science Page 10 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Why There Are More .300 Hitters Than .299 Hitters, And Why It Matters
Tobias J. Moskowitz and L. Jon Wertheim, authors of the Freakonomically inclined Scorecasting, explore the peculiar power of round-number milestones and how they affect a ballplayer at the plate....
On Sunday, We're All Going To Eat Guacamole, Use The Bathroom, And Beat Our Wives
There's a new study claiming heart attacks skyrocket after the Super Bowl. Sounds plausible, but if it's anything like all the other things we "know" happen more on Super Bowl Sunday, take it with a grain of salt, i.e., it's completely bull....
Official Graph Proves That Steve Nash May Be Missing A Low-Post Presence This Season
Hoopism.com has put together a nice interactive feature with weighted graphs showing who passed where in the 2009-2010 NBA season. It may not shock you to see that Nash had a certain connection with Amar'e Stoudamire last year....
Science Says The Louder The Grunting, The Sweeter The Tennis Shot
Researchers at the University of British Columbia and University of Hawaii at Manoa think that grunting might could help tennis players win their matches....
Atlanta Braves Fans Are Filthier Than The Guys Using The John In Penn Station, Science Proves
"Only about two-thirds of the men observed washed their hands after using the restroom at Turner Field — the lowest rate for any of the locations cited in the observational study and survey on the hand-washing habits of Americans."...
Breaking Down The Greatest Kick Ever, With Science
Roberto Carlos's free kick goal against France in 1997 is the stuff of legend. Some bored physicists, probably tired of looking for the Higgs boson, have figured out exactly how and why it happened....
Science Wins Again: Heavy Drinkers Live Longer
Hey teetotalers: not only are you a drag, you're going to die younger. Live slow, die fast, jerks....
Up Three, Time Winding Down: Do You Foul? Harvard Smartypants Say It Doesn't Matter, We Say Otherwise
Everyone's buzzing about an analysis of last season's college hoops games, that claims to demonstrate that there's no measurable difference between fouling to force two shots, or letting them shoot the three. Here at Wednesday Afternoon Statistician, we beg to differ....
Why The Hell Are Scientists Actively Trying To Enrage Monkeys?
When a lede mentions that "a new study in monkey-antagonism has found" research that "could pave the way for advanced methods of enraging monkeys" you keep reading and then start to ask questions. Questions like: "The hell?" and "Why does this exist?"...
Lucky Underwear Will Save Us All
Science has finally proven that Jason Giambi's slump-busting thong is not weird, but a legitimate form of slump-busting. Thank you, science, for making us all picture Jason Giambi in a thong again. [Well]...
Everyone Has A Theory About Penalty Kicks
We've almost reached the knockout stage, which means we've almost reached our first World Cup match decided by a shootout. And every bozo from your local pub to M.I.T. wants to tell you their unbeatable "secret" to penalty kicks. Hooray....
A Slew Of Singular Stadia
Every major league ballpark is different; but just how different? This is a neat little look at their neat little quirks, and how they measure up to each other. [Snippets]...
Science: Skateboarders Get Measurably Gnarlier In The Presence Of Pretty Ladies
Researchers measured skateboarders after every move, and "consistent with predictions, the young men had higher testosterone levels and took bigger risks when good-looking women were watching." [Miller-McCune]...
Sabermetrics Prove Mom Always Loved You Best
Psychologists believe that younger siblings take more risks than their older brothers and sisters. The proof: Among Major League Baseball-playing brother duos, the youngest one stole more bases 90% of the time. Oh, science. You're adorable. [NYTimes]...
Eggheads Explain How To Take The Perfect Penalty
Football is all about physics, so, in many ways, Wayne Rooney isn't just a footballer, he's also a magnificent scientist. It is also, unfortunately, marred by biology — the most annoying of the sciences — from time to time....
Drink Up, Pro Athletes: Kids Couldn't Care Less
Our good friend SCIENCE! is back, this time with a study that indicates that kids don't emulate or idolize their favorite athletes for their drinking habits. So, Roethlisberger, you're off the hook...oh, right, that other stuff... [Drug And Alcohol Review]...
Study Of Most Loved, Loathed Baseball Teams On Internet Fails To Account For Actual Internet
Remember that totally, rigorously, kite-flyingly super-scientific Nielsen Co. study of the most loved and hated teams in baseball, according to the internet? The one that concluded that everyone loves the Giants and hates the Indians? Yeah, one problem:...
We Could Prevent Another Hank Gathers. Here's Why We Don't.
Nearing the 20th anniversary of Hank Gathers's death, it's fashionable to look back. But let's look forward. It's possible to save so many athletes from dying young, but it might not be worth the costs....
Basketball Players Should Touch Each Other More Often, Science Urges
Scientists, those smart people who split the atom and cured polio, have charted hugs and high fives for every NBA team and concluded that, as The New York Times puts it, "good teams tended to be touchier than bad ones."...
Athlete Dong: <em>Omnium-Gatherum</em> And Critical Analysis
Poor Greg Oden — his penis made him an unfortunate rising Google-trender. Of course, Oden isn't the first athlete to have his privates posted online. The Awl's Choire Sicha, Deadspin House Gay, provides commentary on sport's many peacocks....