PhD in medical anthropology in 1980, specializing in psychiatric anthropology, neuropharmacology and ethno psychopharmacology from a joint program at UC Berkeley and UCSF Medical School. I received psychotherapeutic clinical training at the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute. I conducted post graduate ethnographic research in Brazil, Ecuador and Colombia originally examining the cross cultural personality development and psychohistory of the shamanic practitioner. As my research progressed, I became more focused on the ethno psychopharmacology of shamanic formulations, their phytochemistry, and possible significance for Western pharmaceutical science. I am currently Chief Science Officer and Founder of Aya Biosciences a new biopharmaceutical enterprise which is focused on the development of novel, second generation cannabis and psychedelic pharmaceuticals with more targeted efficacy, better safety profiles and the reduction of adverse side effects. I’m involved in several startups focused on the cultivation of psychedelic botanicals and manufacture of psychedelic pharmaceuticals, IHR/EHR technology and the mining of big data to predict clinical success. I’m interested in the neuropharmacology of psychedelic compounds generally and the discovery, early development and construction of novel psychedelic and cannabis compounds. I share the vision of Chacruna.net: “We envision a world where plant medicines and other psychedelics are preserved, protected, and valued as part of our cultural identity and integrated into our social, legal and health care systems.” In my work I hope to improve cultural understanding of these compounds and promote a unity between the use of psychedelic plants and psychedelic and pharmaceutical science. Join me for “Psychedelics: Cutting Edge Science” Mondays at 7PM where we take a deep dive into the latest scientific news and developments in psychedelic science. Also, join the Psychedelic: Cutting Edge Science Club where we will feature guest and topical discussions on the science behind psychedelic neuropharmacology and psychedelic therapy. Other interests include an eclectic appreciation of improvisational music, and Japanese, and contemporary European and American literature, Feel free to ping me into any rooms to discuss these topics! 🍄🧠🧪⚗️🌿🥀