Psychoactive drug

A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that changes brain function and results in alterations in perception, mood, or consciousness. These substances may be used recreationally, to purposefully alter one's consciousness, or as entheogens, for ritual, spiritual, or shamanic purposes, as a tool for studying or augmenting the mind. Some categories of psychoactive drugs, which are prescription medicines, have medical therapeutic utility, such as anesthetics, analgesics, hormonal preparations, anticonvulsant and antiparkinsonian drugs or for the treatment of neuro-psychiatric disorders, as hypnotic drugs, anxiolytic and some stimulant medications used in ADHD and some sleep disorders. There are also some psychoactive substances used in the detoxification and rehabilitation programs for psychoactive drug users.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is a non-profit educational organization created in 2006 by educator Salman Khan with the aim of providing a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere. The organization produces short lectures in the form of YouTube videos. In addition to micro lectures, the organization's website features practice exercises and tools for educators. All resources are available for free to anyone around the world. The main language of the website is English, but the content is also available in other languages.

History

The founder of the organization, Salman Khan, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States to immigrant parents from Bangladesh and India. After earning three degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (a BS in mathematics, a BS in electrical engineering and computer science, and an MEng in electrical engineering and computer science), he pursued an MBA from Harvard Business School.

In late 2004, Khan began tutoring his cousin Nadia who needed help with math using Yahoo!'s Doodle notepad.When other relatives and friends sought similar help, he decided that it would be more practical to distribute the tutorials on YouTube. The videos' popularity and the testimonials of appreciative students prompted Khan to quit his job in finance as a hedge fund analyst at Connective Capital Management in 2009, and focus on the tutorials (then released under the moniker "Khan Academy") full-time.

Johns Hopkins

Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American entrepreneur, abolitionist and philanthropist of 19th-century Baltimore, Maryland.

His bequests founded numerous institutions bearing his name, most notably Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Johns Hopkins University (including its academic divisions such as Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health).

A biography entitled Johns Hopkins: A Silhouette written by his cousin, Helen Hopkins Thom, was published in 1929 by the Johns Hopkins University Press.

Early life

Johns Hopkins was born on May 19, 1795. He was one of eleven children born to Samuel Hopkins (1759–1814) of Crofton, Maryland, and Hannah Janney (1774–1864), of Loudoun County, Virginia. His home was Whitehall, a 500-acre (two km²) tobacco plantation in Anne Arundel County. His first name was inherited from his grandfather Johns Hopkins who received his first name when his mother Margaret Johns married Gerard Hopkins.

Neurons to Nirvana

Neurons to Nirvana is a 2013 documentary film by Canadian filmmaker Oliver Hockenhull. The film examines the evidence for the therapeutic benefits of psychedelic drugs. The production company crowdfunded marketing and distribution through a successful Kickstarter campaign that raised more than $35,000.

Two versions of the film were released, a director's cut and an educational edition. The director's cut premiered at the Vancouver Film Festival in 2013 and is titled "From Neurons to Nirvana: The Great Medicines"and is 108 minutes. The popular released version is titled: "Neurons to Nirvana: Understanding Psychedelic Medicines" and is 69 minutes

The film features interviews with Gabor Maté, Dennis McKenna, Rick Doblin, Charles Grob, Jeremy Narby, Stanislav Grof, David Nutt, Julie Holland, David Healy, Michael Mithoefer, David Nichols, Amanda Feilding, Stephen Ross, Ralph Metzner, Gillian Maxwell, Manuel Schoch, Michael Winkelman, William Richards, Kathleen Harrison, Roland Griffiths, Wade Davis, Ingrid Pacey, and Chris Bennett.

Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 [O.S. 7 September] – 13 December 1784), often referred to as Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. Johnson was a devout Anglican and committed Tory, and has been described as "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history". He is also the subject of "the most famous single biographical work in the whole of literature," James Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson.

Born in Lichfield, Staffordshire, Johnson attended Pembroke College, Oxford, for just over a year, before his lack of funds forced him to leave. After working as a teacher he moved to London, where he began to write for The Gentleman's Magazine. His early works include the biography Life of Mr Richard Savage, the poems London and The Vanity of Human Wishes, and the play Irene.

After nine years of work, Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language was published in 1755. It had a far-reaching effect on Modern English and has been described as "one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship". This work brought Johnson popularity and success. Until the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary 150 years later, Johnson's was viewed as the pre-eminent British dictionary. His later works included essays, an influential annotated edition of The Plays of William Shakespeare, and the widely read tale The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia. In 1763, he befriended James Boswell, with whom he later travelled to Scotland; Johnson described their travels in A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. Towards the end of his life, he produced the massive and influential Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets, a collection of biographies and evaluations of 17th- and 18th-century poets.