Tag Archives: Lou Gehrig

Researchers Pinpoint Protein at Heart of ALS Communication Breakdown

MRI of ALS patient. Image courtesy Frank Gaillard.

No cure exists for Lou Gehrig’s disease, a fatal neuromuscular illness affecting tens of thousands of Americans. But scientists may have found how a key protein helps drive its degenerative progress.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
UA, Barrow Researchers Explain ALS Key Protein Breakdown

Jeopardy-Winning Computer Crunches Numbers to Fight ALS

Watson on Jeopardy stage set at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. Photo by Atomic Taco.

Barrow Neurological Institute is working with IBM’s Jeopardy-winning supercomputer, Watson, to identify treatment targets for Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

ALS is a poorly understood neuromuscular disease with only limited treatment options. Its capacity to strike anyone, at any time, seemingly without pattern, has puzzled researchers.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
BM’s Watson Computer Helps Barrow Identify New ALS Genes

The Art of the Bunt: Deconstructing Dickey’s “Tricky Hit”

Aki Iwamura lays down a bunt. Photo by imagesbyferg.

Bunting, says Bill James of Sabermetrics fame, is “the only play in baseball that both sides applaud.” But years ago, every player – even sluggers like Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle – used bunting as a fundamental part of the game, and some coaches still prefer the bankable bunt when it comes to advancing runners, especially when a weak hitter steps to the plate.

Whatever your viewpoint, there’s little doubt that bunting is an art. Read on for the ins-and-outs of this venerable and controversial technique.

How Bunting Works