This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American
Addiction remains a topic riddled with bad science commentary and outdated beliefs, mainly because no one wants to talk about it. One of my favorite drug and addiction writers Dirk Hansen has tied his posts, those covered in his Addiction Inbox blog, together in an anthology -- a fascinating and detailed one, about questions and common misunderstandings rooted in current science. The book is named after his blog and is thus also titled Addiction Inbox.
The collection is fast-paced and interesting, jumping from one nugget to the next, tackling the public's sweeping questions affixed to addiction today: how do gambling and shoplifting fit into the addiction model? Is there such thing as marijuana withdrawal? What's up with bath salts? The questions posed and Hansen's subsequent explorations are concise, supported by evidence, and brave in scope.
The author relates the real life to the scientific, noting his own struggles with addiction, yet doesn't get bogged down in personal tales. Rather, the writings use life tidbits as a jumping off points for scientific explanation and an overarching discussion of addiction's media landscape.
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A sampling of included posts (there are 73 posts in the volume, I counted):
Heroin in Vietnam: The Robins Study Reexamined
The Biology of Stimulants, or Why You Can't Stay High All the Time
The posts, too, deftly touch on topics upon which I normally write, those affecting addicts in further marginalized communities -- drug treatment in prisons, America's needle exchange and research's impact on addiction stigma among them. It's hard info-packed science with a reader-centric eye, a refreshing read from pseudoscience and memoir-based addiction commentary. Buy it.
