People seem to love stuff like and . But what draws us to these ? Why do we want to jump off of stuff?
On May 16, 2015, Dean Potter, a celebrated , and a fellow , Graham Hunt; jumped off a 7,500 foot (2,285m) in Yosemite National Park with the goal of wingsuit flying through the rocky cliffs . Both men crashed while trying to fly through an outcropping and . BASE jumping is an acronym for buildings, antennas, spans (such as bridges) and Earth (cliffs and mountaintops) -- all places to jump from , parachute or both. At least 257 people BASE jumping to date, according to a major BASE jumping forum; and Potter, who was a major for outdoor "extreme" sports, called BASE jumping and free-climbing, "death-consequence" . Aren't we all programmed to ? Why do we ? More than 800 people of Nepal -- including Everest,; 442 from from 1998 to 2014 - and even scuba-diving sees about 80 annually. I mean, skateboarding had 30 in 2012! Psychologists believe , and medical researchers believe ; though both are . In a small study from the Queensland University of Technology in Australia, . Fear is an important inborn response to perceived danger. ; fear is a way to it to do so. But for some people, . They still EXPERIENCE fear, but it's not seen as a negative, but rather, . Potter wrote specifically, and poetically, , and how overcoming that fear was for him. , that's not easily translatable for a general population -- instead we can only look at go on to affect our behavior. When , an almond-shaped set of neurons in our brain called the amygdala , hone the senses and . During this fear response, . Studies have shown, dopamine, , is also connected to the recollection of . It's released when we eat, , or , and reinforces those healthy behaviors . But, massive dopamine release is associated with , and ; which is how and enthusiasts are often associated with junkies or addicts. , experiencing the fear of , and enjoying the natural-high they get from . The problem is, the brain can get used to high-levels of dopamine, and thus, . This is called sensation-seeking behavior; language created to describe heavy-use drug addicts. A 2004 study compared ecstasy-users to bungee-jumpers and found similar sensation-seeking . The reason people continue to do these activities, aside from them , is once their brain gets acclimated to higher levels of dopamine, it's difficult to wean it off. Like an addict, . In the end, the risk and reward are real, and to get a "natural high" from things like BASE jumping.
But I'm not trying to . Sure, Dean Potter participated in dangerous behaviors, but he ALSO to explore their planet first-hand; to get off their couches and into their National Parks; into their world, and to try their hand at things . Extreme sports can extend to long-distance races like marathons or ultra-marathons; but this man is 104 and still runs races. So they can't be THAT dangerous, right? Seeker Daily reveals a man who just won't quit running (soundup).
Thanks for watching DNews, get out there and do something today.