Tag: Synthetic drugs

According to the Department of Justice, illicit tablets imprinted with logos like smiley faces are a common way for dealers to market and brand illegal substances, particularly MDMA. What is the drug called a smiley face pill is a question that reveals a dangerous reality, as the emblem offers no guarantee of a pill's actual content or purity.

According to research, most routine urine drug tests fail to detect many illicit and prescribed substances, including LSD, ketamine, and certain synthetic opioids. This phenomenon, and the reasons behind it, are crucial to understanding the limitations of common drug screening methods and identifying what drugs don't show up on a urine test.

Over 60% of currently used anti-cancer agents are derived from or inspired by natural products, yet many people ask: **Where do chemotherapy drugs come from?**. The answer is a complex story of serendipitous discoveries, targeted research into nature's bounty, and modern synthetic breakthroughs in the lab.

Over 65% of Americans once believed the myth that humans only use 10% of their brains, a notion debunked by modern neuroscience. The 2014 film *Lucy* capitalizes on this false premise, introducing a powerful fictional substance known as the blue drug, CPH4, that supposedly unlocks humanity's full cerebral potential.

Tramadol, a synthetic opioid developed in Germany in the 1960s, is often prescribed for moderate to severe pain. This fact directly contrasts with the popular misconception that there might be a naturally derived version of this medication. In reality, the question, **'Is there a natural tramadol?'**, leads to a more nuanced discussion about the distinction between synthetic and natural substances in pharmacology.

Archaeological evidence suggests humans have used medicinal plants for at least 60,000 years [1.8.2]. This long history makes the answer to **what was the first drug invented?** complex, involving key milestones from ancient remedies to modern laboratory synthesis.