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Sport Science Secrets: From Myth to Facts

by Gordon W. Russell

227 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #01-0040; ISBN 1-55212-638-2; US$22.50, C$25.99, EUR18.50, £13.00

The work of sport scientists is boiled down to 103 chapters. This book highlights a variety of intriguing, surprising and often controversial topics associated with baseball, basketball, football, figure skating, golf, gymnastics, hockey, swimming, horse racing, etc. The 103 reader-friendly chapters include topics such as team performance, sport myths, heroes, fan violence, performance tips and mind games.

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about the book      about the author      Table of Contents and excerpts      catalogue info

About the Book Much of what we know about behavior in the sportsworld is hidden away in scientific journals and college textbooks and only occasionally trickles down to the general public. Sport Science Secrets presents the latest and best evidence available and in so doing dispels the mystery and misunderstanding surrounding a wide range of issues. Professor Russell's goal in writing this book is to bridge the gap between the world of sport scientists and those of us who enjoy sports as participants and/or spectators. In short, this book is a must read for those who want to find out what sport scientists know. Arm yourself with the facts!

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About the Author Professor Russell was formerly in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge where he taught for 30 years. He has remained active in research and writing since his retirement to the west coast of British Columbia in 1997. Included among his 65 plus scientific publications are three other books: Violence in Intimate Relationships (PMA Press, 1988); The Social Psychology of Sport (Springer-Verlag, 1993); and Sport Fans: The Psychology and Social Impact of Spectators (Routledge, 2001) Visit his personal website

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Table of Contents and excerpts

PREFACE

I. INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE
Introduction
1 Competition: Not All It's Cracked Up to Be
2 Handicapped by your Birthdate
3 Age and Peak Performance
4 Eye Color and Racial Differences in Performance
5 White Men Can't Jump: Black Men Can't Swim
6 Batting Right versus Batting Left
7 Two Types of Motivation
Summary

II. TEAM PERFORMANCE
Introduction
8 The Home Field Advantage
9 The Championship Choke
10 When Praise Hurts
11 When 2 + 2 = 3
12 Who Really Won the Summer Olympics?
Summary

III. SECRET INGREDIENTS OF SUCCESS
Introduction
13 Timing is Everything
14 Ice-bergs: Searching for the Best
15 Leaders Who (Don't) Fold Under Pressure
16 Brainpower at the Racetrack
17 Optimism Wins
18 The Winning Edge in Golf
Summary

IV. TIPS ON IMPROVING PERFORMANCE
Introduction
19 Golfers' Yips
20 Caffeine and Performance
21 "The Little Engine That Could"
22 Larks and Owls
23 Practice Makes Perfect
Summary

V. THE DECISION MAKERS
Introduction
24 Pygmalion on the Balance Beam
25 Judges: A Patriotic Bias?
26 Judges: Favoring Their Own
27 When to Pull the Goalie
28 And the Winner by a Split Decision is____
29 Pitchers' Reputations and the Strike Zone
30 Out at First... Well, Not Necessarily
31 The View from the Dugout
32 Two Minutes Roughing... Make That Boarding
Summary

VI. MYTHS SURROUNDING SPORTS
Introduction
33 Abner Doubleday and Cooperstown
34 Brainstorming: Are Two Heads Better Than One?
35 That Ol' Devil Moon
36 The Mars Effect
37 We All Have our Ups and Downs
38 Hi There!... What's Your Blood Type?
39 Not Tonight Dear, the Big Game is Tomorrow
Summary

VII. NEAR MYTHS
Introduction
40 Sport Widows
41 Pitching Illusions
42 Batting Under Pressure
43 When You're Hot, You're Not
44 Momentum: On a Roll or Not?
45 Icing the Shooter
46 Jockeys, Gender and Dollars
47 NFL Myths
48 Morality on the Links
Summary

VIII. SPORTS HEROES AND RECORDS
Introduction
49 Sport Heroes as Agents of Change
50 The O.J. Simpson Verdict
51 What Trading Cards Can Tell Us
52 A Measure of Sport Greatness
53 How Great Thou Art
54 A Record Among Records 55 Pros and Cons
Summary

IX. THE SPORTING ENVIRONMENT
Introduction
56 Weather and Baseball
57 Hot Players, Hot Tempers
58 Playing Under the Dome
59 Putting Sports on a Firm Footing
60 Litterbugs and Litterbags
Summary

X. RISKS, HEALTH AND SPORTS
Introduction
61 Exercise, Hostility and Life Expectancy
62 Do Right-handers Outlive Southpaws?
63 The Silent Epidemic: Boxing's Dark Side
64 Keeping your Ball on the Fairway
65 Designated Spitters
66 Referees, Umpires and Stress
67 Warmups: A Bit of a Stretch
Summary

XI. MEDIA AND THE BUSINESS OF SPORTS
Introduction
68 Sport Preferences on Television
69 Does Televising College Football Hurt Attendance?
70 Predicting College Team Standings
71 Race and Attendance
72 Win One for the Giver
73 Snippets from the Indy 500
74 Sex Sells, How about Violence?
75 Sex, Violence and Videogames
Summary

XII. THE FACE OF VIOLENCE: SOME NEW WRINKLES
Introduction
76 Letting Off Steam: Does it Help?
77 An Exception of Sorts
78 A History of Hockey Violence
79 Violence: A Winning or Losing Strategy?
80 Interracial Aggression: Between the Mound and the Plate
81 Some Uniform Results
82 Goons, Enforcers and the Power of Obedience
83 "Why Me..............Why Meeeeeeeeeeeeeee...?"
84 Boxing, Football and Homicide
85 The Long Arm of Sport Violence
86 Are Athletes More Likely to Rape?
87 Booze and Unruly Fans
Summary

XIII. FANS
Introduction
88 As the Team Goes, So Go its Fans
89 Football Weekends on Campus
90 Do Others "Do As I Do?"
91 Queue Counting
92 Seeing is Believing
93 Who is Most Likely to Escalate a Riot?
94 Calming Troubled Waters: The Peacemakers
95 Soccer and Politics: Latin American Bedfellows
96 Hooliganism in Black Africa
Summary

XIV. TWISTS AND TURNS OF SOCIAL COGNITIONS
Introduction
97 Being Happier With Less
98 Are We Primed for Violence?
99 The Law of Small Numbers
100 Thoughts of a Racetrack Bettor
101 Cause and Effect: What Really Causes What?
102 The Sophomore Jinx
103 Mind Games: Sandbagging and Self-handicapping
Summary
REFERENCES

Excerpts

Weather and Baseball

This chapter relies exclusively on the work of Dr. Robert K. Adair who from 1987 to 1989 held an appointment as "Physicist to the National League". His engaging 1990 paperback entitled: The physics of baseball offers a fascinating array of findings dealing with everything from the dynamics of a ball in flight, to the physics of pitching and batting, to the properties of various types of bats. Most of the technical stuff, formulae, calculations, etc. is conveniently tucked away at the end of each chapter leaving those of us with only a smattering of physics free to read merrily on oblivious to the underlying calculations.

Few people would be surprised to learn that the performance of baseball players and other athletes can be affected by the weather. Gusty winds make it especially difficult for outfielders to catch the high fly ball. At the same time, pitchers may lose some of their control when the temperature hovers around 95 degrees Fahrenheit. As for the performance of batters, fairly precise estimates have been made of the influence of weather factors on the flight of a well-hit pitch.

To begin with, consider the influence of the wind on the distance a ball travels when it is hit into a 10 mph headwind or alternately, a 10 mph wind blowing from the plate toward center field. Thus for example, a ball that leaves the bat at the optimum angle of 35 degrees above the horizontal at 90 mph would travel about 315 feet while one hit with a velocity of 120 mph would land about 455 feet from home plate. Now note the influence of a 10 mph wind. A 400 foot drive with a following wind will land 430 feet from home base while the same 400 foot drive hit into a 10 mph headwind will drop 370 feet from home plate. What would have been a home run on a calm day is at best, a double with a breeze blowing in from center field.

Altitude is a further factor affecting the performance of batters. Home run hitters toying with the center field fence at sea level will find the same hit clears the fence with ease in cities that are well above sea level. For example, the 400-ft. drive hit in Yankee Stadium (close to sea level) will fly an additional 5 feet in Milwaukee and 6 feet in Kansas City. But these advantages to hitters pale by comparison with that provided members of Colorado's National League franchise, the Colorado Rockies. The 400-ft drive in Yankee Stadium now carries a further 40 feet! The rarefied atmosphere in the mile high city of Denver makes it a batter's paradise. In the case of long-ball hitters, being traded to the Rockies may be a blessing in disguise. Finally, Denver pitchers with a good fastball will find it a little faster. However, their curveball will not curve quite as much as it would at sea level.

Other factors can similarly affect the trajectory of the 400-ft home run. A difference of 20 feet can be expected between the distance the ball will fly on a cold day in Milwaukee (45 degrees F) and a hot afternoon in Atlanta (95 degrees F). In addition to temperature, barometric pressure similarly affects the distance a ball will travel. For each one-inch reduction in air pressure, the ball can be expected to sail a further 6 feet. Even the humidity can add extra distance. Water vapor being slightly lighter than air, very humid conditions can also add a little something extra to the long ball hit to center field. To summarize, a hot, humid day in Denver with a breeze blowing out to center field comes close to a slugger's idea of heaven.

Golfers' Yips

The setting was the US Open Golf Championship in Rochester. Playing the 71st hole, Ben Hogan needed two pars to force a playoff with Dr. Cary Middlecoff. A par and a birdie would give him the title. A 30-inch putt remained for par and then, on to the final hole. Hogan lined up the short putt, then stood over the ball. By all accounts, his hands seemingly froze. He backed away. On a second try, his hand "jerked" on the putt and the Open was lost. Did the pressure get to him? Did he choke? Were his nerves shot? The answer is none of the above.

What was witnessed on that day was a classic case of the yips..................

Brainpower at the Racetrack

Who makes the big money at the track? Most of us recognize the importance of knowledge and experience at the racetrack. Still, there is no shortage of losers among punters who study racing and have been gambling for years. Perhaps, those who come away "winners" are just plain smarter than the rest of us. That is, they are better able to figure out what is important in predicting the winner of a race and as a consequence make wagering decisions that more often result in a payoff. Just how important is I.Q.?.................

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Catalogue Information

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