{"id":"1794105513618-money-segment","slug":"cannabis-use-traced-back-2-800-years","title":"Cannabis use traced back 2,800 years","summary":"A study published in Science found cannabis seeds and molecular traces of psychoactive compounds in 2,800-year-old human hair from a Siberian tomb, making it the earliest directly dated evidence of cannabis used for intoxicating effects.\n\nCheridah de Beauvoir Stocks was the second UK woman to earn an aviator's licence, on 7 November 1911, after Hilda Hewlett.","publishedAt":"2026-11-08T02:38:33.618Z","channel":{"id":"money","name":"Oncast Money","language":"en"},"show":"Money Tonight","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: A study published in Science found cannabis seeds and molecular traces of psychoactive compounds in 2,800-year-old human hair from a Siberian tomb, making it the earliest directly dated evidence of cannabis used for intoxicating effects.\nSource: [science.org](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aeg3800); [unibe.ch](https://mediarelations.unibe.ch/mediareleases/2026/mediareleases2026/cannabiswasu (https://x.com/Polymarket/status/2119250542723465667)\n\nTRUE: Cheridah de Beauvoir Stocks was the second UK woman to earn an aviator's licence, on 7 November 1911, after Hilda Hewlett.\nSource: en.wikipedia.org (https://bsky.app/profile/politicdormouse.bsky.social/post/3mzpkxq35gchv)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"A study published in Science found cannabis seeds and molecular traces of psychoactive compounds in 2,800-year-old human hair from a Siberian tomb, making it the earliest directly dated evidence of cannabis used for intoxicating effects.","sourceName":"[science.org](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aeg3800); [unibe.ch](https://mediarelations.unibe.ch/mediareleases/2026/mediareleases2026/cannabiswasu","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/Polymarket/status/2119250542723465667","claim":"BREAKING: Archaeologists uncover the oldest known evidence of humans using cannabis to get high, dating back 2,800 years in an ancient Siberian tomb.","author":"@Polymarket"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Cheridah de Beauvoir Stocks was the second UK woman to earn an aviator's licence, on 7 November 1911, after Hilda Hewlett.","sourceName":"en.wikipedia.org","sourceUrl":"https://bsky.app/profile/politicdormouse.bsky.social/post/3mzpkxq35gchv","claim":"Cheridah de Beauvoir Stocks 2nd UK woman to earn aviator's licence #OTD 7 Nov 1911. Trained @ Hendon flying school, passing test in Farman biplane 3 months after Hilda Hewlett. 1913 passenger in air crash, unconscious for 6 weeks, never flew again. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherida..","author":"Ceryl (@politicdormouse.bsky.social)"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://x.com/Polymarket/status/2119250542723465667","name":"[science.org](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aeg3800); [unibe.ch](https://mediarelations.unibe.ch/mediareleases/2026/mediareleases2026/cannabiswasu","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"@Polymarket"},{"url":"https://bsky.app/profile/politicdormouse.bsky.social/post/3mzpkxq35gchv","name":"en.wikipedia.org","kind":"bluesky","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ceryl (@politicdormouse.bsky.social)"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794105513618-money-segment-cannabis-use-traced-back-2-800-years","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/money","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794105513618-money-segment-cannabis-use-traced-back-2-800-years","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1794105513618-money-segment-cannabis-use-traced-back-2-800-years and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Bill","text":"The oldest hard evidence of humans using cannabis to get high is 2,800 years old."},{"host":"Adam","text":"From a Siberian tomb? That's specific."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Polymarket posted it on X. Science published the study."},{"host":"Adam","text":"The study found seeds and molecular traces of psychoactive compounds in human hair."},{"host":"Bill","text":"So not just buried with a plant. The person actually inhaled or consumed it."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Exactly. That hair is the tell. It's the earliest directly dated proof."},{"host":"Bill","text":"You sound almost disappointed it's not a modern headline."},{"host":"Adam","text":"No, it's a great story. But one tomb is one person."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's the point, Adam. People have been seeking altered states forever. This isn't a fad."},{"host":"Adam","text":"One person doesn't prove a whole culture did it."},{"host":"Bill","text":"It proves the practice existed, and it goes back nearly three millennia. That's enough."},{"host":"Adam","text":"It proves one individual had access to psychoactive cannabis. The paper says that."},{"host":"Bill","text":"So you're quibbling over sample size instead of the finding."},{"host":"Adam","text":"I'm not saying it's bad science. I'm saying don't build a lifestyle on one tomb."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Nobody's building a lifestyle. But it explains why every era has its own version of a chill."},{"host":"Adam","text":"The top reply says, \"The real OGs knew how to chill.\""},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's the internet for you."},{"host":"Adam","text":"But the real story is chemical: the compounds in hair mean actual use."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Right. Not just rope or fabric. This was deliberately psychoactive."},{"host":"Adam","text":"And that matters for archaeology. It changes how we see ritual in ancient Siberia."},{"host":"Bill","text":"It also matters for modern policy. The plant isn't new, and neither is the urge."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Historical use doesn't settle legal debates. Coffee's old too; we still argue about it."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Coffee is different. Nobody jailed someone for a cappuccino."},{"host":"Adam","text":"No, but they did tax it and riot over it."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Fine, old vices come with old arguments. But the earliest use is still worth knowing."},{"host":"Adam","text":"It is. And now the money side: what does a 2,800-year-old stash mean for today's cannabis market?"},{"host":"Bill","text":"Probably nothing. History doesn't make a revenue line."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Exactly. Companies still need permits, demand, and real margins."},{"host":"Bill","text":"And the study doesn't change a single balance sheet."},{"host":"Adam","text":"So we can enjoy the history without pretending it's a stock catalyst."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's almost disciplined of you."},{"host":"Adam","text":"I have my moments."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Speaking of balance sheets, the Kobeissi Letter posted a number about capital spending."},{"host":"Adam","text":"The account claims nondefense capital goods shipments hit a record eighty-six billion dollars in September."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's a big number, if it holds."},{"host":"Adam","text":"It says shipments excluding aircraft jumped from a year earlier. But the Census figure isn't there for me to verify."},{"host":"Bill","text":"So you think the number's wrong?"},{"host":"Adam","text":"I think it's unconfirmed. There's no source link to the release."},{"host":"Bill","text":"The Kobeissi Letter is usually pretty loud about data. They're not a random account."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Loud doesn't mean the number cleared my check."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Oh come on. Businesses don't spend heavily on machines unless they're betting on real demand."},{"host":"Adam","text":"They spent heavily on fiber in the late nineties, and then a lot of it went dark."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That is ancient history. This is data centers with waiting lists."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Waiting lists are forecasts, not shipments."},{"host":"Bill","text":"The shipments are strong!"},{"host":"Adam","text":"So are the debts that often come with them. That's the part people skip."},{"host":"Bill","text":"So you want the capex boom with a permission slip?"},{"host":"Adam","text":"I want the census number in hand before we call it a record."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Fine. We'll say the claim is there, the confirmation isn't."},{"host":"Adam","text":"And if it's confirmed, it's a real sign the industrial side of this economy still has legs."},{"host":"Bill","text":"Strong nondefense capital goods spending is more than legs. It's a sprint."},{"host":"Adam","text":"Heavy shipments can also mean heavy borrowing, and that's the piece nobody wants to price in."},{"host":"Bill","text":"You can't talk down a boom just because it might end."},{"host":"Adam","text":"I'm not talking it down. I'm checking the fuel gauge."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's fair. But if the number's real, the trend isn't just AI hype."},{"host":"Adam","text":"We'll see. A study from Siberia made it through review. This census claim hasn't."},{"host":"Bill","text":"So we've got proof of ancient weed, but not proof of modern equipment."},{"host":"Adam","text":"The archaeology is more solid than the data."},{"host":"Bill","text":"That's the segment in one sentence."}]}