Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea

Pleasure from pain might be something we initially associate with sex but it is actually a part of all of our lives. We see it the world over, not just in BDSM halls but in religious fasters, ultra marathoners, and hot chili addicts who revel in the burning sensation it provides. But is this desire in all of us, or is it consigned to a select few?  And why is it there at all? Leigh Cowart, science journalist and author of ‘Hurts So Good: The Science and Culture of Pain on Purpose’ joined Jonathan to discuss. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.    Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App.     You can also listen to Newstalk live on newstalk.com or on Alexa, by adding the Newstalk skill and asking: 'Alexa, play Newstalk'.

In 1869 a one-armed self-taught geologist led an expedition party down Green River in Wyoming. While staring up at the great walls of the Grand Canyon John Wesley-Powell noticed that the rock formations were less in-depth than expected. By measuring the depth of the rock formations Powell noticed something startling - there was more than a billion-year gap in the geological record. This was coined ‘The Great Unconformity’’ and now geologists are racing to track down this apparent gap in time. To discuss, Jonathan is joined by Rebecca Flowers, Associate Professor in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.    Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App.     You can also listen to Newstalk live on newstalk.com or on Alexa, by adding the Newstalk skill and asking: 'Alexa, play Newstalk'.

Everything we know to be true in the world - and indeed outside of it - can be attributed to our willingness to reach out into the unknown and ask the most important questions. From the edges of the universe to the core of the Earth itself, our unerring curiosity can lead us to the most incredible, unlikely, and sometimes, well, unpleasant areas. Enter Andreas Hejnol - Evolutionary Biologist and research leader at the University of Bergen in Norway, as he discusses the evolution of the anus, where it comes from, and why it is the way it is. First aired 14/04/2018 Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.    Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App.     You can also listen to Newstalk live on newstalk.com or on Alexa, by adding the Newstalk skill and asking: 'Alexa, play Newstalk'.

To many of us, the idea that there could be tribes existing in the world that have had no contact with the outside world seems impossible, but interestingly, there are over 100 uncontacted tribes that we are currently aware of. But logging, drug trafficking, and commercial agriculture are chipping away at territories inhabited by these tribes, and not only that, there is a darker side to old meets new, with examples of massacres of tribes for corporate gain.  Sarah Shenker, Senior Research and Advocacy Officer at Survival International and head of the Uncontacted Tribes campaign joined Jonathan to discuss. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.    Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App.     You can also listen to Newstalk live on newstalk.com or on Alexa, by adding the Newstalk skill and asking: 'Alexa, play Newstalk'.

Melissa Hogenboom, science journalist, editor of BBC Reel, and author of ‘The Motherhood Complex: The Story of Our Changing Selves’ joined Jonathan to discuss the incredible physical, emotional, and neurological changes that occur, not only when a mother becomes a woman, but when a person becomes a parent. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.    Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App.     You can also listen to Newstalk live on newstalk.com or on Alexa, by adding the Newstalk skill and asking: 'Alexa, play Newstalk'.