Reconstruction of a Copper Age walled city, Los Millares, Iberia

The Chalcolithic (Ancient Greek: χαλκός khalkos "copper" + Ancient Greek: λίθος lithos "stone") period or Copper Age, also known as the Eneolithic/Æneolithic (from Latin aeneus "of bronze"), is a phase of the Bronze Age in which the addition of tin to copper to form bronze during smelting remained yet unknown by the metallurgists of the times. The Copper Age was originally defined as a transition between the Neolithic and the Bronze Age.

An archaeological site in southeastern Europe (Serbia) contains the oldest securely dated evidence of copper making at high temperature, from 7,000 years ago. Copper smelting may have been invented in separate parts of Asia and Europe at that time^[1] or spread from an initial source by long-distance trade.^[2]

Origin of name[link]

The multiple names result from multiple recognitions of the period. Originally the term "Bronze Age" meant that either copper or bronze was being used as the chief hard substance for the manufacture of tools and weapons. In 1881 John Evans recognizing that the use of copper often preceded the use of bronze distinguished between a transitional Copper Age and the Bronze Age proper. He did not include this transitional period in the tripartite system of Early, Middle and Late Bronze Age but placed it at the beginning outside of it. He did not, however, present it as a fourth age, but chose to retain the traditional three-age system.

In 1884 Gaetano Chierici, perhaps following Evans' lead, renamed it in Italian as the Eneo-litica (hyphen his) or "Bronze-stone" transition. This phrase never meant that the period is one in which both bronze and stone were used. The Copper Age features the use of copper, excluding bronze; moreover, stone continued to be used in a minor industry throughout both the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. "Litica" simply names the Stone Age as the point from which the transition began and is not another -lithic age. The Eneolithic was never part of the Stone Age, which ended conclusively the moment the first smelterer succeeded in obtaining copper from copper ore for the first time.

Subsequently the British used either Evans' Copper Age or the Eneo- or Aeneo-lithic, a translation of Chierici's eneo-litica. After several years a number of complainants appeared in the literature that Eneolithic seemed to the untrained eye to be produced from e-neolithic, "outside the Neolithic," clearly not a definitive characterization of the Copper Age. About the year 1900 many began to substitute Chalcolithic for Eneolithic to avoid the false segmentation. It was at this time that the misunderstanding began among those who had not understood the Italian. The -lithic was seen as a new -lithic age, a part of the Stone Age in which copper was used. Today Copper Age, Eneolithic and Chalcolithic are used synonymously to mean Evans' original definition of Copper Age.

The period is a transitional one but not outside of the traditional three-age system. It appears that copper was not widely exploited at first and that efforts in alloying it with tin and other metals began quite soon, making it difficult to distinguish the distinct Chalcolithic cultures from later periods. The boundary between the Copper and Bronze Ages is indistinct, since alloys sputtered in and out of use due to the erratic supply of tin.

The emergence of metallurgy occurred first in the Fertile Crescent, where it gave rise to the Bronze Age in the 4th millennium BC. There was an independent and limited invention of copper and bronze smelting by the Incas in South America and the Mesoamerican civilization in West Mexico (see Metallurgy in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica).

The literature of European archaeology, in general, avoids the use of 'chalcolithic' (the term 'Copper Age' is preferred), whereas Middle Eastern archaeologists regularly use it. The Copper Age in the Middle East and the Caucasus began in the late 5th millennium BC and lasted for about a millennium before it gave rise to the Early Bronze Age. The transition from the European Copper Age to Bronze Age Europe occurs about the same time, between the late 5th and the late 3rd millennia BC.

According to Parpola,^[3] ceramic similarities between the Indus Civilization, southern Turkmenistan, and northern Iran during 4300–3300 BC of the Chalcolithic period (Copper Age) suggest considerable mobility and trade.

Europe[link]

An archaeological site in southeastern Europe (Serbia) contains the oldest securely dated evidence of copper making at high temperature, from 7,000 years ago. The find in June 2010 extends the known record of copper smelting by about 500 years, and suggests that copper smelting may have been invented in separate parts of Asia and Europe at that time rather than spreading from a single source.^[1] In Serbia a copper axe was found at Prokuplje, which indicates that humans were using metals in Europe by 7,500 years ago (~5,500 BC), many years earlier than previously believed.^[4] Knowledge of the use of copper was far wider spread than the metal itself. The European Battle Axe culture used stone axes modeled on copper axes, even with imitation "mold marks" carved in the stone.^[5]

Chalcolithic copper mine in Timna Valley, Negev Desert, Israel

Ötzi the Iceman, who was found in the Ötztal Alps in 1991 and whose remains were dated to about 3300 BC, was found with a Mondsee copper axe. Since copper metallurgy was already known to have existed in Europe since 7000 BC, with heavy axes of natural bronze produced in bulk since 5500 BC, and since true bronze, made by deliberately alloying copper with tin had already been used in parts of east-central Europe since 3700 BC, Ötzi's axe came as no surprise to archaeologists.

Examples of Chalcolithic cultures in Europe include Vila Nova de São Pedro and Los Millares on the Iberian Peninsula.^[6] Pottery of the Beaker people has been found at both sites, dating to several centuries after copper-working began there. The Beaker culture appears to have spread copper and bronze technologies in Europe, along with Indo-European languages.^[7]

South Asia[link]

The South Asian inhabitants of Mehrgarh fashioned tools with local copper ore (ore used as pigment) between 7700–3300 BC.^{[8][citation needed]}

East Asia[link]

5th millennia BC copper artifacts start to appear in East Asia, such as Jiangzhai and Hongshan culture, but those metal artifacts were not widely used.

Africa[link]

The Iron Age and Bronze Age occurred simultaneously in much of Africa. North Africa and the Nile Valley imported its iron technology from the Near East and followed Near Eastern course of Bronze Age and Iron Age development. The earliest dating of iron in Sub-Saharan Africa is 2500 BC at Egaro, west of Termit, making it contemporary to the Middle East.^[9] The Egaro date is debatable with archaeologists, due to method used to attain it.^[10] The Termit date of 1500 BC is widely accepted.

In the region of the Aïr Mountains in Niger we have the development of independent copper smelting between 3000–2500 BC. The process was not in a developed state, indication smelting was not foreign. It became mature about the 1500 BC.^[11]

Americas[link]

The term is also applied to American civilizations that already used copper and copper alloys thousands of years before European conquest. The Old Copper Complex, located in present-day Michigan and Wisconsin in the United States, used copper for tools, weapons, and other implements. Artifacts from these sites have been dated from 4000 to 1000 BC.^[12]

See also[link]

• Copper metallurgy in Africa
• Metallurgy during the Copper Age in Europe
• Synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures
• Three age system

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Parpola, Asko (2005), "Study of the Indus script", Transactions of the 50th International Conference of Eastern Studies, Tokyo: The Tôhô Gakkai, pp. 28–66, http://www.helsinki.fi/~aparpola/tices_50.pdf .

• Bogucki, Peter (2007), "Copper Age of Eastern Europe", The Atlas of World Archaeology, London: Sandcastle Books, pp. 66 .
• Evans, John (1897), The Ancient Stone Implements, Weapons and Ornaments of Great Britain, London: Longmans, Green, and Company, pp. 197 .
• C.Michael Hogan (2007) Los Silillos, The Megalithic Portal, ed. A. Burnham [1]
• T.C. Pleger (2000) The Old Copper Complex of the Western Great Lakes [2]
• Possehl, Gregory L. (1996). Mehrgarh in Oxford Companion to Archaeology, edited by Brian Fagan. Oxford University Press.

External links[link]

• 'Chalcolithic Era' ; Elizabeth F. Henrickson . Encyclopædia Iranica 1991 .

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Chalcolithic

Romeo Miller
Miller in 2009
Background information
Birth name	Percy Romeo Miller, Jr.[1]
Also known as	Lil' Romeo, Rome, Romeo
Born	(1989-08-19) August 19, 1989 (age 22)[1] New Orleans, Louisiana, United States[1]
Genres	Hip hop
Occupations	Rapper Model Basketball player Entrepreneur Actor
Years active	2001–present
Labels	No Limit (2001–2002) Priority (2001–2002) The New No Limit (2002–2004) Universal (2002–2003) E1 (2004–2005) Guttar Music (2005–2006) Take A Stand (2007–present) The Next Generation (CEO) (2010–present) No Limit Forever (CEO) (2010–present)
Website	romeoforever.com

Percy Romeo Miller, Jr. (born August 19, 1989),^[2] better known by his stage name Romeo (previously Lil' Romeo), is an American rapper, actor, basketball player, entrepreneur, and model. As a rap musician, Miller has released three studio albums and two compilation albums.

Early life[link]

Romeo Miller was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is the son of rapper and entrepreneur Master P and former rapper Sonya C. He is the nephew of rappers C-Murder and Silkk the Shocker and the brother of singer Cymphonique. Romeo was signed to No Limit at the age of 5 after he wrote a rap to his dad.

Music career[link]

[edit] Lil' Romeo (2001)

He then released his debut album 7 years later titled after his original alias Lil' Romeo. This offering contained the hit single "My Baby" that charted No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-hop Singles. The album peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 and No. 5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums,selling more than 500,000 copies the first week out making it certified Gold. The album is now certified certified Platinum by the RIAA for the sales of 1,300,000. Also in 2001 he was featured on his uncle Silkk the Shocker's remix single of "That's Kool", which was also featured on his own album.

[edit] Game Time (2002–2003)

In 2002, a year later after his debut album, Miller put out his second studio album, Game Time. It peaked at No. 33 on the Billboard 200 and No. 10 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums selling close to a 110,000 copies the first week .^[1] It spawned the billboard charting single "2-Way" that charted to No. 66 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It also spawned the album second single "True Love" which charted at No. 16 under the Hot 100 Singles. Though not as successful on the charts as Miller's debut album It still was successful in sales certified 2x Platinum, selling 2,430,785 copies making this Miller's highest selling album.

[edit] Romeoland (2004–2007)

In 2004, miller released his third studio album Romeoland, which was not as successful as his last two albums selling 50,000 the first week, but still managed to be certified Gold selling over 459,000 copies in the United States.^[1] It was also the last studio album to feature Miller billed as Lil' Romeo. In 2005 Romeo along with his brother Valentino Miller who was known as Young V at that time and their three cousins C-Los, Lil' D & Willie J formed the group Rich Boyz & released their debut album Young Ballers: The Hood Been Good to Us. In 2006 Miller released a compilation album entitled Greatest Hits the album featured all of his hit songs when Miller was billed as Lil' Romeo. In 2006 Romeo released the two albums Lottery & God's Gift on the new label owned by himself and his father Master P, entitled Guttar Music. Lottery served as Millers first independent release while God's Gift served as a soundtrack to a movie with the same name. God's Gift was also Miller's first album to use the name Romeo and to have explicit language.^[1] The two albums were also known for containing Miller's single "U Can't Shine Like Me" which was a direct response to Bow Wow, who fans thought dissed Miller in his song "Fresh Azimiz". In 2007 Miller released a collaboration album with his father Master P titled Hip Hop History it sold 32,000 records worldwide.

[edit] Intelligent Hoodlum (2008–present)

In 2008 Miller stated he was working on his fourth studio album entitled Gumbo Station.^[3] On June 17, 2008 Miller released the first single from the album which was "Get Low wit It" which featured Akon & his brother Valentino Miller it failed to gain success on the Billboard charts.^[4]

On March 3, 2009 Romeo released a compilation entitled Get Low LP that contained songs that were supposed to be on Gumbo Station. It debuted at No. 149 on the Billboard 200 and as of May 5, 2009 it has sold over 20,000 copies. In 2010 Romeo confirmed that he was still working on his fourth studio album but he changed the name of the album to The College Boy. Romeo then announced that the title of the album was going to be I Am No Limit.

On January 19, 2010 Romeo released the first promotional single for the album entitled "Tell Me A Million Times" that featured Tempo.^[5] Then on January 26, 2010 Romeo released the second promotional single for the album entitled "Ice Cream Man Jr." which was a tribute to his dad Master P.^[6] On February 16, 2010 Miller released his debut mixtape Patience Is A Virtue to promote the album.^[7] Then on March 2, 2010 Romeo released two EPs to promote the album which were the Famous Girl & Monster/Practice.^[8][9] Also In 2010 Miller debuted his newly founded record label The Next Generation Entertainment with his new group the College Boyys.^[10] They released a collaboration album on May 25, 2010 entitled Spring Break which sold over 200,000 copies worldwide.^{[11][dead link]} Miller also on this day released three singles which were "You" that featured D'Anna & Lil Twist, "She Bad" that featured Millers cousins Lil' D & Black Don & "They Dont Know" but all of the singles failed to reach the charts.^[12][13][14] Romeo also performed at the 2010 Hip Hop Honors along with his brother Valentino Miller, his cousins Lil' D & Black Don, & his uncle Silkk The Shocker, along with Trina, Gucci Mane & Mystikal to honor his dad Master P & No Limit Records.^[15] In late 2010 Romeo relaunched No Limit as No Limit Forever Romeo also confirmed that he has changed the name of the album from I Am No Limit to Intelligent Hoodlum.^[16]

In 2011 It was confirmed that Romeo is going on a new tour with his dad Master P & his uncle Silkk the Shocker the tour is entitled ”No Limit Forever International".^[17] On January 11, 2011 Romeo released his EP Dont Push Me.^[18] On May 3, 2011 Romeo released the first official single from Intelligent Hoodlum which is "Famous Girl (Remix)" which is really the mastered version of the original it still features appearances from Sean Kingston & Miller's cousin Black Don.^[19] On August 19, 2011 Romeo released his I Am No Limit mixtape which was originally supposed to be his fourth studio album before it got changed but Miller just decided it would be best to just release it as a mixtape for his fans.^[20][21][22]

In 2012 Romeo formed a new group called RESQ3 they released their first single "The Only One" & supposed to be releasing a album in some time.^[23] Even though Romeo has created his new group he is still working & planning on releasing his fourth studio album Intelligent Hoodlum. On April 12, 2012 he released his first single from the album entitled "Hug Me Forever" which features his brother Valentino & his artist Kyros & has already shot the official music video for it.^[24] On May 19, 2012 Romeo released the music video for "Hug Me Forever" it was directed by Corey Molina of Creative Dream Productions.^[25]

Other ventures[link]

Acting career[link]

Miller started his acting career with a cameo appearance in the 2001 film Max Keeble's Big Move, as himself.^[26] He later co-starred with Jessica Alba, Mekhi Phifer and Zachary Isaiah Williams in the film Honey (2003). In Honey, his character was Benny, a young boy looking for a break.^[27] Also in 2003, he voiced himself on an episode of the animated series, Static Shock, to which he had performed the theme song.^[28] He co-starred with his dad in a movie called Uncle P in 2005.^{[citation needed]} He also starred in another movie with Zachary Isaiah Williams, God's Gift, which came out in 2006. Recently, he made a cameo appearance, as himself, in Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide as a rapping coach for the teachers. Then in 2007 he starred in film ASL as himself, Rome, alongside Forrest Lipton and Zachary Isaiah Williams who played the young Romeo; Lil Romey and had also previously starred with Romeo in Honey and Nickelodeon's Romeo!. He guest-starred as a rapper accused of murder in the 2010 CBS series, The Defenders and acted in the highly successful film, Jumping the Broom, released in May 2011. In 2011, he also starred in TV commercials for McDonald's & ICDC Colleges.

Fashion designer[link]

On July 24, 2010 Romeo launched his own clothing line titled "College Boyys", which has also been promoted by Miller & his new group the College Boyys. It has also been promoted by artists such as Justin Bieber, Big Time Rush & Jaden Smith.^[29] Romeo stated

Basketball career[link]

Percy Miller, Jr.
College	USC
Conference	Pac-10
Sport	Basketball
Position	Point guard
Jersey #	15
Nickname	Romeo, Prince P
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg)
Nationality	American
Born	(1989-08-19) August 19, 1989 (age 22) New Orleans, Louisiana
High school	Beverly Hills High School
Tournaments
2009 NCAA Tournament

Romeo was invited, in the summer of 2006, to the Reebok-sponsored ABCD Camp, which is considered the premier basketball camp in the United States. The Teaneck, New Jersey-based ABCD Camp is an invitation-only basketball showcase previously attended by high-profile players including Kobe Bryant, Stephon Marbury, Tracy McGrady, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. Surrounded by future NBA players such as O. J. Mayo, Derrick Rose, and Kevin Love, Miller looked out of place and averaged less than 2 points a game throughout the camp. The Wall Street Journal made an article on March 8, entitled "A Hot Prospect," cites Sonny Vaccaro, the longtime director of the ABCD Camp, as explaining, "he invited Romeo Miller to the 2006 camp, primarily as a favor to Percy Miller, whom he knew from the club basketball circuit." In the article, Vaccaro indicated, "If you're looking for the profile of an athlete who plays basketball at USC, he's not it."^[30]

On April 13, 2007, Miller verbally committed to the University of Southern California (USC) and signed a letter of intent on November 19, 2007.

Miller, a 5'11" point guard, was a four year starter at Beverly Hills High School. As a junior during the 2005–2006 high school season he averaged 13.9 points and 5.6 assists per game.^[31][32] As a senior during the 2006–2007 high school season he averaged 8.6 points and 9.0 assists per game.^[30][31]

According to The Wall Street Journal, it appears the decision to grant Miller a full scholarship at USC was largely driven by his relationship with friend and teammate Demar DeRozan, the 6-foot-6 All-American forward who was rated as the number five prospect in the country on Scout.com. The Wall Street Journal reported Coach Tim Floyd as saying, "Last April...Percy Miller called while driving both players from a tournament in Fayetteville, Ark...Percy Miller said 'Demar and Romeo are ready to make their decision, and would you like to have them both on scholarship?'...'I said absolutely.'"^[30] Miller and DeRozan began playing in the 2008–2009 season.

Modeling career[link]

On December 27 Romeo modeled for a new 2011 calendar.^[33] On April 10, 2011 Miller modeled for the April issue of TROIX magazine.^[34] On April 12, 2011 Miller modeled again for some new pictures.^[35] He also modeled with the singer-songwriter Chynna Terrell.

Dancing with the Stars[link]

After originally withdrawing from season two of Dancing with the Stars due to an injury,^[36] Romeo competed in season twelve.^[37] He was partnered with professional dancer, Chelsie Hightower. They were eliminated from the show on May 10, 2011 and finished in the Top 5, one week before the semi-final.

• In week 7, Donnie Burns was the guest judge and scored the dances.

Personal life[link]

Miller attended Beverly Hills High School in Beverly Hills, California. Romeo sponsors "Loco Tonic", an energy drink he mentions in his newer songs. In 2008, Romeo was ranked No. 18 in the most fit men in the world. Miller was born on Aug. 19, 1989 in New Orleans, La. He is the oldest of seven children from parents Percy, Sr. and Sonya Miller. His father is a business entrepreneur and musician. His father also shares a passion for the game of basketball and signed contracts with the Charlotte Hornets and Toronto Raptors. Percy wears the No. 15 because that is the number his father wore in high school. Miller also believes in giving back to the community and is involved in a variety for charity endeavors and in 2008 along with his father received the key to the city in Memphis in recognition of their "Let the Kids Grow" educational program.

Discography[link]

Filmography[link]

Felipe Solis is schedule to appear in Romeo's new reality show Romeo & Juliet

Awards and nominations[link]

• Billboard Music Awards
  • 2001, Rap Artist of the Year (Winner)
  • 2001, Music Videos: My Baby (Winner)
  • 2002, R&B/Hip-Hop: My Baby (Winner)
• Kids Choice Awards
  • 2004, Favorite Television Actor – Male for: Romeo! (Nominated)
  • 2005, Favorite Television Actor – Male for: Romeo! (Winner)
  • 2006, Favorite Television Actor – Male for: Romeo! (Nominated)
• Teen Choice Awards
  • 2004, Choice Breakout Movie Star – Male for: Honey (Nominated)
• Black Reel Awards
  • 2004, Choice Breakout Movie Star – Male for: Honey (Nominated)
• Young Artist Awards
  • 2005, Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Leading Young Actor: Romeo! (Nominated)
• NAMIC Vision Awards
  • 2005, Best Comedic Performance: Romeo! (Nominated)
• Image Awards
  • 2005, Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program – Series or Special: Romeo! (Nominated)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Romeo Miller

• Official website
• USC Athletics Player Biography: No. 15 Percy Miller
• Romeo Miller's channel on YouTube
• Romeo on Myspace
• Romeo Miller on Twitter
• Romeo at the Internet Movie Database
• Photos from Shrink-A-Bulls

Terence Kemp McKenna

Born	(1946-11-16)November 16, 1946 Paonia, Colorado, United States
Died	April 3, 2000(2000-04-03) (aged 53) San Rafael, California, United States
Era	20th century philosophy
Region	Western Philosophy
School	Metaphysics, phenomenology
Main interests	shamanism, ethnobotany, metaphysics, psychedelic drugs, futurism, primitivism, environmentalism, consciousness, phenomenology, historical revisionism, evolution, ontology, Mind at Large, virtual reality, dominator culture, criticizing science, the Logos
Notable ideas	Novelty Theory, The "Stoned Ape" Theory of Human Evolution, Machine elves
Influenced by psychedelic drugs, Marshall McLuhan, Alfred North Whitehead, Teilhard de Chardin, Aldous Huxley, I Ching, William Blake, Riane Eisler, James Joyce, Vladimir Nabokov, Heraclitus
Influenced Rupert Sheldrake, Robert Anton Wilson, Ralph Abraham, RU Sirius, Cliff Pickover, Timothy Leary

Terence Kemp McKenna (November 16, 1946 – April 3, 2000) was an American philosopher, psychonaut, researcher, teacher, lecturer and writer on many subjects, such as human consciousness, language, psychedelic drugs, the evolution of civilizations, the origin and end of the universe, alchemy, and extraterrestrial beings.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Terence McKenna grew up in Paonia, Colorado.^[1] He was introduced to geology through his uncle and developed a hobby of solitary fossil hunting in the arroyos near his home.^[2] From this he developed a deep artistic and scientific appreciation of nature.

At age 16, McKenna moved to Los Altos, California to live with family friends for a year. He finished high school in Lancaster, CA.^[1] In 1963, McKenna was introduced to the literary world of psychedelics through The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell by Aldous Huxley and certain issues of The Village Voice that talked about psychedelics.^[1][3]

McKenna claimed that one of his early psychedelic experiences with morning glory seeds showed him "that there was something there worth pursuing."^[1] In an audio interview Terence Mckenna claims to have started smoking cannabis regularly during the summer following his 17th birthday.

Studying and traveling[link]

In 1965, McKenna enrolled in the University of California, Berkeley^[4] to study art history.^[1] In 1967, while in college, he discovered and begun studying shamanism through the study of Tibetan folk religion.^[5] That year, which he called his "opium and kabbala phase"^[6] he also traveled to Jerusalem, where he met Kathleen Harrison, who would later become his wife.^[6]

In 1969, McKenna traveled to Nepal led by his "interest in Tibetan painting and hallucinogenic shamanism."^[6] During his time there, he studied the Tibetan language and worked as a hashish smuggler, until "one of his Bombay-to-Aspen shipments fell into the hands of U. S. Customs." He was forced to move to avoid capture by Interpol.^[6] He wandered through Southeast Asia viewing ruins, collected butterflies in Indonesia, and worked as an English teacher in Tokyo. He then went back to Berkeley to continue studying biology, which he called "his first love".^[6]

After the partial completion of his studies, and his mother's death from cancer in 1971,^[7] McKenna, his brother Dennis, and three friends traveled to the Colombian Amazon in search of oo-koo-hé, a plant preparation containing dimethyltryptamine (DMT). Instead of oo-koo-hé they found various forms of ayahuasca, or yagé, and gigantic Psilocybe cubensis which became the new focus of the expedition.^[6] In La Chorrera, at the urging of his brother, he was the subject of a psychedelic experiment which he claimed put him in contact with "Logos": an informative, divine voice he believed was universal to visionary religious experience.^[6] The voice's reputed revelations and his brother's simultaneous peculiar experience prompted him to explore the structure of an early form of the I Ching, which led to his "Novelty Theory".^[6] During their stay in the Amazon, McKenna also became romantically involved with his translator, Ev.^[6]

In 1972, McKenna returned to Berkeley to finish his studies.^[4] There he decided to switch majors to a Bachelor of Science in ecology and conservation, in a then new experimental section of the same university called the Tussman Experimental College.^[1] During his studies, he would also develop techniques for cultivating psilocybin mushrooms with Dennis.^[6]

In 1975, he parted with his girlfriend, Ev, when she left him for one of his friends from Berkeley. Their parting left him "tormented with migraines and living alone".^[6] He graduated in 1975.^[8] That same year, he began a relationship with Kathleen Harrison, whom he had met in Jerusalem.

Soon after graduating, McKenna and Dennis published a book inspired by their Amazon experiences, The Invisible Landscape: Mind, Hallucinogens and the I Ching. He also began lecturing.^[4] The brothers' experiences in the Amazon would later play a major role in McKenna's book True Hallucinations, published in 1993.^[6] In 1976, the brothers published what they had learned about the cultivation of mushrooms in a book entitled Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide under the pseudonyms "OT Oss" and "ON Oeric".^[9]

Later life[link]

In the early 1980s, McKenna began to speak publicly on the topic of psychedelic drugs, lecturing extensively and conducting weekend workshops. Though associated with the New Age and human potential movements, McKenna himself had little patience for New Age sensibilities. He repeatedly stressed the importance and primacy of felt experience, as opposed to dogma.^[10] Timothy Leary once introduced him as "one of the five or six most important people on the planet."^[11]

He soon became a fixture of popular counterculture. His growing popularity culminated in the early-to-mid-1990s with the publication of several books: True Hallucinations, relating the tale of his 1971 La Chorrera experience; Food of the Gods; and The Archaic Revival. He became a popular personality in the psychedelic rave/dance scene of the early 1990s, with frequent spoken word performances at raves and contributions to psychedelic and goa trance albums by The Shamen, Spacetime Continuum, Alien Project, Capsula, Entheogenic, Zuvuya, Shpongle, and Shakti Twins. His speeches were, and are, sampled by many. In 1994 he appeared as a speaker at the Starwood Festival, documented in the book Tripping by Charles Hayes. His lectures were produced on both cassette tape and CD.^[13]

McKenna was a colleague of chaos mathematician Ralph Abraham, and biologist Rupert Sheldrake, creator of the theory of "morphogenetic fields", not to be confused with the mainstream usage of the same term. He conducted several public debates known as trialogues with them from the late 1980s until his death. Books containing transcriptions of some of these events were published. He was also a friend and associate of Ralph Metzner, Nicole Maxwell, and Riane Eisler, participating in joint workshops and symposia with them. He was a personal friend of Tom Robbins, and influenced the thought of many scientists, writers, artists, and entertainers. His influences include comedian Bill Hicks, whose routines about psychedelic drugs drew heavily from McKenna's works. He is also the inspiration for the Twin Peaks character Dr. Jacoby.^[14]

In addition to psychedelic drugs, McKenna spoke on the subjects of virtual reality, which he saw as a way to artistically communicate the experience of psychedelics; techno-paganism; artificial intelligence; evolution; extraterrestrials; and aesthetic theory, specifically about art/visual experience as information representing the significance of hallucinatory visions experienced under the influence of psychedelics.

In 1985,^[8] McKenna co-founded Botanical Dimensions with his then-wife Kathleen, a nonprofit ethnobotanical preserve in Hawaii, where he lived for many years before he died. In 1997 he and Kathleen divorced.^[15] Before moving to Hawaii permanently, McKenna split his time between Hawaii and Occidental, located in the redwood-studded hills of Sonoma County, California.

Death[link]

A longtime sufferer of migraines, in mid-1999 McKenna returned to his home on the big island of Hawaii after a long lecturing tour. He began to suffer from increasingly painful headaches. This culminated in three brain seizures in one night, which he claimed were the most powerful psychedelic experiences he had ever known. Upon his emergency trip to the hospital on Oahu, Terence was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, a highly aggressive form of brain cancer. For the next several months he underwent various treatments, including experimental gamma knife radiation treatment. According to Wired magazine, McKenna was worried that his tumour was caused by his 35-years of smoking cannabis; though his doctors assured him there was no causal relation.^[15]

In late 1999, Erik Davis conducted what would be the last interview of McKenna.^[16] During the interview McKenna also talked about the announcement of his death:

McKenna died on April 3, 2000, at the age of 53, with his loved ones at his bedside. He is survived by his brother Dennis, his son Finn, and his daughter Klea.

Library fire[link]

On February 7, 2007, McKenna's library of rare books and personal notes was destroyed in a fire which burned offices belonging to Big Sur's Esalen Institute which was storing the collection. An index maintained by his brother Dennis survives, though little else.^[18]

Ideas[link]

Terence McKenna advocated the exploration of altered states of mind via the ingestion of naturally occurring psychedelic substances. For example, and in particular, as facilitated by the ingestion of high doses of psychedelic mushrooms, and DMT, which he believed was the apotheosis of the psychedelic experience. He spoke of the "jeweled, self-dribbling basketballs" or "self-transforming machine elves" that one encounters in that state.

Although he avoided giving his allegiance to any one interpretation (part of his rejection of monotheism), he was open to the idea of psychedelics as being "trans-dimensional travel"; literally, enabling an individual to encounter what could be ancestors, or spirits of earth.^[10] He remained opposed to most forms of organized religion or guru-based forms of spiritual awakening.

Either philosophically or religiously, he expressed admiration for Marshall McLuhan, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Gnostic Christianity, Alfred North Whitehead and Alchemy. McKenna always regarded the Greek philosopher Heraclitus as his favorite philosopher.^[11]

He also expressed admiration for the works of James Joyce (calling Finnegans Wake "the quintessential work of art, or at least work of literature of the 20th century")^[20] and Vladimir Nabokov: McKenna once said that he would have become a Nabokov lecturer if he had never encountered psychedelics.

"Stoned Ape" theory of human evolution[link]

In his book Food of the Gods,^[21] McKenna proposed that the transformation from humans' early ancestors Homo erectus to the species Homo sapiens mainly had to do with the addition of the mushroom Psilocybe cubensis in its diet - an event which according to his theory took place in about 100,000 BC (this is when he believed that the species diverged from the Homo genus). He based his theory on the main effects, or alleged effects, produced by the mushroom. One of the effects that comes about from the ingestion of low doses, which agrees with one of scientist Roland Fischer's findings from the late 1960s-early 1970s,^[22] is it significantly improves the visual acuity of humans - so theoretically, of other human-like mammals too. According to McKenna, this effect would have definitely proven to be of evolutionary advantage to humans' omnivorous hunter-gatherer ancestors that would have stumbled upon it "accidentally"; as it would make it easier for them to hunt.

In higher doses, McKenna claims, the mushroom acts as a sexual stimulator, which would make it even more beneficial evolutionarily, as it would result in more offspring. At even higher doses, the mushroom would have acted to "dissolve boundaries", which would have promoted community-bonding and group sexual activities-that would result in a mixing of genes and therefore greater genetic diversity. Generally McKenna believed that the periodic ingestion of the mushroom would have acted to dissolve the ego in humans before it ever got the chance to grow in destructive proportions. In this context, he likened the ego to a cancerous tumor that can grow uncontrollable and become destructive to its host. In his own words:

Wherever and whenever the ego function began to form, it was akin to a cancerous tumor or a blockage in the energy of the psyche. The use of psychedelic plants in a context of shamanic initiation dissolved-as it dissolves today-the knotted structure of the ego into undifferentiated feeling, what Eastern philosophy calls the Tao.

—Terence McKenna, Food of the Gods

The mushroom, according to McKenna, had also given humans their first truly religious experiences (which, as he believed, were the basis for the foundation of all subsequent religions to date). Another factor that McKenna talked about was the mushroom's potency to promote linguistic thinking. This would have promoted vocalisation, which in turn would have acted in cleansing the brain (based on a scientific theory that vibrations from speaking cause the precipitation of impurities from the brain to the cerebrospinal fluid), which would further mutate the brain. All these factors according to McKenna were the most important factors that promoted evolution towards the Homo sapiens species. After this transformation took place, the species would have begun moving out of Africa to populate the rest of the planet ^[21] Later on, this theory by McKenna was given the name "The 'Stoned Ape' Theory of Human Evolution".^[23]

Novelty theory[link]

McKenna's Timewave zero is a numerological formula that purports to calculate the ebb and flow of "novelty", defined as increase over time in the universe's interconnectedness, or organized complexity. ^[24] According to McKenna, the universe has a teleological attractor at the end of time that increases interconnectedness, eventually reaching a singularity of infinite complexity in 2012, at which point anything and everything imaginable will occur simultaneously. He conceived this idea over several years in the early to mid-1970s while using psilocybin and DMT.^[24]

McKenna expressed "novelty" in a computer program which purportedly produces a waveform known as "timewave zero" or the "timewave". Based on McKenna's interpretation of the King Wen sequence of the I Ching, ^[15] the graph appears to show great periods of novelty corresponding with major shifts in humanity'sbiological and sociocultural evolution. He believed that the events of any given time are recursively related to the events of other times, and chose the atomic bombing of Hiroshima as the basis for calculating his end date of November 2012. When he later discovered this date's proximity to the end of the 13th b'ak'tun of the Maya calendar, he revised his hypothesis so that the two dates matched. ^[25]

The 1975 first edition of The Invisible Landscape refers to 2012 (but no specific day during the year) only twice. In the 1993 second edition, McKenna employed Sharer's date^{[Note d]} of 21 December 2012 throughout. ^[26]

Bibliography[link]

• 1975 - The Invisible Landscape: Mind, Hallucinogens, and the I Ching (with Dennis McKenna) (Seabury; 1st Ed) ISBN 0-8164-9249-2.
• 1976 - The Invisible Landscape (with Dennis McKenna, and Quinn Taylor) (Scribner) ISBN 0-8264-0122-8
• 1976 - Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide (with Dennis McKenna: credited under the pseudonyms OT Oss and ON Oeric) (2nd edition 1986) (And/Or Press) ISBN 0-915904-13-6
• 1992 - Psilocybin - Magic Mushroom Grower's Guide (with Dennis McKenna: (credited under the pseudonyms OT Oss and ON Oeric) (Quick American Publishing Company; Revised edition) ISBN 0-932551-06-8
• 1992 - The Archaic Revival (HarperSanFrancisco; 1st edition) ISBN 0-06-250613-7
• 1992 - Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge - A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution (Bantam) ISBN 0-553-37130-4
• 1992 - Synesthesia (with Timothy C. Ely) (Granary Books 1st Ed) ISBN 1-887123-04-0
• 1992 - Trialogues at the Edge of the West: Chaos, Creativity, and the Resacralization of the World (with Ralph H. Abraham, Rupert Sheldrake and Jean Houston) (Bear & Company Publishing 1st Ed) ISBN 0-939680-97-1
• 1993 - True Hallucinations: Being an Account of the Author’s Extraordinary Adventures in the Devil’s Paradise (HarperSanFrancisco 1st Ed) ISBN 0-06-250545-9
• 1994 - The Invisible Landscape (HarperSanFrancisco; Reprint edition) ISBN 0-06-250635-8
• 1998 - True Hallucinations & the Archaic Revival: Tales and Speculations About the Mysteries of the Psychedelic Experience (Fine Communications/MJF Books) (Hardbound) ISBN 1-56731-289-6
• 1998 - The Evolutionary Mind : Trialogues at the Edge of the Unthinkable (with Rupert Sheldrake and Ralph H. Abraham) (Trialogue Press; 1st Ed) ISBN 0-942344-13-8
• 1999 - Food of the Gods: A Radical History of Plants, Drugs, and Human Evolution (Rider & Co; New edition) ISBN 0-7126-7038-6
• 1999 - Robert Venosa: Illuminatus (with Robert Venosa, Ernst Fuchs, H. R. Giger, and Mati Klarwein) (Craftsman House) ISBN 90-5703-272-4
• 2001 - Chaos, Creativity, and Cosmic Consciousness (with Rupert Sheldrake and Ralph H. Abraham) (Park Street Press; revised ed) ISBN 0-89281-977-4 (Revised edition of Trialogues at the Edge of the West)
• 2005 - The Evolutionary Mind: Trialogues on Science, Spirit & Psychedelics (Monkfish Book Publishing; Revised Ed) ISBN 0-9749359-7-2

Spoken word[link]

• History Ends In Green: Gaia, Psychedelics and the Archaic Revival, 6 audiocassette set, Mystic Fire audio, 1993, ISBN 1-56176-907-X (recorded at the Esalen Institute, 1989)
• TechnoPagans at the End of History (transcription of rap with Mark Pesce from 1998)
• Psychedelics in the Age of Intelligent Machines (1999) 90 minutes video
• Alien Dreamtime with Spacetime Continuum & Stephen Kent (Magic Carpet Media) (CD) video
• Conversations on the Edge of Magic (1994) (CD & Cassette) ACE
• Rap-Dancing Into the Third Millennium (1994) (Cassette) (Re-issued on CD as The Quintessential Hallucinogen) ACE
• Packing For the Long Strange Trip (1994) (Cassette) ACE
• Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell, broadcast on May 22, 1997, Five hour interview covering various topics
• Global Perspectives and Psychedelic Poetics (1994) (Cassette) Sound Horizons Audio-Video, Inc.
• The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge (1992) (Cassette) Sounds True

Discography[link]

• Re : Evolution with The Shamen (1992)
• Terence McKenna & Zuvuya - Dream Matrix Telemetry (1993)
• Alien Dreamtime with Spacetime Continuum & Stephen Kent (Magic Carpet Media) (DVD)
• 2009 - Cognition Factor (2009)

Notes[link]

• ^d Coe's initial date was "24 December 2011." He revised it to "11 January AD 2013" in the 1980 2nd edition of his book, ^[27] not settling on 23 December 2012 until the 1984 3rd edition.^[28] The correlation of b'ak'tun 13 as 21 December 2012 first appeared in Table B.2 of Robert J. Sharer's 1983 revision of the 4th edition of Sylvanus Morley's book The Ancient Maya.^[29]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Terence McKenna

• Terence McKenna Land at Deoxy.org
• Terence McKenna at Levity.com
• Erowid's Terence McKenna Vault
• Botanical Dimensions
• Rotten.com bio
• FloatingWorldWeb's McKenna Pages
• Terence McKenna's Last Trip 2000 Wired Magazine article by Erik Davis
• "Mind contagions" (2001) at disinfo.com
• Psychedelics, Evolution & Fun 2008 essay by Patrick Lundborg
• Machine Elves 101, or Why Terence McKenna Matters - Reallity Sandwish by Daniel Moler
• Transcription from 1991 interview regarding cannabis

Audio and video resources[link]

• Terence McKenna's interview Conducted by John Hazard in October 1998
• Audio and video archive at Deoxy.org
• Terence McKenna media archive at EROCx1.com
• FutureHi.net MP3 Downloads - Terence McKenna, Albert Hoffman, Robert Anton Wilson, and more
• McKenna at the 1999 Entheobotany Seminar - Audio Podcast
• Psychedelics in the Age of Intelligent Machines - Video samples from the 1999 DVD
• McKenna Video on FloatingWorldWeb - McKenna Video Portal
• Over 100 podcasts of Terence McKenna talks - Audio Podcast

Transcripts[link]

• MindofMcKenna - McKenna audio excerpts, transcriptions and quotes