back to article 450-year-old football was hard to kick

The Journal Procedia Engineering has published the proceeds of the 2012 Engineering of Sport Conference and may therefore have answered so many questions about sport that there is no longer any point in going to the pub. There are over 150 papers on offer in the trove and all appear to be serious science, including this one ( …

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  1. jake Silver badge

    I never did understand why ...

    ... arguing sports trivia down the pub was so important.

    Enjoy your sport(s) of choice, and let the numbers stand for themselves. Seriously, kids, nothing you say down the pub will change reality ... so why (attempt) to argue about it? All you are doing is making yourselves look silly.

    1. Martin
      Pint

      Re: I never did understand why ...

      So you have never argued about sports trivia? Or film trivial? Or TV trivia? or any other trivia? Ever? Even after a few pints, when your opinion on what is right and wrong suddenly seems one of the most vitally important things in the world, and it is ESSENTIAL that the other guy's point of view is corrected?

      Well, OK. It's your life. You stay there and look condescendingly down at us normal humans if you like. I for one LOVE bickering over a pint or two about something that can't be proved one way or the other - and so do most people.

      1. jake Silver badge

        @Martin (was: Re: I never did understand why ... )

        No. Sports, film & TV trivia are just that ... trivia. A waste of time.

        Over a pint, I prefer darts. Or pool/snooker/billiards.

        Better yet, grilling for a dozen+ ...

  2. frank ly

    Wait a minute ...

    "At a combined 890 pages, the collection of papers isn't likely to be lugged into many pubs. "

    All this (and more) would fit on a smartphone or tablet. You have to keep up with the times.

    1. Rameses Niblick the Third (KKWWMT)

      Re: Wait a minute ...

      Pfft, my car gets 800,000 rods to the hogshead, and that's the way I like it.

      1. a cynic writes...

        Re: Wait a minute ...

        That's 47.655mpg (Imperial) for those not in the 15th century...

        1. Rameses Niblick the Third (KKWWMT)
          Coat

          Re: Wait a minute ...

          That was kind of the point, in response to frank ly's remark to "get with the times", using massively antiquated units to make a joke about it.

          But it was clearly a shit joke, so lets just move on.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    > There's even a paper titled “Improving comfort while hiking in a sailing boat”

    Hiking is where you lean backwards over the side of the boat to balance it against the force of the wind. You have a set of toe straps to hook your feet under so you can lean right out without falling out.

    The problem, especially with Laser mentioned in the paper, is that you end up with the top of your legs / bottom of your arse cheeks resting on the edge of the of the boat, which is bloody uncomfortable and leads to painful bruising. That and they seem to have made the Laser's toe straps out of sandpaper for some reason.

    /mines the Dart 15 owner's manual in the pocket.

    1. JimC

      Hiking / Sailing context

      is actully a particularly worthless americanism. The seppos also use it for the bizarre activity of hanging off the side of a larger boat in the "I'm so seasick I don't care any more" position head down with the body folded in half round the wire fence that goes round larger boats.

      But its a significant issue, because there are medical problems, particularly knee damage, associated with hanging the body weight out of the side of the boat supported by these "toe straps".

    2. fishman

      Hiking a Laser sailboat is comfortable compared to hiking on a Thistle sailboat - leaning over as far as you can on an edge only a couple of inches wide - obviously inspired by the tools of the spanish inquisition. It's been over 40 years since I last sailed on one, and I'm still traumatized by it. :).

      For you nonsailors, keeping a sailboat as upright as possible usually gives you better speed.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        > It's been over 40 years since I last sailed on one, and I'm still traumatized by it.

        Try one of the plastic boats like the Topaz or the RS Feva; they have gentle curves instead of sharp corners.

        This spreads the load over a bigger area and therefore gives you larger and much more painful bruising.....

    3. paulc

      Hiking Pants...

      basically shorts that have pockets in the rear into which you can insert pads of various stiffness's to spread the load over a wider area...

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I never argue sports trivia at the Pub, the other guys are always wrong!

    1. Martin

      No, they're not....

      1. Bill B
        Pint

        Oh yes they are

        (and anyway, you're buying)

  5. Graham Wilson
    Holmes

    No wonder...

    Archeology and allied sciences are noble professions but it's no wonder we're still trying to find a cure for cancer when scientists waste time on such trivia.

    1. The Indomitable Gall
      Joke

      Re: No wonder...

      Hi, I'm the chief executive of Nike, and having read your insightful post, I have decided to divert the millions I give to research on the aerodynamic properties of footballs into the field of cancer research. I see now that knowing the cure for cancer will better allow us to leverage the multi-billion dollar global market for high-grade specialist sports equipment.

  6. disgruntled yank

    ah, research

    "is already ruffling feathers in the cricket world"

    Better there than the archery world.

    Altering the coefficient of restitution of footballs (the ellipsoid kind) has long been a sport within a sport in the US--overpump for extra carry on punts, deflate for better grip in the ground game.

  7. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge
    Joke

    Comment from the Goalie of the Unseen Academicals:

    OOK

    The 16th century ball tested looks more like mr. Nutt's design than the lumps of wood with rags used before it

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