One Billion Seconds Later: A Social History of LSD

In honor of the work of pioneering Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann, who discovered the hallucinogenic properties of lysergic acid diethylamide in 1943, From the Vault presents the 1974 documentary One Billion Seconds Later: A Social History of LSD, winner of the prestigious Ohio State Award for Radio Excellence. Produced in 1974 by legendary radio producer Adi Gevins, this program explores acid’s social history, from its accidental discovery at Sandoz laboratories in Switzerland, through the halls of academia, to Golden Gate Park and beyond. Included are the voices of Albert Hofmann, Timothy Leary, Baba Ram Dass, Ken Kesey, and Dr. John Lilly, among others, who describe the LSD experience and speculate on acid’s importance an agent of therapy, religious sacrament, and revolution.

From the Vault is presented through the Pacifica Radio Archives Preservation and Access Project, funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, past grants from the Grammy Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the American Archive funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, along with the generous support of Pacifica Radio Listeners.


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