NASA spin-off technologies find their way into our lives in unexpected ways. Shock-absorbing memory squeezed its way into Tempur-Pedic mattresses, football helmet padding, shoe insoles, hospital beds, prosthetics, cars, amusement parks and modern art, while an invention designed to decrease airplane drag made a huge splash in the competitive swimming arena. Find out how as I answer the question…
Why did NASA invent the ribbed swimsuit?
Category Archives: Sports
Must-haves for the pampered astronaut
In 2007, astronaut Lisa Nowak thrust NASA “diapers” into the media spotlight when police in Orlando, Fla., charged her with the attempted kidnapping of U.S. Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman. Although the space agency’s absorption garments were soon the butt of late night talk show monologues everywhere, they were also an elegant solution to an unpleasant engineering challenge—so elegant, in fact, that the story of the moonstruck astronaut inspired at least one company to ape NASA’s design.
Two parts heart and one part obsession
When you come right down to it, humans are lousy at swimming. It’s not our fault—it’s simply fluid dynamics at work: The more fluid we’re in, the less dynamic we are. That’s why it’s so amazing to watch a practiced swimmer glide through water. How do they do it? It’s more than physical fitness: Their technique is nearly flawless. In this article, I’ll show you how a few minor adjustments can pay big dividends in terms of speed, power and energy expenditure in the water.
The will to win and the will to prepare
Structurally, humans aren’t build for sprinting, but we’re surprisingly good distance runners. Maybe that’s why 5k races and charity events have made such great strides around the world. Then again, maybe we’re just a race of masochists. Either way, if you’re going the distance, and you’re ready to kick your 5k into high gear, read on.
From the clubhouse to the moon
Whether you regard golf as the epitome of Zen mind or, as Mark Twain put it, “a good walk spoiled,” you’ve probably wondered where and how such a peculiar pastime originated. Who would devise a sport that “consists of putting little balls into little holes with instruments very ill adapted to [the] purpose,” as one Oxford tutor noted? And furthermore, who thought that an expanse of hummocky, pitted grassland would make an ideal setting for it?
The Scots, that’s who.
Actually, the origins of golf are not quite that cut-and-dried. You might be surprised at who lays claim to the sport’s origin. You might also be astounded at the long history of women and minorities on the links, and some of the historic traditions and great players that have made the game what it is today.