BETTER BOWLING THROUGH SCIENCE

ITEM: The United States Bowling Congress (USBC) has wrapped up a major two-year study of bowling ball motion and how high-tech equipment may influence lane conditions and scoring.

The results aren't public yet, but one impetus for the study is that "over the past 20 years, bowling's credibility has been compromised in part due to technological advancements that have greatly affected scoring in the sport," according to USBC.

Details:

A total of 59 particle and reactive resin bowling balls were used for the study conducted in the USBC testing center, Greendale, Wis., which includes eight lanes in a climate-controlled building. USBC's robotic ball thrower, nicknamed “Harry,” was used to roll the test balls. The data was measured using “Super C.A.T.S.” (computer aided tracking system) to record the velocity of the bowling balls as they were rolled down the lane. The system is made up of 23 small electronic sensors installed on the lanes.

See? And you thought bowling was something to do with yr friends on the weekend. Or a photo-op to connect with working-class voters.

FUN FACT: The USBC has an entire section of its web site dedicated to bowling technology and science. It’s full of stuff like this.



I probably shouldn’t be surprised by this (and it’s probably old news to the likes of bedsitter23 and wickedsin) – the chief object of bowling is leveraging physics to replicate the same result, which would inevitably mean advances in equipment manufacturing to maximize yr game.

Still, in a way this takes some of the fun out of it. Bowling requires some level of skill, but there’s also an element of randomness that’s always attracted me to it – how else to explain those nights when the 5 Pin or 10 Pin just won’t budge no matter how many times you nail either pocket? Or the inexplicable pin action that sends a pin halfway up the gutter?

Halfway in the gutter,

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MY WIFE: I THINK I’LL KEEP HER

Speaking of marriage, here’s a scientific way to calculate if a marriage is working out – via a psychologist circa 1939.



Sexist as it looks, apparently George Crane – the guy who came up with this – actually was deemed an expert on marriage and a champion matchmaker all the way up through the 1950s, and actually broke ground coming up with this survey. The same technique is still used by matchmakers today, though of course both people get rated, and the criteria is more like “squeezes toothpaste from the top of the tube” and such.

Anyway, it’s interesting how far we’ve come. Unless yr a copyrighter for a slacks company, of course. Or Neil Cavuto.

Rate my wife, please,

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