The Tim Ferriss Show #340: Paul Stamets — How Mushrooms Can Save You and (Perhaps) the World
Fungi's Evolutionary Position
- Fungi are evolutionarily closer to animals than to plants, sharing a common ancestor 650 million years ago.
- Mycelium forms vast single-cell-layer networks, making fungi unique organisms among life forms.
Antiviral Mushroom Extracts Draw Attention
- Sending mushroom extracts to government labs sparked military interest and surveillance due to potential antiviral properties.
- Despite setbacks, Paul secured a patent for antiviral compounds active against pox viruses and other pathogens.
Psilocybin Experience Cured Stutter
- Paul Stamets consumed an excessively high dose of psilocybin mushrooms during a lightning storm.
- This profound experience enabled him to overcome his lifelong severe stutter instantly.
Paul Stamets (@PaulStamets) is an intellectual and industry leader in the habitat, medicinal use, and production of fungi. Part of his mission is to deepen our understanding and respect for the organisms that literally exist under every footstep taken on this path of life. Paul is the author of a new study in Nature's Scientific Reports, which details how mushroom extracts—specifically extracts from woodland polypore mushrooms—can greatly reduce viruses that contribute to bee colony collapse.
Paul is the author of six books, including Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World, Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms, and Psilocybin Mushrooms of the World: An Identification Guide, and he has discovered and named numerous species of psilocybin mushrooms. Paul is also the founder and owner of Fungi Perfecti, makers of the Host Defense mushroom supplement line, and it is something I've been using since Samin Nosrat recommended it in my last book, Tribe of Mentors.
Paul has received numerous awards, including Invention Ambassador (2014-2015) for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the National Mycologist Award (2014) from the North American Mycological Association (NAMA), and the Gordon & Tina Wasson Award (2015) from the Mycological Society of America (MSA).
The implications, applications, and medicinal uses of what we discuss in this interview are truly mind-boggling, and we get into some of my favorite subjects, including psychedelics and other aspects of bending reality. If you're interested in contributing to psychedelic science and research, you can do so at MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies), or if you've got $100,000 or more to spare, visit me at tim.blog/science.
I hope you enjoy this entire interview, but if you only have time to listen to one part, I recommend checking in at the [56:25] mark to hear how Paul's first experience with psilocybin mushrooms affected his lifelong stutter. Enjoy!
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