Sports Science News

January 23, 2025

Top Headlines

Differences in Strength by Position Among Football Players

Jan. 13, 2025 — It's long been known that different positions on the football field fit different body types. A study led by the University of Kansas has gone beyond knowing that linemen are bigger with more body mass than receivers and tested a team of college ...

The 'Red Advantage' Is No Longer True for Olympic Combat Sports

Jan. 8, 2025 — Wearing a red outfit in combat sports has been believed to provide an advantage for athletes, but a new study suggests there is no longer any truth in the ...

World Cup Soccer Is Getting Faster for Men and Women Alike

Dec. 17, 2024 — If the experience of watching a FIFA World Cup soccer final is intense, spare a thought for the players, who are competing at an ever increasing intensity, according to a new ...

Largest Study of CTE in Male Ice Hockey Players Finds Odds Increased 34% With Each Year Played

Dec. 4, 2024 — A large study, of 77 deceased male ice hockey players, has found that the odds of having chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) increased by 34% each year played, and 18 of 19 National Hockey League ...

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updated 9:08am EST

Manta Rays Inspire Fast Swimming Soft Robot Yet

Dec. 4, 2024 — A team of researchers has beaten its own record for the fastest swimming soft robot, drawing inspiration from manta rays to improve their ability to control the robot's movement in the ...

Get a Grip: The Best Thumb Position for Disc Launch Speed and Spin Rate

Oct. 22, 2024 — Disc golf is a sport growing in popularity, but there hasn't been much research into the best techniques -- until now. Researchers and disc golf enthusiasts have determined the best thumb position on ...

Modeling the Minutia of Motor Manipulation With AI

Oct. 1, 2024 — Scientists have developed an AI-driven approach that significantly advances our understanding of the hand's complex motor functions. The team used a creative machine learning strategy that combined ...

Versatile Knee Exo for Safer Lifting

Sep. 18, 2024 — A set of knee exoskeletons, built with commercially available knee braces and drone motors, has been shown to help counteract fatigue in lifting and carrying tasks. They helped users maintain better ...

Study Shows That 'Super Spikes' Can Increase Track Running Speed by 2%

Sep. 4, 2024 — Research shows that super spikes, scientifically described as advanced footwear technology (AFT) spikes, can give runners about a 2% edge in middle-distance track races, like the 800- and ...

Cricket Physics: Science Behind the Modern Bowler Technique Tricking Batters

Aug. 13, 2024 — Researchers have started to unravel the mysteries of how near-horizontal bowling in cricket leads to such tough-to-hit balls. The team employed a ...

Wearable Sensors Help Athletes Achieve Greater Performance

July 23, 2024 — Researchers have developed a low-cost, flexible, and customizable sensor for badminton players that overcomes current monitoring constraints. The team used triboelectric sensors to construct their ...

Just 4% of Teen Academy Prospects Play Elite Soccer (Football)

June 27, 2024 — Just four per cent of talented teen academy prospects make it to the top tier of professional football, a new study has shown. A sample of nearly 200 players, aged between 13-18, also revealed only ...

Moving Objects Precisely With Sound

June 25, 2024 — Researchers have succeeded in directing floating objects around an aquatic obstacle course using only soundwaves. Their novel, optics-inspired method holds great promise for biomedical applications ...

Scientists Develop New Battery-Free Lactic Acid Sensor

May 22, 2024 — Scientists have created a new type of chemosensor (demonstrated for lactic acid sensing) which functions with electricity but without the need for reference electrodes or battery ...

Study Reveals Impact of Modified Ball Regulations on Game Performance in Handball

Oct. 31, 2024 — Researchers have revealed that the introduction of a new ball made from a small, easy-to-grip material in U15 girls' handball has led to improved attack efficiency compared with the conventional ...

Metal Baseball Bats Still Help Little Leaguers Hit a Little Better

Aug. 27, 2024 — While meant to simulate wood bats, regulation USA Baseball metal bats are more forgiving than wood for young players who might not connect with the ball on a bat's optimal 'sweet ...

Research Suggests Controversial Super Spikes Do Make Runners Faster

July 30, 2024 — Since athletes in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics smashed multiple records in track and field, running enthusiasts and exercise physiologists have speculated on what role new-generation high-tech running ...

Biomechanical Dataset for Badminton Performance Analysis

May 6, 2024 — In the sports industry, player data collection aids in personalized training feedback. Researchers have now gathered a detailed dataset and laid the foundation for delivering coaching assistance and ...

Time Zones and Tiredness Strongly Influence NBA Results, Study of 25,000 Matches Shows

May 1, 2024 — The body clock has a significant impact on the performance of NBA players. Data shows vastly better win ratio for home teams from the Western Time Zone Area (PDT) when playing an EDT team, compared ...

Machine Learning Used to Create a Fabric-Based Touch Sensor

Apr. 17, 2024 — A new fabric-based touch sensor used machine learning to control mobile apps, video games and other devices while integrated into ...

Pioneering Muscle Monitoring in Space to Help Astronauts Stay Strong in Low-Gravity

Mar. 20, 2024 — Astronauts have been able to track their muscle health in spaceflight for the first time using a handheld device, revealing which muscles are most at risk of weakening in low gravity conditions. ...

Two Artificial Intelligences Talk to Each Other

Mar. 18, 2024 — Performing a new task based solely on verbal or written instructions, and then describing it to others so that they can reproduce it, is a cornerstone of human communication that still resists ...

Dolphin-Kick Swimming Maximizes Water-Flow Utilization With Increasing Speed

Mar. 14, 2024 — Researchers investigated the propulsion mechanism by visualizing water flow around a swimmer during underwater dolphin-kick swimming in a water channel via particle image velocimetry. Their findings ...

Robot ANYmal Can Do Parkour and Walk Across Rubble

Mar. 13, 2024 — The quadrupedal robot ANYmal went back to school and has learned a lot. Researchers used machine learning to teach it new skills: the robot can now climb over obstacles and successfully negotiate ...

Going Top Shelf With AI to Better Track Hockey Data

Mar. 11, 2024 — Researchers got a valuable assist from artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help capture and analyze data from professional hockey games faster and more accurately than ever before, with big ...

Engineers Unveil New Patch That Can Help People Control Robotic Exoskeletons

Jan. 31, 2024 — A new patch uses tiny needles to measure electrical signals in the human body with incredible accuracy, even when these devices are stretched or ...

Artificial Muscles -- Lighter, Safer, More Robust

Jan. 30, 2024 — Researchers have developed artificial muscles that are lighter, safer and more robust than their predecessors. The newly developed actuators have a novel type of shell structure and use a ...

New Model Predicts How Shoe Properties Affect a Runner's Performance

Jan. 24, 2024 — A new model predicts how shoe properties will affect a runner's performance. The model could be a tool for designers looking to push the boundaries of sneaker ...

New Study Uses Machine Learning to Bridge the Reality Gap in Quantum Devices

Jan. 9, 2024 — A study has used the power of machine learning to overcome a key challenge affecting quantum devices. For the first time, the findings reveal a way to close the 'reality gap': the ...

Piezo Composites With Carbon Fibers for Motion Sensors

Dec. 28, 2023 — An international research group has engineered a novel high-strength flexible device by combining piezoelectric composites with unidirectional carbon fiber. The new device transforms kinetic energy ...

Teaching Physics from the Din of Flying Discs

Dec. 4, 2023 — The sound a disc makes while soaring through the air is full of information about how fast the disc is flying and how quickly it spins. This inspired Kyle S. Dalton of Penn State University to ...

Measurement of Skeletal Muscle Mass Using the Bioelectrical Impedance Technic in Athletes

Sep. 5, 2023 — Bioelectrical impedance analysis is a noninvasive and rapid method for estimating body composition, including body fat and muscle mass. Previous studies have indicated that bioelectrical impedance ...

Experiencing the Texture of Skateboard Sounds Can Mediate Divisions New Research Says

Aug. 30, 2023 — Experiencing the harsh sounds of skateboarding can help bridge the gulf between the joy and distaste of the noises created by the sport, a new study ...

Challenge Accepted: High-Speed AI Drone Overtakes World-Champion Drone Racers

Aug. 30, 2023 — In a milestone for artificial intelligence (AI), the AI system 'Swift' has beaten the world champions in drone racing -- a result that seemed unattainable just a few years ago. The ...