Topic: Ethnobotany

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[ Episode #35 // Ecology + Alcohol ]

Feb 1 2012

Mini Episode

You can easily enjoy a beer without knowing about the thousands of years alcohol has modified the senses of our species. We'll go out to a bar to participate in a ritual to help us deal with the tasks of a work day, yet what if a tree does the same? Should alcohol be recognized for its ability change our consciousness in a sacred way? Are other species using the same substances we do in modifying their ability to perceive signals?

In Extraenvironmentalist #35 we speak with Stephen Harrod Buhner about his thoughts on the role of alcohol on humans and nature based around his book, Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers. We ask Stephen about the ecological role of humanity in the environment. Are Homo Sapiens like bees that serve a role much bigger than we'll ever understand? Our conversation covers the ways ancient people experienced the world and alternative approaches to brewing beer. Once your hear Stephen explain the chemistry of plants, you'll never think about that tree outside your window in the same way again.


 

// Music (in order of appearance)
Labyrinth Ear - Walk on the Moon (Arthur Russel Rework) via The Fader
Mansions on the Moon - Athens via Iceland Music Maffia
Kishi Bashi - Bright Whites viaConsequence of Sound
Polica - Lay Your Cards Out via Life+Times
Parov Stelar - Catgroove via IndieShuffle

// Extended Clips (in order of appearance)
Alan Watts - Roots of the Ecological Crisis
Bill Rees - The Dangerous Disconnection Between Economics and Ecology
The History of Alcohol
Terence McKenna: On Alcohol, Caffeine, Culture and Extraenvironmentalism

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[ Episode #15.2 // Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss // Part II ]

May 7 2011

Mini Episode

In the course of an extraordinary life, one might become the kind of person who, without intending it, is a source of marvelous accidents. Two young men set out from Colorado to the rainforest of South America as they hunt down an elusive chemical with the potential to reveal new dimensions of human nature. During this quest, they find something much greater, as their encounter with an enigmatic other sets their lives on a path too wild to predict.

In Extraenvironmentalist #15 we speak with Dennis McKenna about his Kickstarter project, Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss which, with your support, will become a book detailing his life with philosopher and visionary Terence McKenna. Dennis is co-author of The Invisible Landscape and a professor of ethnobotany at the University of Minnesota's Center for Spirituality & Healing with an extensive career researching how plants and humans can create a productive partnership. We spoke with Dennis about the ways he and Terence would develop ideas, how Dennis made the trip to the Amazon with Terence, how events at La Chorrera changed him. Though we don't stop there, Dennis also shares with us many of his ideas on life, the universe and everything and weighs in on whether he coined the term extraenvironmentalist originally.

Please support Dennis' Kickstarter project

Note: This is Part II of II.

 

// Music (in order of appearance)
Youth Lagoon - Cannons via KLUBB ACE
Peter, Bjorn & John - Second Chance (RAC Remix) via Dealer of People Emotions

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[ Episode #15.1 // Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss // Part I ]

May 7 2011

Mini Episode

In the course of an extraordinary life, one might become the kind of person who, without intending it, is a source of marvelous accidents. Two young men set out from Colorado to the rainforest of South America as they hunt down an elusive chemical with the potential to reveal new dimensions of human nature. During this quest, they find something much greater, as their encounter with an enigmatic other sets their lives on a path too wild to predict.

In Extraenvironmentalist #15 we speak with Dennis McKenna about his Kickstarter project, Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss which, with your support, will become a book detailing his life with philosopher and visionary Terence McKenna. Dennis is co-author of The Invisible Landscape and a professor of ethnobotany at the University of Minnesota's Center for Spirituality & Healing with an extensive career researching how plants and humans can create a productive partnership. We spoke with Dennis about the ways he and Terence would develop ideas, how Dennis made the trip to the Amazon with Terence, how events at La Chorrera changed him. Though we don't stop there, Dennis also shares with us many of his ideas on life, the universe and everything and weighs in on whether he coined the term extraenvironmentalist originally.

Please support Dennis' Kickstarter project

Note: This is Part I of II.

 

// Music (in order of appearance)
Cults - Go Outside (2 Bears Remix) via The Bang Pop
MillionYoung - Calrissian via I Guess I'm Floating
How to Be Alone via Vimeo
James Vincent McMorrow - We Don't Eat (Adventure Club Dubstep Remix) via SoundCloud
Doug Hoyer - Oh, The Wind Will Blow (ft. Jessica Jalbert) via New Music Collaborative
Washed Out - Eyes Be Closed via KLUBB ACE

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