known events in history. Ergot poisoning, also known as ergotism, is caused by the fungus Claviceps Purpurea, which events rye, wheat and other cereal grasses (The Witches Curse 1). Ergot contains an alkaloid lysergic acid, from which the hallucinogenic drug LSD is obtained (Star-News 3). For years people have been trying to prove that ergotism has been the cause of the happenings. Around the world ergotism has been causing mass hysteria in small towns and making the fear of ergot stronger and more believable
learning about out world. Like in the case of the Salem Witch trials "When minds are poisoned by the ignorance of superstitions, terrible things happen" (see Internet Source). Bibliography Bennett, J.W. 1999. Pride and Prejudice: The story of ergot. Perspective in Biology and Medicine 42 (3): 333-355. Spanos, Nicholas P. 1983. Ergotism and the Salem witch panic: a critical analysis and an alternative conceptualization. Journal of the History of Behavioral Sciences 19 (4): 358-369. Starkey
Hallucinogens: a general group of pharmacological agents that can be divided into three broad categories: psychedelics, dissociatives, and deliriants. Hallucinogenic drugs have played a role in civilization for thousands of year. It began with naturally occurring hallucinogens, such as the peyote cactus plant and wild mushrooms. Now there are man made drugs that have the same or more intense affects. These include lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), MDMA (ecstasy), and dextromethorphan (DMX, often
who were viewed as witches were acting out of boredom certainly seems possible. However, a stronger position is that of unintentional ergot poisoning. Linnda Caporael is a behavioral scientist and full professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. As a student, she had taken a histo... ... middle of paper ... ...abama: Alabama Heritage. Ergot of Rye-I: Introduction and History. Retrieved Feburary 2014, from Department of Botany: University of Hawaii at Manoa: http://www.botany
recorded hallucination was a tossup between mental issues that were then used for a political push or the ergotamine during the Salem witch trails in 1962, far after that Albert Hofmann became the creator of LSD from ergotamine a chemical from the fungus ergot, in Switzerland 1938. From that time LSD has played a part in history, studies have shown that much has changed in the half-century since LSD was first used by psychiatrists and then found widespread recreational use in the 1960's and 70's. Modern
meaning that Hel-IT1 would be linked to the color(Shigeru Iida,2011). By understanding this they were able to realize what actually caused the tremendous variation in the color of the flowers. Another major point of interest for many people are the ergot based alkaloids found in the seeds of morning glories. Use of the plant really dates back to the Ancient civilization of Mexico, such as the Aztecs and various other tribes surrounding the area (Hoffman, 2011). The seeds of local variety of Morning
LSD-25 or Lysergic Acid Diethylamide was first synthesized and used by pharmaceutical chemist Albert Hoffman. LSD-25 is an illegal drug belonging to the hallucinogen category. The physical effects are eye enlargement, pupil dilation and sweating. However the common psychological effects are euphoria, no recollection of time, visual distortions, and mentally visualizing geometric patterns and shapes, which lasts about 6-9 hours or sometimes longer. Though non-addictive LSD-25 can induce anxiety,
While drugs are seen as a divisive issue today, in the 1960s they were much more accepted and widely available. It is during this time period that drugs that are highly illegal now were available and used daily in many cultures around the world. Many of these drugs, such as cocaine, were seen as a “cure-all” and supposedly helped with a variety of ailments. These are the reasons I find drug culture in the 1960s particularly interesting. I also think it is interesting how drugs such as acid and marijuana
someone says “oh I came up with a theory to the Salem epidemic”, nobody can actually say what happened in Salem, one of the possibilities was Ergot, a fungus found in rye. Some would say ergot poisoning wasn’t a possibility but some would agree because the weather conditions were right, the symptoms were spot on, and the location of the afflicted matched where ergot grew best. The weather in Salem in 1691-1692 was said to be horrible. It’s said that the previous winter was cold, then the following planting
Trials. These authors often showed that the most likely cause of the fits coming from the victims was produced by ergot of rye. However, I could not find much discussion about another important source of the fits’ cause: witchcraft. My goal in this paper is to produce a convincing argument that the victims during the Salem Witch Trials that experienced strange behaviors came from ergot of rye rather than witchcraft. To achieve this goal, I have organized my paper into four main sections. In the first
Within the play, mental illness is implied. Ergot is a fungal parasite that has caused convulsive ergotism epidemics from 1085 - 1927. However it has also been used for medical assistance, ergot poisoning happens when a person ingests ergot or when a person takes an ergot based medicine for a long time or a high dose.This essay will explore the idea that the Salem witch trials were influenced by ergot poisoning. From as early as the Middle Ages, ergot has been around and still affects people to
The Effects of Ergot Poisoning and Mass Hysteria Many significant historical events in history provide many unanswered questions about what exactly occurred. Much of this is attributed to the lack of proper documentation or explanation about just what exactly was occurring at the time. The Salem Witch Trials offer an interesting middle-ground to this confusion, in that there was a well-documented history of what was occurring as well as a rather broad explanation of the situation. By the end of
sensations, coma, and death are all symptoms of convulsive ergot poisoning (Coll). Ergot poisoning was said to be the cause of the bewitched behavior of the afflicted girls during the Salem witch trials; however, convulsive ergotism only occurs in places lacking vitamin A, the symptoms of ergot were not present in the girls, and the girls were most likely faking all of the symptoms that they did have. Gangrenous ergotism is the type of ergot poisoning that is contracted when there is plenty of vitamin
interest for some time, and once I discovered the suspicion that ergot poisoning might have been a factor, I did a great deal of research in that area. This topic can be important because research shows two possible causes of the behavior that led to the Salem Witch Trials: the extreme changes ergot poisoning can create in people, or, possibly even the boredom of the children. While the girls may have been bored with the colonial lifestyle, ergot could have caused the girls to have hallucinations because
witches? In the play The Crucible, Abigail Williams and the other girls point up at the rafters and accuse Mary Warren of sending her spirit out to hurt them. Perhaps this is one of the many hallucinations the girls endured whilst being affected by the ergot. Ergotism is a sort of illness that is not contracted as something like the influenza or an emblematic cold would be. It can only be contracted by the consumption of it. When the young girls began to show symptoms of an unknown affliction, the others
likely had Ergot of Rye which occurs as a plant disease, affects the girls, and caused this incident. The whole fiasco started with Reverend Parris’s nine-year-old daughter, Betty, and his orphaned eleven-year-old niece, Abigail Williams (Schanzer 18). These girls are believed to have ergot (“Part II: The Witches of Salem: Theories and Speculations”). “Ergot of Rye is a plant disease that is caused by the fungus Claviceps” (“Ergot of Rye - I: Introduction and History”). Even though the ergot on the grain
theories about ergot poisoning, Tituba the black slave from Barbados, and the history and facts about Salem. It is important to understand the facts about Ergot poisoning. Ergot, the fungus that grows on the rye flower, replacing the grain with a hard, purplish bundle of Mycelia that may contain as much as one percent Ergot Alkaloids. Ergot poisoning “may have been associated with the Salem Witch Trials of 1692” (Ahlstrom). At least one million people die within five years of Ergot poisoning (Ahlstrom)
undergraduate suggested ergot poisoning might be to blame. Ergotism – ergot poisoning – is born from the fungus Claviceps purpurea, which is known to infect rye and other cereal grains, it produces a chemical known as ergotamine which is the base for toxic hallucinogenic chemicals such as LSD. [2] Studies have shown that the consumption of ergot-contaminated food results in symptoms much like those associated with the afflicted girls in Salem, 1692. [2] Collectively, Ergot poisoning, and the implication
What caused the Salem Witch Trials? This question has been asked for hundreds of years, yet the world still isn't sure of the answer. The only statement that can be proven is that there were multiple causes (salemwitchtrials.com). No one factor pushed the trials into existence. Even simple things, like fear, took a part in the overall cause. To this day, scientists and researchers alike still argue over the answer to this riddling question. In the early winter months of 1692, in colonial Massachusetts
other 5HT-1 agonists are non formulary. What other medications could be used in this patient? SUBJECT : Discussion of therapies other than triptans for treatment of migraine headache in a patient with a substance abuse history. Introduction: Opiates, ergot alkaloids, corticosteroids, dopamine antagonists or NSAIDs and analgesics and their combinations available OTC are other alternatives that can be used for treatment of migraine headaches in a patient other than triptans. NSAIDS and OTC analgesics