King’s University College at The University of Western Ontario

Psychology 3120G: Altered States of Consciousness: Selected Topics

Professor Barušs                     Homework Assignments                         2011–12

The following schedule includes readings and homework questions. The questions are to be answered in essay style for the dates given. Homework will be collected at the beginning of the class for which it is due. Answers must be based on information from the readings, your knowledge of psychology, and, if appropriate, your personal experiences, and must be comprehensive in nature. Please note that it is imperative that you use quotation marks and the proper format for citation if you do quote from these or any other sources. The grade for homework will be determined by taking the average of the 8 best marks. The homework marks constitute 40% of the final grade in the course.

January 18, 2010

Barušs, I. (2007). Science as a spiritual practice. Exeter, UK: Imprint Academic. Part I.

Question 1: What is wrong with materialism?

January 25, 2010

Barušs, I. (2007). Science as a spiritual practice. Exeter, UK: Imprint Academic. Part II.

Question 2: How can inner knowledge be successfully accessed?

February 1, 2010

Barušs, I. (2007). Science as a spiritual practice. Exeter, UK: Imprint Academic. Part III.

Question 3: According to Franklin Wolff, what does one need to do in order for transcendent states of consciousness to occur?

February 15, 2012

Stevens, A. (1995). Private myths: Dreams and dreaming. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Chapter 9: "Practical Dreamwork."

Question 4: Describe how to interpret a dream. (Optional: Describe a dream that you have had and interpret it using the protocol presented by Stevens.)

February 29, 2012

Ullman, M., & Krippner, S. (with Vaughan, A.). (1973). Dream telepathy. New York: Macmillan. pages 91 103

Waggoner, R. (2009). Lucid dreaming: Gateway to the inner self. Needham, MA: Moment Point. Chapter 16: "Mutual Lucid Dreaming" (pp. 207–226)

Question 5: Compare and contrast channelling with precognitive and shared dreaming.

March 7, 2012

Grinspoon, L. & Bakalar, J. B. (1979). Psychedelic drugs reconsidered. New York: Basic. Chapter 3: "Psychedelic Drugs in the Twentieth Century" (pp. 56 88)

McKenna, T. (1993). True hallucinations: Being an account of the author’s extraordinary adventures in the devil’s paradise. New York: HarperSanFrancisco. Chapter 11 "The Experiment at La Chorrera" and Chapter 12 "In the Vortex."

Question 6: Do psychedelic drugs degrade or enhance an inebriate’s perception of reality?

March 14, 2012

Chamberlain, D. B. (1990). The expanding boundaries of memory. ReVision: The Journal of Consciousness and Change, 12(4), 11–20.

Bryan, C. D. B. (1995). Close encounters of the fourth kind: A reporter’s notebook on alien abduction, UFOs, and the conference at M.I.T. New York: Arkana. Chapter 13: "Postconference Interview: Carol and Alice at Their Horse Farm"

Question 7: Critically evaluate the memories discussed by Chamberlain and Bryan.

March 21, 2012

Atwater, P. M. H. (2007). The big book of near-death experiences: The ultimate guide to what happens when we die. Charlottesville, Virginia: Hampton Roads.

Atwater, P. M. H. (2011). Near-death experiences: The rest of the story: What they teach us about living, dying, and our true purpose. Charlottesville, Virginia: Hampton Roads.

Question 8: What can we learn about the nature of reality from near-death experiences?

March 28, 2012

Osis, K. & Haraldsson, E. (1997). At the hour of death (3rd ed.) Norwalk, CT: Hastings House. Chapter 8 (pages 62–80)

Braude, S. E. (2003). Immortal remains: The evidence for life after death. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.

Question 9: Discuss the contention that a person’s physical life is merely a brief interlude in a longer existence that began before birth and extends beyond death.

April 4, 2012

Keen, M., Ellison, A., & Fontana, D. (1999). The Scole report: An account of an investigation into the genuineness of a range of physical phenomena associated with a mediumistic group in Norfolk, England. Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research, 58 (Pt. 220), 149–392. Introduction and Chapters 1–3

Question 10: Write a reaction paper in which you respond to the material in this reading using the accumulation of wisdom garnered in this course.

April 11, 2012