Albert Hofmann was born in Baden, Switzerland, the oldest child of a factory toolmaker. In 1926, he went to the University of Zürich, while working to support his family. His main interest was the chemistry of plants and animals. He graduated in 1929, and received his Ph.D. in Chemistry in 1930.
After graduating, Hofmann went to work in the pharmaceutical-chemical department of Sandoz Laboratories, now Novartis, in Basel. In 1938, he made his most famous discovery when he became the first scientist to synthesize lysergic acid (LSD). While working with the chemical in 1943, he accidentally absorbed a small quantity through his fingertips and discovered its powerful effects.
Hofmann became director of the natural products department at Sandoz and continued his studies of hallucinogenics. He synthesized psilocybin, the active agent of many magic mushrooms. He traveled to southern Mexico to research other hallucinogens. He advocated for the use of LSD in psychoanalysis, but was critical of the use of it by the Counterculture of the 1960s, which he believe led to its wide prohibition. He wrote about his experiences with and views about LSD in his book LSD: My Problem Child.
