Psychedelic Information Theory: Shamanism in the Age of Reason

203 Pages·2010·2.194 MB·English

by  James L. Kent

Psychedelic
Information Theory
Shamanism in the
Age of Reason
by James L. Kent
PIT Press
Supermassive, LLC
1122 E. Pike St. #679
Seattle, WA 98122

Copyright © 2010 by James L. Kent

Some rights reserved. Do not reproduce or reprint any section of this text
without express permission from the author.

Library of Congress Publication Data
Kent, James L.
Psychedelic Information Theory: Shamanism in the Age of Reason / James L.
Kent. First Edition.
Includes bibliographical references
ISBN 1453760172
EAN-13 9781453760178

http://psychedelic-information-theory.com

Keywords: Psychedelics, Entheogens, Hallucinogens, Consciousness,
Perception, Pharmacology, Epistemology, Hallucination, Psychosis, Dreaming,
Shamanism, Novelty Theory, Creativity, Nonlinear Dynamics, Chaos Theory
Psychedelic
Information Theory
Shamanism in the
Age of Reason
by James L. Kent

First Edition, PIT Press / Supermassive, LLC, 2010

For color images, updates, and links to references online:
http://psychedelic-information-theory.com
Images and Plates
01. Fractals generated by nature and computers 08
02. Entopic patterns in phosphenes and prehistoric art 10
03. Chaos stars, symbols of chaos magic 13
04. Feedback circuits in visual perception 28
05. Troxler’s fading illusion 39
06. Peripheral drift illusion 41
07. Kalachakra time-wheels, mandalas, and calendars 44
08. Stabilized and destabilized perception 48
09. ADSR Envelope 52
10. ADSR Envelope for N 0 and Saliva divinorum 53
2
11. Molecular structure of glutamate and GABA 57
12. Molecular structure of amines and hallucinogens 58
13. Layers of the neocortex 66
14. Biophillic fractals selected for intrinsic natural beauty 76
15. Video feedback loop spinning towards central attractor 77
16. Retino-cortical coupling pathways and mapping planes 80
17. Entopic geometric form constants 81
18. Examples of programmatic cellular automata 83
19. Muscles of the eye 85
20. Alien hallucination in entopic grid 91
21. Molecular structure of acetylcholine and choline 92
22. Hobson’s AIM model 93
23. Kitaoka’s “Rotating Snakes” peripheral drift illusion 98
24. Spiral and tunnel attractors in video feedback 101
25. “Mushroom Inside” trance festival flyer 112
26. Traditional shamen and medicine drums 114
27. Shipibo textile patterns 133
28. Hilbert plane-filling or Peano curves 135
29. EEG bands over one level of activity 142
30. Period doubling bifurcations in the logistics map 176
31. Chladni figures created by standing interference patterns 202
Preface
Psychedelic Information Theory (PIT) is a formal deconstruction of
psychedelic hallucination, expanded consciousness, and shamanism,
and as such it attempts to move topics which have traditionally been
classified as metaphysics into fields of physics and mathematics. The
goal of PIT is to unify all existing psychedelic research into a formal
model which accurately describes the complex dynamics generated
when a psychedelic drug is introduced into human neural and social
networks. PIT is a general model which links psychedelic pharmacology
directly to the nonlinear dynamics of expanded consciousness,
neuroplasticity, shamanic technique, and tribal organization. This book
should be equally enlightening for shamen, physicians, scientists,
mathematicians, mystics, and anyone seeking to model or understand
the functional limits of expanded consciousness.
PIT is presented as an introductory textbook for people with broad
interests in consciousness, perception, psychedelics, hallucination,
shamanism, dreaming, pharmacology, neuroplasticity, chaos theory,
and related fields. Because PIT is meant to be an overview of a general
theory which encompasses many diverse fields, it only scratches the
surface of what could be a far larger and more detailed text. Students
interested in further exploration on these topics should consult the
bibliography and references for more avenues of research and
discovery. For readers who are less scientifically inclined, or who seek a
quick overview of the concepts covered in this text, an informal
discussion of topics has been included in the appendixes. This
discussion provides a brief summary of PIT and answers some of the
most common questions raised in reaction to the text.

Sincerely,

James L. Kent

Table of Contents
Part I: Psychedelic Information Theory
01. What is Psychedelic Information Theory? 11
02. The Value of Psychedelic Information 15
03. Psychedelic Information Theory 21
04. What is Consciousness? 29
05. Limits of Human Perception 37
06. The Control Interrupt Model of Psychedelic Action 49
07. Psychedelic Pharmacology 57
08. 5-HT Agonism and Multisensory Binding 67
2A
09. What is Nonlinear Hallucination? 75
10. Entopic Hallucination 81
11. Eidetic Hallucination 90
12. Erratic Hallucination 99
13. Psychedelic Neuroplasticity 105
Part II: Shamanism in the Age of Reason
14. What is Shamanism? 115
15. An Overview of Physical Shamanism 120
16. Physical Shamanism and Shamanic Therapy 130
17. Hypnotic Entrainment and Induced Trance States 137
18. Psychic Bonding and Psi 143
19. Group Mind and Fluid Tribal Dynamics 148
20. Shamanic Sorcery 153
21. Spirits and Spiritual Communion 158
22. Information Genesis and Complexity 163
Appendixes
01. Conclusions and Discussion 170
02. Informal Discussion of Topics 179
03. About this Text 190
04. Bibliography and References 192
05. About the Author 203
Figure 1. Fractals generated by computer programs and nature are examples
of deterministic chaos in nonlinear systems, and share many formal similarities
with psychedelic hallucinations. WikiMedia Commons.
8
Part I

Psychedelic
Information Theory
9
Figure 2. Images of internally generated sensations of light (phosphenes) with
geometric shapes and no memory-based content, found in ethnographic reports
and prehistoric rock art studies. From Nicholson and Firnhaber.
10