Interested in Ethnobotany & Ethnopharmacology

I think they're both very interesting fields of study, there's a lot of correlations that can be used to help people if done correctly

 

I just want someone out there to be knowledgeable in this subject at all even the slightest bit. This subject of matter has me thirsting for more information therefore I call forth this *bump*. <---studyingethnobotany

 

Someone break down the ethno thing for me as it applies here. If ya don't mind.

 

basically they want to study how humans have used plants throughout the ages

 

Seems more like a subset of history than of botany really. I dunno man. I'm always suspicious of these new quack disciplines.

 

I would read the book "Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice" by Mark Plotkin. It's basically about his adventures as a field ethnobotanist, exploring the Amazon basin to find out about the plants the native population uses for medicine.

The idea is to discover new medicines that come from the rainforest.

And he also looks for crazy recreational drugs.

 

Do you know of a guy named E.O. Wilson? He does a thing called, "sociobiology" where he sort of meshes the facts of biology into parallels with social behavioral phenomena. Interesting stuff.

 

some people think genes dictate behavior

i disagree. genes might dictate some instincts but behavior is learned

 

I'm way into pharma (both organic and inorganic) and have been for a long time. I actually spent 2.5 years of college on the pharmacology track but then fizzled out and now I've got a BA in sociology lmao.

Ultimately, my plan is to go back to school (at a wayyyy less crowded uni) and pick up where I left off but in the meantime subsistence reigns supreme, while I gobble up all the knowledge I can from a layman's perspective. I'm more into the synthetic side of things than the ethno but, of course, ethnopharma is absolutely essential to the development/discovery of most synthetics. Mainly I'm interested in neuropharmacology, and particularly in neurogenesis. I also like long walks on the beach and sunsets, so if you're looking for a good time give me a call.

 

I think it has to do with the enormous role we've played in the evolution of plants. Could be an interesting field; you may find numerous home remedies previously undiscovered? Perhaps lost in history?

 

The science of finding plants to get stoned off your ass with...

 

Nearly every synthetic medicine that you hold dear started out as an "herbal remedy" before the active components were isolated and tinkered with. This is the real (pharmacological) value in ethnobotany.