and economic forces giving it a continued surge. But, while gold is going nowhere, the second coming of Bitcoin has seen the cryptocurrency emerged as another 'safe haven' investment.

Bitcoin has been around for less than a decade, but after being written off once before, people are slowly reconsidering its place in the world yet again - as a currency and as a commodity. As a result, Bitcoin's value cracked the $1,000 mark for the first time in years, leaving investors intrigued.

Mainstream trading platforms have began spotlighting Bitcoin as an option, and while the average investor still doesn't fully understand how it works, it is becoming more accessible to trade.

It does have its fair share of detractors, despite bouncing back. After all, in comparison to gold, it is more volatile, it has a minute lifespan, and, well, you can't reach out and touch it, but given the slippery, kaleidoscopic nature of finance, the latter shouldn't be an issue. Despite gold being a 'safer safe haven', the volatility of Bitcoin creates a much higher profit margin - if you're patient enough to buy in at the right time (i.e. when Bitcoin trades below the $500 mark).

This line of thinking has caused the latest surge in Bitcoin, but with the way in which technology, terrorism, world politics and the global economy are trending towards something resembling the precipice of world chaos, the second Bitcoin rush, in all likelihood, won't be the last.

[culturallynumb]

30 Unfortunate Souls Vie for $1.6m, Risking Death and Rape, on the World's Most Demonic Gameshow.

By David Sharp

In December 2016, promotion began for 'Game2: Winter', a new Russian survival show which begins next year and will take place in the Siberian wilderness. The show is set to last nine months and will be an ambitious 2,000-camera shoot - with a 24/7 online stream that broadcasts the lives of each of the thirty contestants as they vie for a $1.6m cash price. But the details of the show sound less like reality television, and more like an ancient Roman death game, or a far-flung horror movie.

"Everything is allowed." claims an ad for the show, including fighting, murder and rape. The show acknowledges that the Russian police could intervene on any potential criminal activity, and revealed that all contestants have signed a waiver acknowledging that they could be, among other things, maimed, killed or arrested. Contestants have also been warned that they will be left in close proximity to wild animals, including wolves and bears. In addition to the waiver, the show's backer, businessman Yevgeny Pyatkovsky, has refused to take responsibility for any potential violence or deaths on the show.

Since Pyatkovsky's media push to promote the show, Game2 has been dubbed 'The Real-Life Hunger Games' by many news outlets. And, while Hunger Games, in the novels and films, took place as a televised event, it's unlikely that any mainstream broadcaster would even consider - or be allowed - to air what, in essence, could descend into gore.

The internet, though, has a way of embracing the taboo - it is an all-encompassing megahive of the good, the great, the benign, as well as several shades of sinister. If you venture down the wrong path online, you'll uncover areas of the internet that house the most heinous, inhumane, traumatising pictures, videos and ideologies, and Game2 would naturally find its place - and its audience - somewhere among the vast expanse of the taboo online scape, just like '2 Girls, 1 Cup' did.

And with the advent of social media, the internet has shown us that mainstream society are more-than-willing voyeurs, with a profound appetite to passively, vicariously basque in the triumph and tragedy of the celebrities that they beloved and detest.

But, Game2, despite all the hyperbole and bold claims, remains an unknown quantity. As the show commences, we'll either discover that the show was a complete wash out - just another overly-exuberant hype job that failed to deliver the goods - or that Game2 is a new low, and that modern civilisation has reached a moral tipping point, in the name of entertainment.