How many "legit scientists" would ever go gonzo like Hamilton did? How many real chemists would take drugs on camera like that?
What about Alexander Shulgin? He was certainly a "legit scientist" -- with a Ph.D. in biochemistry and an undergraduate degree in chemistry. Before starting his research on psychedelics he worked in the private sector as a research chemist. His work furthered our understanding of chemistry and the brain, particularly with regard to the SAR of compounds that interact with serotonin receptors. And while he didn't use a camera to document his work, he wrote it down methodically (as a scientist would) and published it to the masses. So he absolutely went gonzo, and sharing his work resulted in all kinds of headaches for him, including a DEA raid. So I'd definitely consider Shulgin a legit scientist that went gonzo.
I'm quite surprised he doesn't have an actual degree in chemistry, however I'd ask, does that really discredit his work for vice? It's not like he was pumping out misinformation, other than that one bufo episode in season 1, but that was a journalist mistake not a chemistry mistake.
See, the very fact that you are "quite surprised" that Hamilton Morris doesn't have a degree in chemisty illustrates the degree to which he has fooled his large audience. Very clearly, over time, as you watch his documentaries, you see a gradual shift of someone presenting themselves as journalist, to eventually that of a scientist. Many people are convinced of this, and he even seems to semi believe it himself.
I'm sure you're not the only viewer who would be surprised that Hamilton doesn't have a degree in chemistry or hard science. There are probably hundreds of thousands of people that think Hamilton Morris has a degree in chemistry and spends all day in a lab doing research. But the reality is that the dude has a BA in Anthropology (I believe with an emphasis on ethnobotany). But if you do a google search you will instead read things like, "he attended the University of Chicago where he studied anthropology and chemistry" repeated over and over, intentionally ambiguous. I've taken chemistry classes in college, but am I a chemist? No.
But do you need a degree to be a scientist? In today's modern world, where science is a collaborative effort, an actual scientist will have inherently acquired an advanced education in a specific field, engage in ongoing systematic research to test hypotheses, and contribute new knowledge via peer-reviewed publications etc. So it's a blatent misrepresentation to say that Hamilton is a scientist, and its an insult to all those who have put in the many years of hard work it takes to earn that title.
Sure, the subject matter of his videos are interesting, but this heavy emphasis that is put on him being some sort of brilliant scientist makes the show feel super cheesy. For instance the time when I, out of curiosity, on the episode about San Pedro in Peru, screenshotted and zoomed in on a shot of his research notes, i found a series of intentionally convoluted calculations for the surface area of a cactus. The comedically unneeded complexity of the calculations were designed to make his notes appear more "sciency" (while the video editors obviously meant to show a split second glympse of the fancy looking calculations for dramatic effect, they didn't expect someone mathematically inclined to snap a screenshot and zoom in to examine the notes more closely).
Also, why tf did he suddenly start wearing a labcoat all of a sudden
? He never wore a labcoat in his earlier Vice documentaries, it was only until he got his own show (Hamilton's Pharmacopeia) that he suddenly appeared wearing a labcoat, which like his notebook, is a prop used by the show to emphasize the non-fact that he is some sort of scientist. This facade doesn't change the content of his videos, which are informative and interesting, but the fake scientist bits are are off-putting . And he's made money off of this facade. Feels dishonest to me.
What's funny is that recently Hamilton Morris left Vice over pay disputes, and now, "
has been hired as a full-time consultant for COMPASS Pathways, a publicly traded corporation focused on medicalizing psilocybin."
I will guarantee you that the company did not hire Hamilton for his chemistry expertise. They hired him because the company (Compass) is a publicly traded company, and is desperately seeking funding/investors. Having Hamilton Morris on staff brings his celebrity, accompanied by this widely held perception (like yours) that he is some sort of brilliant chemist, with extensive education and etc. This brings Compass
alot of publicity, and the investments they'll receive as a result is easily worth his salary. Think about all the rich millennials who watch his videos and fully believe that he is a brilliant chemist, and who will use his genius as a "mad scientist" to discover a new compound that will make the stock price of that company skyrocket. So a millenial with money to invest would be quick to buy into a company like that. In fact I bet the mere announcement that Hamilton Morris was going to be on staff caused the stock price to rise. But the thing is, even if he was capable of drug discovery, the company he's now working for isn't even interested in innovating and trying to design new chemical compounds; the entire focus of the company he's working for is on conducting clinical trials to prove the therapeutic efficacy of their proprietary "Comp360" (which is simply synthetic psilocybin).
He should have just stayed in his first role, as a journalist. The scientist bit is tiresome and dishonest, and he's made money off this lie.
