Pearlson: 'The Science of Weed: An Indispensable Guide to Cannabis'

Godfrey Pearlson, MD, MA, professor of psychiatry and of neuroscience, is author of the new book “The Science of Weed: An Indispensable Guide to Cannabis.”

Published by Johns Hopkins University Press, the book discusses topics from the botany and chemistry of cannabis to its impacts on psychology and human behavior. Pearlson explores the origins of cannabis, its interactions with humans through history, and its medicinal applications.

He also discusses the plant's collective impact on economics and the health care system, demonstrating how scientific scrutiny can bring enlightened reason to the contentious debates surrounding the drug.

Pearlson is founding director of the Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center. His research uses neuroimaging as a tool to address a broader array of questions regarding the neurobiology of major mental disorders, primarily psychosis and substance abuse.