Two new scientific studies reveal hallucinogens are good for your mental health. First therapeutic LSD study in 35 years wraps in Switzerland. LSD, Francis Crick, and the secret of life. The Effects of Hallucinogenic & Psychedelic Drugs on the Brain. LSD, or acid, and its mind-bending effects have been made famous by pop culture hits like "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," a film about the psychedelic escapades of writer Hunter S.
Thompson. Oversaturated colors, swirling walls and intense emotions all supposedly come into play when you're tripping. But how does acid make people trip? Life's Little Mysteries asked Andrew Sewell, a Yale psychiatrist and one of the few U.S. -based psychedelic drug researchers, to explain why LSD short for lysergic acid diethylamide does what it does to the brain.