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top cognitive liberty news
From the Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org
January 14, 2005

Happy new year! Things are off to a fast start, with several upcoming events, a number of new publications, and a new look for the CCLE's popular feature Ask Dr. Shulgin Online.

Thanks to all of you who made year-end donations for the CCLE's 2005 operating expenses. Because of your generosity we are happy to report that operations will continue in 2005. For those who haven't donated, please join the eclectic global community of people who believe that Freedom of Thought deserves fulltime protection, and consider making a tax-deductible donation to support the CCLE's work. Any amount helps!

To donate online blip to: http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/donate.html


Cyberpunk Visions: Re-Membering Virtual Reality
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/pressroom/wrye_sententia.htm
Join Dr. Wrye Sententia at Penn State on Monday, January 17, 2005, where she'll be speaking about the ways that virtual reality and the reality of the virtual can be hacked using drugs, texts, and other technologies, to produce moments of "autonomous affect," in which one suddenly experiences one's environment in a radically new and productive way. Where and When: Monday, January 17, 2004, 3:00 p.m., Penn State's Kern Bldg, Room 102.

Ayahuasca in the New Yorker Magazine
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/dll/udv_toobin1.html
Richard Glen Boire was quoted by Jeffery Toobin in an article in the New Yorker about last month's ruling in the federal case concerning hoasca (aka ayahuasca) use by members of the Uniao do Vegetal. After a half-hour conversation with Toobin concerning the meaning and importance of the case, Toobin ended up using only a rather off-the-cuff comment by Richard that underscored the fact that ayahuasca is not, and never will be, a "drug of abuse." Read Toobin's full article (it's quite short) at the above URL. Note: a subsequent ruling changes much of what Toobin wrote: See, http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/dll/udv_10enbanc_ruling.htm

Converging Technologies For Improving Human Performance
NBIC 2005: A 2-day conference February 24-25, Kailua-Kona, HI.
http://www.biztechcomm.com
For the third year in a row, the CCLE is proud to be sponsoring and presenting at this prestigious conference, chaired by members of the National Science Foundation. The conference looks at how nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology and cognitive science are converging on the human, and thereby making it possible for improved physical and mental performance. Simultaneously, these developments raise many new legal and ethical issues. In the past years, we've found this conference to be a great place for discussing and developing the multi-dimensional scope of cognitive liberty with a diverse group of experts from government, industry, and academia. Join us there!

Ask Dr. Shulgin Online - New Look for 2005 and a New Answer
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/shulgin/blg/index.html
A new version of the Ask Dr. Shulgin Online website went online on January 1, 2005. The new design utilizes a blogger platform, and adds a bookstore featuring books by Dr. Shulgin and friends. In addition, we've added a array of new-answer notification systems, including RSS feeds and e-mail. Visit the new site at the above URL and sign up to receive a notice whenever a new question is answered!

Neurocops discussed in Canada
http://www.cbc.ca/wildroseforum/donhill.html
In December, Canadians in the Province of Alberta heard Richard Glen Boire discuss the trends that threaten to move the policing of tomorrow's drug war straight into our bloodstream. As pharmaceutical companies continue to develop new drugs that block the effects of illegal drugs, and government rhetoric continues to cast even responsible adult users of marijuana and other illegal drugs as "sick people who need treatment," the stage is set for a frightening expansion of the drug war. Richard discussed this possibility, ways to avoid it, and answered questions from listeners, during a live one-hour radio show carried on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's (CBC) WildRose Forum, hosted by Don Hill. Unfortunately, the CBC does not archive MP3s of that show. To read the CCLE's report "Threats to Cognitive Liberty: Pharmacotherapy and the Future of the Drug War," go to: http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/news/Pharma_press_release.html

21st Century Brains - New Dimensions in Bioethics
http://www.life-enhancement.com/neofiles/
Join Wrye Sententia, R.U. Sirius, and special friends on January 27th 2005, in Mill Valley, CA, for "21st Century Brains" a bioethics debate sponsored by the neofiles (see URL above.) The Forum will begin at 7:30 p.m., at the Mill Valley Community Center.
 

Dr. Albert Hofmann turns 99!
http://www.maps.org
The man who gave birth to a little known pharmaceutical drug trade named Delysid, which later became a worldwide phenomenon despite criminal prohibition under its nontrade name lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) turned 99 on January 11. CCLE Advisor Rick Doblin, president of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) rigged up an amazing live online conference call with Dr. Hofmann and guests. Those who tuned in live for the web event were treated to an amazing sonic happening, and participated in a unique multi-nodal celebration of Dr. Hofmann and ongoing efforts to reassess the potentials of psychedelic and empathogenic drugs. MAPS is leading the way. The event is archived in MP3 format on the MAPS website at the above URL.

Now Available: The Published Proceedings of
The European Workshop on "Connecting Brains and Society"
http://www.kbs-frb.be/code/page.cfm?id_page=153&ID=336
Last year, Dr. Wrye Sententia was one of 25 experts who met in Amsterdam to discuss the ways that neuroscience will make it possible to improve the ways our brains function. At the same time, some potential applications of neurotech will pose a slew of legal and ethical issues for the newly formed European Union. Wrye succeeded in generating lots of discussion about the need to respect and protect freedom of thought in existing and new European laws. The proceedings are now available free from the King Baudouin Foundation  at the URL above.

Drug Abuse: Opposing View Points
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/news/earls_oped1.htm
A new textbook published by Thomson & Gale is designed to give high school and college students a diversity of view points about drug use and drug policy. Richard Glen Boire was honored to supply a rebuttal to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who argues that random drug testing of public school students is reasonable. Richard disagrees, arguing that "random drug testing of students teaches by example and the lesson is that the Fourth Amendment has become a historical artifact, a quant relic from bygone days when our country honored the scrupulous protection of constitutional freedoms of the individual." A version of Richard's essay can be read online at the above URL. The book itself can be purchased from http://www.gale.com. The ISBN number is: 0-7377-2226-6 (hardcover) and 0-7377-2227-4 (paperback).


CCLE New Year Fundraiser – Please Donate!
http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/donate.html
This month,  the CCLE celebrates its fifth anniversary, and still we are the world's only organization devoted to freedom of thought. Read an overview of 2004 and our strategy for 2005. Then grab your credit card and lend a hand! We can’t do it without you. Donations are tax-deductible and very gratefully received.

Top Cognitive Liberty News is a free service provided by the Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics. The CCLE is rights-based public policy organization dedicated to promoting freedom of thought. The CCLE depends entirely on the private donations of individuals who seek to protect and enhance freedom of thought in the 21st century.
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