Mike Jay - Free Radicals: How Nitrous Oxide Galvanized Psychedelic Science

Aug 11, 2025

In a captivating discussion, Mike Jay, a British author and cultural historian, delves into the transformative history of nitrous oxide in psychedelic science. He reveals how 19th-century figures like Humphry Davy paved the way for modern psychedelic thought. The conversation navigates through indigenous traditions and colonial perceptions of psychedelics, highlighting the clash between grassroots healing and institutional control. Mike also examines the cultural revolution sparked by psychedelics, advocating for a balance between clinical and community-centered approaches to mental health.

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INSIGHT

Shulgin Echoed Davy's Self-Experiment Model

Mike Jay compares Alexander Shulgin's methods to Humphry Davy's dual chemical/subjective protocol.
Both documented synthesis and 'subjective extensions' by small self-experimenting groups to map doses and effects.

INSIGHT

Nitrous Oxide Sparked Early Psychedelic Science

Mike Jay shows nitrous oxide experiments at the Pneumatic Institution birthed Western psychedelic science.
Humphry Davy and colleagues combined chemistry, physiology, and self-experimentation to study profound subjective effects.

ANECDOTE

James' Mescaline Hangover, Nitrous Breakthrough

Mike Jay recounts William James' failed mescaline outing that left him violently ill for 48 hours.
Nitrous oxide later produced the mystical 'lift-off' James carried into his work on religious experience.

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In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, host Paul F. Austin welcomes cultural historian and acclaimed author Mike Jay.

Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-316/?ref=278

Together they explore the untold history of nitrous oxide, psychedelic experimentation in the Romantic era, and the deeper cultural and philosophical roots of psychedelic science.

Mike shares insights from his latest book, Free Radicals, highlighting how figures like Humphry Davy and William James helped shape psychedelic thought long before the 1960s. The conversation weaves through ancient San Pedro rituals, colonial attempts to suppress peyote use, and the divergent paths of modern psychedelic medicine.

From poetic self-experimentation to medicalized models, Mike unpacks the historical tensions between grassroots healing and institutional control—and what this means for the future of psychedelic culture.

Mike Jay is a British author and cultural historian who has written widely on the history of drugs, consciousness, and medical science. His books include Mescaline: A Global History of the First Psychedelic, Psychonauts: Drugs and the Making of the Modern Mind, and Free Radicals: How a Group of Romantic Experimenters Gave Birth to Psychedelic Science. Mike contributes regularly to The London Review of Books, The New York Review of Books, and The Wall Street Journal.

Highlights:

How early scientists used nitrous oxide for inner exploration
Romantic poets as the original psychedelic self-experimenters
Parallels between Humphry Davy and Alexander Shulgin
What William James learned from nitrous, not mescaline
Colonial suppression of peyote and indigenous resilience
The enduring symbolism of San Pedro in Andean ritual
How the counterculture reinterpreted Native practices
Why modern psychedelic medicine may be repeating history
The role of finance in shaping current therapy models
Looking ahead: divergent futures of psychedelic healing

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