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The Thought Show: Rise of Extreme Pranking, the Fall in Drinking in Russia, Learning About Pain

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WS More or Less: Has Russian Drinking Fallen by 80% in five years?

15/02/2018 GMT

Rise of Extreme Pranking, the Fall in Drinking in Russia, Learning About Pain

BBC World Service - The Thought Show, Rise of Extreme Pranking, the Fall in Drinking in Russia, Learning About Pain

The rise of extreme pranking; has drinking in Russia gone down? Also, understanding pain.

The disturbing rise in extreme internet pranks that simulate real life attacks; has drinking fallen by 80% in five years in Russia? And, why we need to understand more about pain.

Why has there been a disturbing rise in internet pranks that simulate real life attacks? In an exclusive interview, we hear from  YouTuber Arya Mosallah, who had his channel terminated after some of his videos - which some thought resembled acid attacks - were removed from the site. And we look at the ethics and morals of the people making videos in the pranking genre.

There’s a stereotype of Russia as a nation of vodka-swilling hard drinkers – but is that idea out of date? The Russian health minister told a conference recently that the country’s alcohol consumption there has dropped by 80% in just five years. Can that be true?

Pain comes to us all at some point in our lives, but a person’s pain is a unique experience and describing what hurts is not a simple task. Sandra Kanthal asks why we need to understand more about pain and reports on new ways being developed to measure and manage it.

(image: People stand next to a shelf with strong drinks in a food store in Moscow. Credit Andrey Smirnov/Getty Images)

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