PSYCHEDELICS - Sciencemadness.org

319___________
____________________________________________________ Psychedelics
used to." In his discussion of the brain as computer, he ad-
vanced the idea that the human brain programs itself to
think logically, with the implication that other superordinate
thought functions are inherent in our brain. The creative,
preconscious solution of problems is a common experience of
another mode of functioning. Specifically in the perceptual
sphere, it is relevant to cite observations on synesthesia, espe-
cially the association of colors with sounds. This function is
found more commonly in children, and tends to disappear
as the child grows older. From the point of view of adapta-
tion, it seems plausible that synesthesia is biologically super-
fluous and therefore would lose out to other perceptual and
cognitive processes that provide a more direct biological re-
ward. Evidence for parasensory modes in telepathy experi-
ments is difficult to evaluate, perhaps because such possibil-
ities are discordant with our present scientific cosmology. If
there is any validity to the work that has been done in such
investigations, it would seem reasonable to conclude that tele-
pathic phenomena represent the operation of perceptual chan-
nels ordinarily not utilized or available. The subjective data
of the classical mystic experience, of drug states, and of acute
psychosis can also be cited in support of the hypothesis of
perceptual expansion. In these diverse accounts from varied
cultures and epochs, we read the claim that new dimensions
are perceived, physical, spiritual, or unclassifiable. These
widely disparate authors report certain basic, similar percep-
tions: the unity of existence, timeless properties of the self,
and multiple worlds of existence beyond the familiar. The
similarity of their perceptions may simply reflect their similar
basic psychological structure. Because they are perceiving
their own internal psychological structure and modes of ac-
tivity, their experiences are basically similar despite cultural
differences. Logically, however, we must grant the possibility
that these unusual experiences contain the percepts of actual
characteristics of reality, normally not perceived.
Inside or Outside?
In trying to decide between the two major possibilities for
interpreting unusual experiences—the perception of something