Drugs and the Brain

The first seminar in the series entitled, 'Society & Drugs: A Rational Perspective', was organised in conjunction with Prof. Colin Blakemore FRS of Magdalen College, Oxford, and Prof. Leslie Iversen FRS of King's College, London. It was held at Magdalen College on 22nd October 2002. This seminar was aimed at communicating some of the latest scientific understanding about how drugs work in the brain- and thus the nature of addiction- to a wider, and largely non-scientific, audience.

Biographies of the speakers and summaries of their talks can be downloaded:

Preface

Executive Summary

Talks

Prof. Trevor Robbins - Brain Mechanisms of Reward and Addiction
Prof. Les Iversen - Cannabis and Ecstasy - Soft Drugs?
Prof. Barry Everitt - Amphetamine and Cocaine - Mechanisms and Hazards
Prof. David Nutt - Heroin and Related Opiates
Prof. Mark Geyer - Psychedelics
Dr. Mike Farrell - How Can We Translate Science into Policy and Action?

Drug Policy in the Netherlands and in the UK

The Dutch Experience - Jan Wiarda, Head of Police, The Hague
Bob Ainsworth, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Home Office
Responsible for Drug Co-ordination

References

Appendices

I. Speaker Biographies
II. Participants Attending Seminar I
III. The Beckley Foundation

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