Friday, June 3, 2011

Friday Science: Sports injuries

Force = Mass X Acceleration

Football, Baseball and Basketball, Tennis, Golf

Thirty years ago they athletes were smaller.  They all had a few big guys like Kilabrew, Too Tall Jones and Wilt but the average size was much smaller.  If you plug in this larger size into the Force equation, you get

F= m*(1.2) x A so even if the athletes are not any faster, the forces at which they work with are much greater when concerned with movement.  A collision of any kind with today's athletes creates forces that a body was not taking 30 years ago.

With the tennis racket and the baseball bat, they are lighter in weight and have other flexing rebound forces that are greater than 30 years ago.  Babe Ruth swung a long, heavier bat that did not flex much.  Today's bats are lighter and can be swung much faster and have a reflex that gives extra power.

F=m(1.2) x A(1.5)

The basic capacity of the human body has not changed.  The forces acting on the body have increased whether someone is running into you like in football and basketball or you are trashing the joints and muscles of baseball or tennis players.  Golf clubs are high tech and the golfers are stronger.  They engineer swings and clubs to leverage force.  The joints and spine take the beating.

If you are stronger, larger and moving faster, you will hit and be hit harder.  You will also break down more often and more seriously.  You need to get the money up front because you will break sooner than later.  It is all science.

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