Leary-Lettvin debate
Encyclopedia
The Leary-Lettvin debate was a November 1967 debate between Dr. Jerome Lettvin
, a medical doctor and professor at MIT, and Dr. Timothy Leary
, a licensed psychologist, about the merits and dangers of the hallucinogenic drug LSD
. It took place in the Kresge Auditorium
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
.
Lettvin responded "bullshit!" to Leary's claim that he would diagnose the frank symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy as a religious experience.
. Subsequently he had developed a following of admirers for the philosophy turn on, tune in, drop out
. This was commonly understood to suggest that taking psychedelic drug
s (in particular LSD
) was valuable to average people.
Denny Brown, Jerome Lettvin was a psychiatrist
, neurologist, neurosurgeon, and neuroscientist
with deep clinical experience and was a passionate advocate of individual rights
. Having been the head of only 7 doctors controlling the 7,000 patients in Manteno State Hospital
, he had direct experience diagnosing a large number of unusual neurological conditions along with their treatments, useful drug
s, and their effectiveness.
on behalf of students.
The organizers exhausted all other candidates and then came to Lettvin's laboratory in Building 20
to plead for a last minute appearance. From the middle of an experiment on a frog
's optic nerve
, in his shirt sleeves, he was offered a tie to wear
and went to Kresge for the debate with no preparation.
The debate was televised by WGBH-TV
Channel 2 in 1967. Leary began in "High Priest" mode, barefoot presentation having a multimedia projected visual backdrop. In this segment, he made the use of drugs very appealing to the students in the audience, and they responded positively. Lettvin admitted that the his arguments were very seductive.
With humor and without losing the audience, Lettvin followed with an appeal on behalf of the "higher" mental functions using textbook and clinical observations as support material. He also accepted many of Leary's points, arguing against the prohibition on marijuana and other drugs. He argued instead that persuasion rather than coercion should be the focus of drug policy. Lettvin criticized the U.S. government for ill-conceived anti-drug legislation.
Jerome Lettvin
Jerome Ysroael Lettvin was a cognitive scientist and professor Emeritus of Electrical and Bioengineering and Communications Physiology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . He is best known as the author of the 1959 paper, "What the frog's eye tells the frog's brain", one of the most...
, a medical doctor and professor at MIT, and Dr. Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary
Timothy Francis Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for his advocacy of psychedelic drugs. During a time when drugs like LSD and psilocybin were legal, Leary conducted experiments at Harvard University under the Harvard Psilocybin Project, resulting in the Concord Prison...
, a licensed psychologist, about the merits and dangers of the hallucinogenic drug LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
. It took place in the Kresge Auditorium
Kresge Auditorium
Kresge Auditorium is an auditorium building for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, located at 48 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was designed by the noted architect Eero Saarinen, with ground-breaking in 1953 and dedication in 1955...
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
.
Lettvin responded "bullshit!" to Leary's claim that he would diagnose the frank symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy as a religious experience.
Timothy Leary's credentials
Timothy Leary focused on how the interpersonal process might be used to diagnose disorders and patterns found in human personalities. He proposed that psychedelic substances, used at proper dosages, in a stable set and setting could, under the guidance of psychologists, alter behavior in beneficial ways not easily attainable through regular therapyTherapy
This is a list of types of therapy .* Adventure therapy* Animal-assisted therapy* Aquatic therapy* Aromatherapy* Art and dementia* Art therapy* Authentic Movement* Behavioral therapy* Bibliotherapy* Buteyko Method* Chemotherapy...
. Subsequently he had developed a following of admirers for the philosophy turn on, tune in, drop out
Turn on, tune in, drop out
"Turn on, tune in, drop out" is a counterculture phrase popularized by Timothy Leary in 1967. Leary spoke at the Human Be-In, a gathering of 30,000 hippies in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco and uttered the famous phrase, "Turn on, tune in, drop out". In a 1988 interview with Neil Strauss, Leary...
. This was commonly understood to suggest that taking psychedelic drug
Psychedelic drug
A psychedelic substance is a psychoactive drug whose primary action is to alter cognition and perception. Psychedelics are part of a wider class of psychoactive drugs known as hallucinogens, a class that also includes related substances such as dissociatives and deliriants...
s (in particular LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
) was valuable to average people.
Jerome Lettvin's credentials
Trained by neurologistNeurologist
A neurologist is a physician who specializes in neurology, and is trained to investigate, or diagnose and treat neurological disorders.Neurology is the medical specialty related to the human nervous system. The nervous system encompasses the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. A specialist...
Denny Brown, Jerome Lettvin was a psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
, neurologist, neurosurgeon, and neuroscientist
Neuroscientist
A neuroscientist is an individual who studies the scientific field of neuroscience or any of its related sub-fields...
with deep clinical experience and was a passionate advocate of individual rights
Individual rights
Group rights are rights held by a group rather than by its members separately, or rights held only by individuals within the specified group; in contrast, individual rights are rights held by individual people regardless of their group membership or lack thereof...
. Having been the head of only 7 doctors controlling the 7,000 patients in Manteno State Hospital
Manteno State Hospital
Manteno State Hospital was a psychiatric hospital located in rural Manteno Township in Kankakee County, Illinois.The facility was authorized in 1927 by the 55th Illinois General Assembly with its first patients arriving in December 1930. In 1954 the patient population peaked at 8,195. In 1983, the...
, he had direct experience diagnosing a large number of unusual neurological conditions along with their treatments, useful drug
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...
s, and their effectiveness.
Venue and preliminaries
Leary was scheduled to debate another MIT professor at Kresge Auditorium on the MIT campus. On the day of the debate, the scheduled professor bowed out, leaving the organizers scrambling to find another professor who would take his place. Lettvin was considered a poor candidate because of his lack of conventionality and for his regular advocacyAdvocacy
Advocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
on behalf of students.
The organizers exhausted all other candidates and then came to Lettvin's laboratory in Building 20
Building 20
Building 20 was a temporary wooden structure hastily erected during World War II on the central campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Since it was always regarded as "temporary", it never received a formal name throughout its 55-year existence...
to plead for a last minute appearance. From the middle of an experiment on a frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
's optic nerve
Optic nerve
The optic nerve, also called cranial nerve 2, transmits visual information from the retina to the brain. Derived from the embryonic retinal ganglion cell, a diverticulum located in the diencephalon, the optic nerve doesn't regenerate after transection.-Anatomy:The optic nerve is the second of...
, in his shirt sleeves, he was offered a tie to wear
and went to Kresge for the debate with no preparation.
Issue and debate
Leary proposed the sacramental use of psychedelic drugs to a largely enthusiastic student community. Much of his presentation was devoted to arguing for the necessity of scientifically studying the effects of drugs such as LSD and marijuana in order to determine the contexts in which they might be useful, and those in which they would not. In addition, Leary made a plea for the equal importance of scientifically studying the "inner world" - the world of the mind - as well as the "outer world" of material reality. The U.S. government had made illegal the use of these and some other drugs. Lettvin was asked by the MIT organizers to present a counter-proposal to steer students away from the use of drugs.The debate was televised by WGBH-TV
WGBH-TV
WGBH-TV, channel 2, is a non-commercial educational public television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. WGBH-TV is a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service , and produces more than two-thirds of PBS's national prime time television programming...
Channel 2 in 1967. Leary began in "High Priest" mode, barefoot presentation having a multimedia projected visual backdrop. In this segment, he made the use of drugs very appealing to the students in the audience, and they responded positively. Lettvin admitted that the his arguments were very seductive.
With humor and without losing the audience, Lettvin followed with an appeal on behalf of the "higher" mental functions using textbook and clinical observations as support material. He also accepted many of Leary's points, arguing against the prohibition on marijuana and other drugs. He argued instead that persuasion rather than coercion should be the focus of drug policy. Lettvin criticized the U.S. government for ill-conceived anti-drug legislation.
Further reading
- "Leary and Lettvin Clash on Drugs In M.I.T. Debate", The Harvard Crimson, Thursday, May 4, 1967