The theory is that the creation of spoken language in humans developed as a result of our early ancestors eating psychedelic mushrooms.

Terence McKenna - Stoned Ape Theory

Here is brief summary:

Perhaps the most intriguing of Terence McKenna's fascinating theories and observations is his explanation for the origin of the human mind and human culture.

To summarize: McKenna theorizes that as the North African jungles receded toward the end of the most recent ice age, giving way to grasslands, a branch of our tree-dwelling primate ancestors left the branches and took up a life out in the open -- following around herds of ungulates, nibbling what they could along the way.

Among the new items in their diet were psilocybin-containing mushrooms growing in the dung of these ungulate herds. The changes caused by the introduction of this drug to the primate diet were many -- McKenna theorizes, for instance, that synesthesia (the blurring of boundaries between the senses) caused by psilocybin led to the development of spoken language: the ability to form pictures in another person's mind through the use of vocal sounds.

About 12,000 years ago, further climate changes removed the mushroom from the human diet, resulting in a new set of profound changes in our species as we reverted to pre-mushroomed and frankly brutal primate social structures that had been modified and/or repressed by frequent consumption of psilocybin.

McKenna's theory has great appeal and intuitive strength, but it is necessarily based on a great deal of supposition interpolating between the few fragmentary facts we know about hominid and early human history. In addition, because McKenna (who describes himself as "an explorer, not a scientist") is also a proponent of much wilder suppositions, such as his "Timewave Zero" theory, his more reasonable theories are usually disregarded by the very scientists whose informed criticism is crucial for their development.

This page links to resources that should help to fill in some of the gaps with data from the sciences and with other theories and myths about human origins.

Thoughts?

A lot of good things have been made under the influence of drugs lol

Well I'm sure psychedelic plants and fungi had some effect on early humans considering that they're still having an effect on us now, despite their illegality.

How big of an impact, I can't say. I mean I wasn't alive back then.

and to answer the OP

i can't say whether i agree or not with McKenna's theory, but can you imagine how the first ape who discovered shrooms reacted when he started tripping balls? i'd like to think that was some funny shit

Quote from: Officer Dank on April 26, 2015, 09:42:15 PM

Quote from: DemonicChronic on April 26, 2015, 07:56:47 PM

Well I'm sure psychedelic plants and fungi had some effect on early humans considering that they're still having an effect on us now, despite their illegality.

How big of an impact, I can't say. I mean I wasn't alive back then.

ayy congrats on your legendary

Damn nigga, I've been legendary for like a week now.

really? good shit, this is the first time i've seen you with the title. i haven't been as active as i used to be

On a related note, I look at much of recorded history as being one dumb, drunk decision after another. Lots of Kings and such must have been perpetually drunk.