Erowid

Erowid, also called Erowid Center, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization that provides information about psychoactive plants and chemicals as well as activities and technologies that can produce altered states of consciousness such as meditation, lucid dreaming, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and electroceuticals.

Erowid Center
MottoDocumenting the Complex Relationship Between Humans and Psychoactives
Founded1995
FoundersFire Erowid, Earth Erowid
TypeNon-profit
20-3256212
FocusDrug information
Drug education
Location
Area served
Worldwide
Members
~2,000 members
Key people
Fire Erowid, (Executive Director)
Earth Erowid, (Technical Director)
Staff
6
Websitewww.erowid.org
RemarksOver 90,000 unique visitors per day[1]

Erowid documents legal and illegal substances, including their intended and adverse effects. Information on Erowid's website is gathered from diverse sources including published literature, experts in related fields, and the experiences of the general public. Erowid acts as a publisher of new information as well as a library for the collection of documents and images published elsewhere.

History

Erowid was founded in April 1995 as a small business; their website appeared six months later.[2] The name "Erowid" was chosen to reflect the organization's stated philosophy of education. Using Proto-Indo-European linguistic roots, "Erowid" roughly translates into "Earth Wisdom" (er meaning 'earth,' 'exist,' and 'be born' and wid meaning 'knowledge' / 'wisdom' or 'to see').[3]

In 2005, the 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization "Erowid Center" was formed.[4] The organization is supported by donations, and its website is free of advertisements. Although its primary focus is on the website, Erowid Center also provides research and data for other harm reduction, health, and educational organizations. The organization is based in Northern California.[5]

Fire Erowid[6] and Earth Erowid[7] are the sobriquets of the two creators of the site. Both work full-time on the project, along with speaking at conferences, producing original research, and contributing to entheogenic research. According to the site, the creators' vision includes a "world where people treat psychoactives with respect and awareness; where people work together to collect and share knowledge in ways that strengthen their understanding of themselves, and provide insight into the complex choices faced by individuals and societies alike".

Erowid Center's mission is to provide and facilitate access to objective, accurate, and non-judgmental information about psychoactive plants, chemicals, technologies, and related issues.[8] According to one study, "Erowid is a trusted resource for drug information—both positive and negative,"[9] and Erowid has been extensively cited worldwide by book authors,[10][11] scientific and medical journals,[12][13] newspapers,[14][15] magazines,[16][17] film makers,[18] radio and TV shows,[19][20][21] PhD students,[22][23] web sites,[24] and other media producers.

Projects

Online library

The library contains over 63,000 documents related to over 737 psychoactive substances,[3][25] including images, research summaries and abstracts, FAQs, media articles, experience reports, information on chemistry, dosage, effects, law, health, traditional and spiritual use, and drug testing. As of July 2014, over 17 million people visit the site each year.[26]

The site generally contains more detail in the pages listed under plants and chemicals than in other sections. It does not have comprehensive information about the specific effects of most pharmaceuticals. Such information may appear elsewhere on the site, where one can read about people's individual reactions to various drugs.[27]

Experience Vaults

Erowid allows site visitors to submit descriptions of their own personal experiences with psychoactive substances for review and possible publication. The site states that they welcome all perspectives regarding personal psychoactive experience, including positive, negative and neutral. Their collection consists of more than 30,000 edited, reviewed, and published reports, as well as stating that they have another 55,000 unpublished reports undergoing review.[28]

Drugs Data / EcstasyData

Erowid also runs EcstasyData.org, an independent laboratory pill testing program co-sponsored by IsomerDesign and DanceSafe, which monitors the quality of American street-ecstasy.

Launched in July 2001, its purpose is to collect, manage, review, and present laboratory pill testing results from a variety of organizations.[29] Tablets of street ecstasy can be anonymously submitted to a DEA licensed laboratory for testing and then photos of the tablets and GC/MS test results are published on the project's website. EcstasyData has published testing results for nearly 3,000 samples.[30] Testing costs have sometimes been covered by project funding (when available) and at other times are covered by those who submit tablets for testing. At least one published study uses EcstasyData.org as a primary source of data.[31][32]

Erowid Extracts

Erowid Extracts, the bi-annual members newsletter of Erowid, has been published each year since 2001. It provides updates on the organization's activities, results of surveys conducted on Erowid.org, experience reports, new articles on various aspects of psychedelic and psychoactive plants and drugs, and information about psychedelic culture and events. New issues of Erowid Extracts are sent to members, but past issues are available on the Erowid website.[33]

Psychoactive Reference Library

Erowid and The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) collaborated on two large reference database projects. Erowid has provided expertise and work developing and coordinating construction of an online Psychoactive drug reference library, and MAPS has published a similar collection [34]

Document Archiving

Erowid Center also archives and provides access to thousands of older texts in their online and physical libraries. By collecting and making these texts available, they attempt to promote an understanding of the changing contexts surrounding the use of psychoactive drugs. Major archiving projects include the Albert Hofmann collection, the Myron Stolaroff Collection, and documents from Alexander Shulgin.

Controversy

Due to the subject matter presented on Erowid.org, the site has drawn praise and criticism from both the media and medical officials. Edward Boyer, an emergency-room physician and toxicologist, while admitting that Erowid has a plethora of useful information, once argued the site may cause more harm than good to potential drug users. Boyer has since come to cautiously admire Earth and Fire, and no longer refers to their site as 'partisan,' though he still sometimes argues that Erowid minimizes adverse effects and includes too much dodgy – and potentially harmful – data in its quest to present all sides. 'Erowid is so comprehensive, and so much of the information is correct that, unless you're an expert in medical toxicology, you may miss the dangerous information that's close to the surface.'"[35]

In the context of this debate, anthropologist Nicolas Langlitz argued that Erowid also sometimes serves as a mechanism of postmarket surveillance or pharmacovigilance in the realm of illicit and experimental substances.[36]

Access to Erowid is blocked in Russia.[37]

See also

References
  1. "Erowid.org—Unique Visitors per Day." Erowid.
  2. Erowid, Fire, Erowid F. "Erowid: 10 Years of History." Erowid Extracts. Jun 2005;8:12-14, Erowid.org, retrieved 2010-02-08
  3. Emily Witt. "The trip planners." New Yorker. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  4. Guidestar Entry, Guidestar, retrieved 2012-07-05
  5. Where is Erowid located?, retrieved 2013-04-07
  6. Erowid, Fire, Erowid Fire Erowid Vault, Erowid.org, retrieved 2012-03-10
  7. Erowid, Earth, Erowid Earth Erowid Vault, Erowid.org, retrieved 2012-03-10
  8. Murguía, Edward; Tackett-Gibson, Melissa; Lessem, Ann (2007). Murguia E, Tackett-Gibson M, Lessem A. "Real Drugs in a Virtual World: Drug Discourse and Community Online". Lexington Books. 2007. ISBN 9780739114551. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
  9. Murguía, Edward; Tackett-Gibson, Melissa; Lessem, Ann (2007). Murguia E, Tackett-Gibson M, Lessem A. "Real Drugs in a Virtual World: Drug Discourse and Community Online". Lexington Books. 2007. ISBN 9780739114551. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
  10. Khan JI, Kennedy TJ, Christian DR (2012), Basic Principles of Forensic Chemistry, Springer.com, ISBN 9781934115060, retrieved 2012-05-31
  11. James L. Kent (2010), Psychedelic Information Theory: Shamanism in the Age of Reason, Psychedelic-information-theory.com, retrieved 2012-05-31
  12. Corazza O.; et al. (2012-03-05), "Phenomenon of new drugs on the Internet: the case of ketamine derivative methoxetamine", Human Psychopharmacology, 27 (2): 145–9, doi:10.1002/hup.1242, PMID 22389078, S2CID 29318833
  13. Ambrose J.B.; Bennett H.D.; Lee H.S.; Josephson S.A. (May 2010), "Cerebral vasculopathy after 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine ingestion", The Neurologist, 16 (3): 199–202, doi:10.1097/NRL.0b013e3181a3cb53, PMID 20445431
  14. Simonini, R. (2012-02-12), "A Psychonaut's Adventures in Videoland", The New York Times, p. AR17, retrieved 2012-05-31
  15. Valerie Vande Panne (2010-09-01), Higher education: How to do drugs in Boston, Thephoenix.com, archived from the original on 2012-02-04, retrieved 2012-05-31
  16. Piore, A. "Chemists in the Shadows". Discover Magazine. Mar 2012
  17. Jacob Sullum (2012-02-23), Rand Paul Blocks Synthetic Drug Bans, Reason.com, retrieved 2012-05-31
  18. Sauret, E. (2010), Dirty Pictures, Dirtypicturesthefilm.com, retrieved 2012-05-31
  19. Hubert, M. (2010-02-24), Erowid: Halluzinationen aus dem Netz, Wissen.dradio.de, retrieved 2012-05-31
  20. Edell, D. "Dr. Dean Edell Show". April 2006
  21. Childs, D. (2008-01-16), A Homebrewed High? Poppy Tea Hits the Web, Abcnews.go.com, retrieved 2012-05-31
  22. Fotiou, E. (2010), From Medicine Men to Day Trippers: Shamanic Tourism in Iquitos, Peru (PDF), University of Wisconsin-Madison, retrieved 2012-05-31
  23. Moraes, A.G. "Alterações anatomopatológicas em corações de camundongos submetidos à inalação crônica de cocaína crack". 2009
  24. Morgan, S. (2010-07-07), A Scary New Drug Threatens Our Children: Nutmeg, Stopthedrugwar.org, retrieved 2012-05-31
  25. Erowid Extracts: August 2018, Number 30, Erowid Center, retrieved 2018-09-01
  26. Erowid Extracts: July 2014, Number 26, Erowid Center, retrieved 2015-11-16
  27. "Erowid Experience Vaults: Complete Substance and Category List". erowid.org. Retrieved 2015-11-30.
  28. "Search Results : Erowid Experience Vaults".
  29. About EcstasyData.org, EcstasyData, retrieved 2010-02-08
  30. Test Result Statistics: Summary Data, EcstasyData.org, retrieved 2012-05-31
  31. Tanner-Smith EE. "Pharmacological content of tablets sold as 'ecstasy': results from an online testing service". Drug Alcohol Depend. 2006;83(3):247–54.
  32. Tanner-Smith EE. "Corrigendum to 'Pharmacological content of tablets sold as 'ecstasy': Results from an online testing service'". Drug Alcohol Depend. 2008;93(1-2):190.
  33. Erowid Extracts, Erowid Center, retrieved 2012-03-10
  34. "MAPS/EROWID Psychedelic Bibliography Projects".
  35. Davis E. (2004-04-30), Don't Get High Without It, LA Weekly, archived from the original on 2005-03-24, retrieved 2012-05-31
  36. Nicolas Langlitz (2009-06-01), "Pharmacovigilance and Post-black Market Surveillance", Social Studies of Science, 39 (3): 395–420, doi:10.1177/0306312708101977, PMID 19848184, S2CID 7513456
  37. Russia Bans the Wikipedia of Drugs The Fix 2013-02-28
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