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The Story Collider

Hallucinogenics: Stories about tripping

The Story Collider

Story Collider, Inc.

Personal Journals, Society & Culture, Performing Arts, Arts, Science

4.4818 Ratings

🗓️ 12 January 2024

⏱️ 28 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this week’s episode, our storytellers delve into their personal encounters with psychedelics—moments where reality became a blur, perceptions began to shift, and the boundaries of consciousness expanded. Part 1: While tripping on acid, Michael Czajkowski goes into anaphylaxis. Part 2: Dust Cwaine sees their body differently while experimenting with magical mushrooms. Michael Czajkowski is an origami physicist, fashion redesigner, experimental science communicator and amateur bicycle pilot. Their research concerns materials that have been punctured, folded and otherwise damaged strategically so they will move in dramatic unusual and controllable ways. This research feeds into their greater goals, to connect tangible science with uncommon and underserved audiences. This is the focus of their work with Science for Georgia as Director of Advocacy. In their spare time, they like to maintain their social network: mikemingle.com Dust Cwaine (aka David Cutting) is a Singer-Songwriter and Drag Artist. They are a Non-Binary Aromantic, known for their bright and earthy creativity. Dust’s art centers itself in the political nature of queer identity, evoking a sense of belonging and togetherness with their presence in live spaces. Dust Cwaine started Drag in 2016, since their debut They have Produced and Hosted over 250 shows, and They have written 3 Drag musicals. In 2020 Dust began creating music and released a demo album of tracks they created while in quarantine aptly titled AMATUER and on September 23rd 2022 they released Their debut LP Arcana in collaboration with Josh Eastman of Helm Studios. Dust’s music carries inspiration from the alt rock insurgence of the late 90’s and early 2000’s, lyrically weaving earnesty with humor, for an emotional familiarity that is immediately disarming. Their live shows involve a blending of drag and music that intentionally try to break down the walls between the performer and the audience, Dust refers to this as community, where everybody has an equally important part to play. You can listen to Dust Cwaine’s music on any streaming service, visit their website dustcwaine.ca to learn more! You can also find them on Instagram at @unicornriverchild Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

A science story, huh?

0:04.0

Is NYU scientist the...

0:06.0

I felt...

0:07.0

I was so...

0:09.0

And I just thought, well...

0:10.0

It was that golden moment.

0:13.0

Because science was on my side.

0:15.0

Hey everyone. Welcome to The Story Collider, where true personal stories about science help us to discover how weird and wonderful it is to exist in this world and be a human.

0:33.3

I'm your host, Misha Gayevsky, and we started 2024 with a show about life and death,

0:41.0

and we got some amazing feedback on that show, and we're not stopping.

0:45.4

This week, it's stories about personal experiences with psychedelics.

0:50.1

There are a million things I love about this week's storytellers and their stories,

0:55.0

but maybe the best way to sum it up is I appreciate the ways they opened my thinking.

0:58.7

Every week is special, and this one is no exception.

1:00.5

First up, Michael Tchaikowsky.

1:07.3

Michael is an origami physicist, fashion redesigner, experimental science communicator, and amateur bicycle pilot.

1:13.0

They are also the director of advocacy at Science for Georgia. Their story was recorded at our go-to spot in Atlanta, Waller's Coffee Shop, and their story is like something

1:17.9

out of a movie. You're going to love it. Here's Michael.

1:25.4

Okay, this is a high-octane story, so, you know, buckle up or whatever.

1:35.0

So I'm lucky in one particular way in that I was born in Buffalo, New York, the land of plenty.

1:45.0

Nobody calls Buffalo, New York, the land of plenty.

1:47.9

Nobody calls Buffalo, New York the land of plenty, but we do call it the city of good neighbors

...

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