Voting Station

John C. Lilly

Please vote to return to collections.

Doctor

The Resume

    (January 6, 1915-September 30, 2001)
    Born in St. Paul, Minnesota
    Physician and psychoanalyst
    Developed the sensory deprivation tank
    Studied human consciousness and dolphin communication
    Wrote 'Man and Dolphin' (1962), 'The Mind of the Dolphin' (1967), 'The Center of the Cyclone' (1973), 'Simulations of God: The Science of Belief' (1975) and 'The Deep Self' (1976)

Why he might be annoying:

    After the 60s, most of his 'research' consisted of taking drugs and then either getting into an isolation tank or swimming with dolphins.
    He claimed to have tripped on ketamine for 100 straight days and nights.
    He nearly killed himself in accidents while high at least three times.
    He urged the UN to include a representative from the 'Cetacean Nation.'
    He was prone to New-Agey pronouncements like 'I experienced myself as melded and intertwined with hundreds of billions of other beings in a thin sheet of consciousness that was distributed around the galaxy.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He performed pioneering work in neuroscience.
    He helped inspire passage of the Marine Mammals Protection Act (1972).
    He said he hoped hunting of whales and dolphins would stop 'not from a law being passed but from each human understanding innately that these are ancient, sentient earth residents, with tremendous intelligence and enormous life force.'
    The New York Times said he combined 'the showmanship of P. T. Barnum with the infectious zeal of Jacques Cousteau.'
    He inspired characters in the movies 'The Day of the Dolphin' and 'Altered States,' the TV series 'Seaquest DSV' and the Douglas Adams novel 'So Long and Thanks for All the Fish.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 16 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 6 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 12 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 16 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 14 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 14 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 23 Votes: 65.22% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 31 Votes: 67.74% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying