Michael Pollan
Journalist and Author
Michael Pollan is the author of How to Change Your Mind and seven previous books including Cooked, Food Rules, In Defense of Food, The Omnivore's Dilemmaand The Botany of Desire, which received the Borders Original Voices Award for the best non-fiction work of 2001, and was recognized as a best book of the year by the American Booksellers Association and Amazon.com. PBS premiered a two-hour special documentary based on The Botany of Desire in fall 2009.

#6: How psychedelics work: Fire the conductor, let the orchestra play | Top 10 2019
Next up on the top 10 countdown, Big Think's sixth most popular video illustrates the mental fireworks of a psychedelic experience.
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On writing: What illuminates a story?
Don't be afraid to have the very experiences you aspire to write about — they will help you write more vividly, and from a genuine place of wonder.
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9 min
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Want a shortcut to better living? Psychedelics may be it.
LSD may help us change our lives by spurring perspective shifts.
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5 min
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How psychedelics work: Fire the conductor, let the orchestra play
Michael Pollan explains what goes on during the mental fireworks of a psychedelic experience.
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Mind-altering drugs: The magical history of LSD and mushrooms
Why did government officials stop psychedelics from reaching mainstream culture?
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22 min
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BBQ of the Gods, with Michael Pollan
Michael Pollan explains the lost cultural and spiritual importance of cooking and eating meat.
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5 min
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The Tradition and Beauty of Whole Hog Barbecue, with Michael Pollan
Food writer Michael Pollan recalls his experience at The Skylight Inn in Ayden, North Carolina. The owners roast whole hogs in a giant barbecue pit over a 24-hour period.
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How BBQ Transcends Race, with Michael Pollan
Food writer Michael Pollan takes us through the history of barbecue in the south and how its ritualized process stands outside the typical racial paradigm.
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4 min
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