Xiaohua: Hello and welcome to roundtable’s word of the week. 最近呢，关于明星吸毒的话题在持续发酵中，那么今天我们就来给大家普及一下各类毒品的常识吧。
John: So first, let’s talk about the different types of drugs. These categories of drugs can include illegal drugs as well as certain types of medicines that are not illegal. So the first one is stimulants sometimes known colloquially as uppers; and there are depressants which are known as downers; and psychedelics which can include LSD and marijuana.
Xiaohua: 毒品甚至很多药品，都可以根据它对神经系统的作用，大致分为三类，一种是兴奋剂，stimulants 还有depressants镇定剂,另外一种就是迷幻剂，或者致幻剂叫psychedelic.
John: Well, the first two stimulants I want to talk very quickly are amphetamine and methamphetamine.
Xiaohua: Amphetamine 中文名字叫安非他命，又叫做苯丙胺，而methamphetamine叫做甲基苯丙胺，又叫脱氧麻黄碱。
John: So the reason I want to bring up both of these is, one is actually a medicine, and one is an illegal drug. Amphetamine is actually used for therapeutic purposes, usually for dieting, or for ADHD. Whereas methamphetamine only a little bit different on the molecular level, is actually highly addictive and has shown to be very damaging to the brain.
Xiaohua: 安非他命是在医学上用途很多的一种药，可以用来治疗多动症等病症，而脱氧麻黄碱呢，则是一种非常危险的药物，就是冰毒。
John: Exactly. So the next one we are looking at is MDMA, sometimes known as “Ecstasy”. When I first came to China, some people were trying to talk to me about this drug. In Chinese it’s translated as the “head shaking drug”, and it made no sense, but really we were talking about is MDMA, or “Ecstasy”.
Xiaohua: MDMA或者是“Ecstasy”就是我们中文所说的摇头丸，它是一种迷魂药。
John: And there of course is cocaine, which I think many people are familiar with. And also there is caffeine and nicotine. They are classified as stimulants as well, although as we know, they are not illegal.
Xiaohua: 可卡因是我们知道非常著名的一种毒品了。但是呢，另外咖啡因和尼古丁也被放在兴奋剂的类别当中，但是他们并不是非法的毒品。
John: Maybe they should. Let’s move on to some depressants-type drugs. One of the drugs in this group called opioid, it’s pretty much anything made from opium as well as alcohol. Alcohol is also depressant.
Xiaohua: 下面我们来看看镇静剂类别中的一些毒品和药品。鸦片opioid又叫阿片应该是最著名的一种镇静剂。另外酒精也是镇静剂的一种。
John: Exactly. And so one of the most common forms of opium used around the world right now is called heroin, and it’s actually just slightly different than morphine which is used a lot in medical settings, for painkilling. It was used a lot in World War II. We saw the allies and the axis used it a lot in the battlefield. But heroin is now a worldwide problem, mostly because it is highly available and very addictive.
Xiaohua: 海洛因是由鸦片制成的，它的成分呢， 跟医用的吗啡也有一点相像，但是由于它极其容易成瘾，现在已经成为全球最危险的毒品之一。
John: Right. So heroin basically, just to keep it very simple, is a processed form of the opium oil that comes from the poppy leaves.
Xiaohua: 简单来说，海洛因就是由鸦片提纯而制成的。
John: And now finally let’s take a look at some examples of psychedelics. This is where I think perhaps many Chinese people haven’t heard of some of these. We have LSD, some also known by its chemical compound like lysergic acid diethylamide; psilocybin, which is basically mushrooms; and then tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) that is found in marijuana.
Xiaohua: 下面要说一些致幻剂，有一种致幻剂叫做LSD，这个中文也经常被翻译成摇头丸，so it’s mainly in Chinese the equivalent of “Ecstasy”, but I don’t think they are the same.
John: No, they are actually very, very different. MDMA and LSD are very different. MDMA can cause psychedelic effects, but in the brain, they work in very very different ways. And “Ecstasy” can actually be dangerous because it can damage the part of your brain that produces happiness and euphoria, whereas LSD has shown to have no negative side effect on the brain itself.
Xiaohua: I see. 致幻剂当中还有psilocybin又叫做蘑菇，还有THC也就是我们常说的大麻。
John: As you can see from all of this, there is in fact very fine line between what is used as an illegal recreational drug, and what is used as a medical therapy. We saw with amphetamine that’s used as medicine but methamphetamine can be very dangerous. THC, for example, it is now illegal, but it is shown to be helpful when combating certain types of central nervous dysfunctions.
Xiaohua: 很多毒品其实本来也都有医用的效果，but we should stay away from the illegal ones. That’s for sure.
John: Because they are illegal, and you’re gonna get caught, and you’re gonna go to jail.
Xiaohua: And that’s all we have for roundtable’s word of the week.