Helmets and Weather
From The Weather Channel: Extreme Weather Connected to Helmet Safety
Concussions.
For most sports fans, the first image associated with that jarring word is a football player lying motionless on a field. It’s a harsh reality that the violent sport has an epidemic they need to conquer, for the safety of its players.
Recent research suggests there’s a correlation between extreme weather and the likelihood of head injuries.
Continue reading Weekend Reading List (9.22.2012): Helmets and Weather, Running Time Trial, Fatbook
Do athletics have to “think” about their reaction, and could performance be improved by “training” the muscles to do what seemingly comes so naturally? That remains a question to ask, but an engineering team from Imperial College London has created a wearable, vibrating armband called “Ghost,” which reportedly can train a person’s muscles and teach the user to move like professional athletes.
Wearable technology is expected to become a $6 billion industry by 2016, a minimum revenue projection that could be even larger. That’s according to the latest findings by market research firm IMS Research. Wearable technology currently centers on healthcare, medical, fitness and wellness, where products such as glucose monitors and heart-rate monitors are used to transmit vital information about the user or patient. 
All good things come to an end, including the Olympics. Throughout the 17 days of the games and before we cast the spotlight on some of the latest technology and innovations that were used to help the athletes train and perform. Here is our Kinetic Recap of some of the top stories of the 2012 Olympics: 
Given the amount of athletic competition that will take part in the Olympic Games it would be interesting to see how much power could be generated by the athletes. Unfortunately that isn’t actually possible in this year’s games, but many of the attendees will be powering some of the walkway lights leading to the Olympic Park.
One of the marvels of 3D printing is that it allows designers to make small modifications during the prototype stage. Even not so small changes can be accomplished as another model can be printed off.
Consumer Reports just released its bike helmet buying guide where it rated helmets for safety in crashes by testing impact from several directions and types. You’ll have to buy the guide to get details on specific helmets, but Consumer Reports liked the Specialized Echelon and Bontrager Solstice Youth, which both earned top rankings. Two helmets that didn’t fare so well in testing were the Nutcase Street Sport 8 Ball and Bern Brighton Thin Shell EPS for women. 
We knew the Hawkman could catch some air, but now comes word that Tony Hawk is teaching science – sort of. Actually Tony Hawk: Rad Science is a new family-friendly exhibit at Lawrence Hall of Science on the UC Berkeley campus.
We’ve heard of distance learning and even distance training, but now a Michigan State University study suggests there is a benefit to virtually training to go the distance. The study suggests that the presence of a moderately more capable virtual partner can significantly boost the motivation – by as much as 100 percent – to stick with an exercise program.