Science

Pre-game jitters have got a hold of Willie Lanier in the locker room of the Kansas City Chiefs. He had already lost Super Bowl I for his team and he is not going to let them lose Super Bowl IV... At the end of the game Chiefs win 23 to 7.("Wikipedia") Sports like football have a lot of science behind them. Football has three main scientific properties; Law of Conservation of Energy, Friction, and Sound. "Mechanical vibrations transmitted through an elastic medium, traveling in air at a speed of approximately 1087 ft. (331 m) per second at sea level is Sound."("Dictionary")When Len Dawson had to give play calls to the offense he used sound to communicate the play to them. Without the power of sound it would be hard to communicate the play to his team. Through sound we can also hear when a defensive lineman breaks a running back`s femur. Even the tail gate parties before the game will be boring because there is no music if we did not have sound. Sound is important domain to all things including science. Friction has just an impact on the world as sound does. " Friction is a force that opposes motion between two surfaces that are in contact."("Physical Science" 350)An example of this in football is the traction your cleats have on the grass. The friction of cleats slow you down just a little bit. The grass height affects the friction because there is more mass to go through thats why on turf all football players are a little faster. Thats why friction is a main function of science. Even though friction plays an important roll in so does the Law of Conservation of Energy. "The law of conservation of energy is the law that states energy cannot be created or destroyed but can be changed from one form to another."("Physical Science" 261)Picture a 300 pound defensive linebacker sprinting right into you. If he does hit you he is not only going to hit you hard but the energy he was carrying is going to transfer to you but your body is going to start moving. If teams start to fight and punches are being thrown those punches contain energy that is not going to be destroyed it is going to be transfered into the other guys body. Also, when a quarterback launches a hard throw into the chest of a receiver the receiver will most likely be knocked over. So the Laws of Conservation of energy is important to football and science both. By gaining the knowledge of football and sciences you can see how sound, friction, and the Law of Conservation of Energy play an enormous roll in these subjects. So next time you are watching or playing football remember there is science in it. That is why Sean Merriman and Ray Lewis are good at football because they understand the science behind it all.