How on earth did we get like this???

What's the legality in Australia? I think in the states it is legal to possess Absinthe, but not buy or sell it. Some europeans companies will ship it.

 

You are a very intelligent human being. Not many people ponder such things. Funny, you're only 16 but very wise. I've seen people in their 30s and 40s even who are just plain ignorant and closed minded.
Good on ye.

But! To answer your question, How did we get like this? I shall tell you. It is inevitable. Man is too smart yet too stupid and through dumb luck and trial and error and of course a little common sense and ingenuity, we have discovered many fruits of the earth! With so little we built so much. We've created an EMPIRE for ourselves! YES! Man.... was meant to get high.


It's one of the few things that truly makes sense.....

 

thought i might add, animals get high as well
the effects of drugs are however limited by the mind they are administered to

 

Well guys, thanks for helping me with my question (pardon my slightly existentialist writing in the original post).

By the way, StonerBill, I am aware of the other psychoactive plants and their qualities. My question was targeting cannabis specifically for I was very curious why it's effects on humans were pyschoactive (for better or for worse) and not, well, poisonous. I find it fascinating that we stumbled onto a plant that has euphoric effects and (as far as I know) the least adverse effects out of all drugs.

By the way, thank you yazzer for the compliment.

 

yer the adverse effects being low is the nature of the receptors it binds to, not quite the drug itself.

the amazing thing i recon is not only it gets you high but all the fuckin amazin things about the hemp side of the plant. the fibre, and the seeds. the SEEDS are so amazing

anyone who believes in a higher power would be kidding themselves not to believe they made the cannabis plant as a gift

 

he's stoned what do u expect

 

its legal for thujone quantities up to like 10 mg/kg or something outrageous

but you can buy wormwood online

after my exams me and a friend are gonna try ot replicate thujone extraction we read on erowid

 

the question is fundamentally flawed anyway. our brains aren't specifically designed to receive THC, our brain is designed to receive the endogenous chemical anandamide (nicknamed the bliss molecule) which regulates things like mood and appetite. THC and other plant-derived cannabinoids happen to also work in these receptor sites with similar things being effected.

the question wouldn't be "how did we gain the ability to use THC?" but "how did the cannabis plant gain the ability to make chemicals that work with the anandamide receptors?" no other plants or animals produce THC, and the evolutionary advantage to having THC is entirely unclear. there is no reason for it to be produced by the plant that anyone knows of. sure, the resin protects from UV rays, but THC is not needed for resin production, and does not add to the protection. the question should rather be why did it come to be that a plant would produce an anandamide-like chemical such as THC?

there are millions of plants with known drug effects (not necessarily recreational, either, many are medicinal or even not well known at all such as catnip or hops, which both have very mild effects on humans) but only cannabis contains chemicals to effect us in this manner, and its really pretty incredible seeing as nearly all other "recreational" drugs are a) alkaloids and b) work on an entirely different basis in the brain.

 

its the THC that does the UV stuff i mentioned. the thc IS the resin. it is collected in sacks outside the flower and can be increased by changing the lighing. weed grown at high altitudes grows less but makes more thc per bud unit.

 

the THC is not the resin itself, or hashish would be pure THC, which it obviously is not. THC is contained in resin, and you can actually have fairly resinous plants with little THC content. even commercial hemp, nearly devoid of any THC, produces some resin to combat UV rays.

the function of the THC itself, i believe, is still pretty much undetermined.

 

http://www.weedfarmer.com/cannabis/thc_guide.php

heres a good source

 

I still say weed tricked us into spreading her seeds.

 

I didn't know the trichomes (resin) were for combatting UV rays. I always thought it was to attract pollen for pollination. Which is why when the trichomes rupture the plant becomes oily and sticky.

 

That's why everyone should do it!
At least once.

 

no trait spontaneously appears. you need resin glands before you can develop a type of resin that regulates UV

if it was a matter of just UV, then the thc would develop a skin-like thing probably, not sticky crystals.

but traits have lots of purposes in plants

 

I'm gonna have to come back and read this when I'm high.

 

I think what Nesta said is right. Cannabinoids in the hemp plant happen to fit into our natural endocannabinoid receptors, and thus can activate them. With the great number of plants out there, it was bound to happen sooner or later.

Still, Cannabis is a very special plant, nutritious, medicinal, useful, and fun...even spiritual if used right. I agree, it is a gift, be it from nature or god, I don't care...but I do appreciate it

 

ALL traits randomly appear. thats the whole POINT of evolution. nothing is "supposed" to happen, it just does, and if it's beneficial it survives. if its not beneficial or detrimental to survival, it may still persist individually, and even perhaps distinguish between two varieties of the same species.

just because nearly all traits that commonly exist in a species have a purpose doesnt mean they didn't originally occur primarily through chance (mutation)

 

what is that a response to exactly?

at any rate i personally do not believe in the common perception (and official one at that) that all traits are random mutations but thats another cake to cut

 

you should be ashamed of yourself! jk