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What is the future of football?

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  • Oh damn, somebody already thought of it I guess, here it is. This is probably the solution- at least short term. Here's the story and the link... https://www.sciencenews.org/article/magnets-helmets-might-make-football-safer

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Adding magnets to football helmets could reduce the risk of concussions, new research suggests. When two players collide, the magnets in their helmets would repel each other, reducing the force of the collision.

    “All helmet design companies and manufacturers have the same approach, which is to try to disperse the impact energy after the impact’s already occurred,” neuroscientist Raymond Colello said November 15 at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.

    The magnets, he says, would put a brake on the impact before it happens.

    The idea hasn’t been tested yet in helmets with real players, said Judy Cameron, a neuroscientist at the University of Pittsburgh. “But a lot of thought has gone into it, and the data that was shown about the ability of the magnets to actually repel each other looked extremely promising.” 

    On the field, football players can run at nearly 20 miles per hour and can experience up to 150 g’s of force upon impact. Concussions readily occur at impacts greater than 100 g’s. Every year there are 100,000 concussions at all levels of play among the nearly 1.2 million people who play football in the United States.

    Colello, of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, is testing magnets made in China from the rare-earth element neodymium. They are the most powerful commercially available magnets and weigh about one-third of a pound each (football helmets weigh from 3.5 to 5.5 pounds). When placed one-fourth of an inch away from each other, two magnets with their same poles face-to-face exert nearly 100 pounds of repulsive force.

    Colello tested his magnets with the same procedure that the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment uses to evaluate football helmets. He placed magnets on the front of a weight and let it drop from various heights onto another magnet. The heights Colello tested (between 6 inches and 4 feet) represent the impact forces athletes normally experience on the playing field.

    “At 48 inches, if you dropped a standard helmet and it hit a stationary object, it would create 120 g’s of force,” says Colello. “With the magnets we drop that below 100 g’s.”

    The magnets would complement existing helmet safety features. Colello speculates that adding magnets to a helmet would raise the price by $50 to $100. (Professional helmets today can cost several hundred dollars.) Amateur players, who will not experience impacts as crushing as pros do, could use helmets with cheaper, less powerful magnets.

    Though the magnets do attract metallic objects, the National Football League prohibits athletes from wearing jewelry during games. Another safety concern is whether the magnets are dangerous to have near human heads. Colello says that a 30 minute- to one-hour MRI procedure produces magnetic fields 10 to 30 times as strong as those in helmet magnets.

    Colello is now awaiting customized arc-shaped magnets that can be fitted inside helmets so he can begin field-testing them. First he will run crash-test dummy heads donning the helmets on a zip line; when the heads collide, accelerometers will measure the linear and rotational forces caused by the impact.

    If the magnets make it through field tests, they could theoretically reduce the relative risk of concussions by up to 80 percent without changing the appearance or intensity of the game, Colello says.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------

    GhoolieG Ghoolie wrote on last edited by
    #24

    @poeticg said:

    Oh damn, somebody already thought of it I guess, here it is. This is probably the solution- at least short term. Here's the story and the link... https://www.sciencenews.org/article/magnets-helmets-might-make-football-safer

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Adding magnets to football helmets could reduce the risk of concussions, new research suggests. When two players collide, the magnets in their helmets would repel each other, reducing the force of the collision.

    “All helmet design companies and manufacturers have the same approach, which is to try to disperse the impact energy after the impact’s already occurred,” neuroscientist Raymond Colello said November 15 at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.

    The magnets, he says, would put a brake on the impact before it happens.

    The idea hasn’t been tested yet in helmets with real players, said Judy Cameron, a neuroscientist at the University of Pittsburgh. “But a lot of thought has gone into it, and the data that was shown about the ability of the magnets to actually repel each other looked extremely promising.” 

    On the field, football players can run at nearly 20 miles per hour and can experience up to 150 g’s of force upon impact. Concussions readily occur at impacts greater than 100 g’s. Every year there are 100,000 concussions at all levels of play among the nearly 1.2 million people who play football in the United States.

    Colello, of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, is testing magnets made in China from the rare-earth element neodymium. They are the most powerful commercially available magnets and weigh about one-third of a pound each (football helmets weigh from 3.5 to 5.5 pounds). When placed one-fourth of an inch away from each other, two magnets with their same poles face-to-face exert nearly 100 pounds of repulsive force.

    Colello tested his magnets with the same procedure that the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment uses to evaluate football helmets. He placed magnets on the front of a weight and let it drop from various heights onto another magnet. The heights Colello tested (between 6 inches and 4 feet) represent the impact forces athletes normally experience on the playing field.

    “At 48 inches, if you dropped a standard helmet and it hit a stationary object, it would create 120 g’s of force,” says Colello. “With the magnets we drop that below 100 g’s.”

    The magnets would complement existing helmet safety features. Colello speculates that adding magnets to a helmet would raise the price by $50 to $100. (Professional helmets today can cost several hundred dollars.) Amateur players, who will not experience impacts as crushing as pros do, could use helmets with cheaper, less powerful magnets.

    Though the magnets do attract metallic objects, the National Football League prohibits athletes from wearing jewelry during games. Another safety concern is whether the magnets are dangerous to have near human heads. Colello says that a 30 minute- to one-hour MRI procedure produces magnetic fields 10 to 30 times as strong as those in helmet magnets.

    Colello is now awaiting customized arc-shaped magnets that can be fitted inside helmets so he can begin field-testing them. First he will run crash-test dummy heads donning the helmets on a zip line; when the heads collide, accelerometers will measure the linear and rotational forces caused by the impact.

    If the magnets make it through field tests, they could theoretically reduce the relative risk of concussions by up to 80 percent without changing the appearance or intensity of the game, Colello says.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------

    ABSOLUTELY ASININE. Magnets WILL NOT REDUCE JACK SCHIDT. The force of the impact will merely be transfered to the neck via torque, making it easier on the head, yeah, but horrible on the upper spinal column.

    Fuktards. No need to test this stupidity.

  • @poeticg said:

    Oh damn, somebody already thought of it I guess, here it is. This is probably the solution- at least short term. Here's the story and the link... https://www.sciencenews.org/article/magnets-helmets-might-make-football-safer

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Adding magnets to football helmets could reduce the risk of concussions, new research suggests. When two players collide, the magnets in their helmets would repel each other, reducing the force of the collision.

    “All helmet design companies and manufacturers have the same approach, which is to try to disperse the impact energy after the impact’s already occurred,” neuroscientist Raymond Colello said November 15 at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.

    The magnets, he says, would put a brake on the impact before it happens.

    The idea hasn’t been tested yet in helmets with real players, said Judy Cameron, a neuroscientist at the University of Pittsburgh. “But a lot of thought has gone into it, and the data that was shown about the ability of the magnets to actually repel each other looked extremely promising.” 

    On the field, football players can run at nearly 20 miles per hour and can experience up to 150 g’s of force upon impact. Concussions readily occur at impacts greater than 100 g’s. Every year there are 100,000 concussions at all levels of play among the nearly 1.2 million people who play football in the United States.

    Colello, of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, is testing magnets made in China from the rare-earth element neodymium. They are the most powerful commercially available magnets and weigh about one-third of a pound each (football helmets weigh from 3.5 to 5.5 pounds). When placed one-fourth of an inch away from each other, two magnets with their same poles face-to-face exert nearly 100 pounds of repulsive force.

    Colello tested his magnets with the same procedure that the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment uses to evaluate football helmets. He placed magnets on the front of a weight and let it drop from various heights onto another magnet. The heights Colello tested (between 6 inches and 4 feet) represent the impact forces athletes normally experience on the playing field.

    “At 48 inches, if you dropped a standard helmet and it hit a stationary object, it would create 120 g’s of force,” says Colello. “With the magnets we drop that below 100 g’s.”

    The magnets would complement existing helmet safety features. Colello speculates that adding magnets to a helmet would raise the price by $50 to $100. (Professional helmets today can cost several hundred dollars.) Amateur players, who will not experience impacts as crushing as pros do, could use helmets with cheaper, less powerful magnets.

    Though the magnets do attract metallic objects, the National Football League prohibits athletes from wearing jewelry during games. Another safety concern is whether the magnets are dangerous to have near human heads. Colello says that a 30 minute- to one-hour MRI procedure produces magnetic fields 10 to 30 times as strong as those in helmet magnets.

    Colello is now awaiting customized arc-shaped magnets that can be fitted inside helmets so he can begin field-testing them. First he will run crash-test dummy heads donning the helmets on a zip line; when the heads collide, accelerometers will measure the linear and rotational forces caused by the impact.

    If the magnets make it through field tests, they could theoretically reduce the relative risk of concussions by up to 80 percent without changing the appearance or intensity of the game, Colello says.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------

    ABSOLUTELY ASININE. Magnets WILL NOT REDUCE JACK SCHIDT. The force of the impact will merely be transfered to the neck via torque, making it easier on the head, yeah, but horrible on the upper spinal column.

    Fuktards. No need to test this stupidity.

    OrionO Orion wrote on last edited by
    #25

    @ghoolie said:

    ABSOLUTELY ASININE. Magnets WILL NOT REDUCE JACK SCHIDT.

    I should think that 'in theory' they WOULD reduce the stress of impact...to some small degree, as a repulsing magnetic field is not a static solid object.  There should be 'some' slow down and not a sudden stop.

  • @ghoolie said:

    ABSOLUTELY ASININE. Magnets WILL NOT REDUCE JACK SCHIDT.

    I should think that 'in theory' they WOULD reduce the stress of impact...to some small degree, as a repulsing magnetic field is not a static solid object.  There should be 'some' slow down and not a sudden stop.

    hoortaH hoorta wrote on last edited by
    #26

    @orion said:

    I should think that 'in theory' they WOULD reduce the stress of impact...to some small degree, as a repulsing magnetic field is not a static solid object.  There should be 'some' slow down and not a sudden stop.

    Did a little research- Neodymium magnets (strongest available) are certainly small enough, but putting them in helmets- look out! Besides, anyone that's played with magnets knows they have both an attractive and repulsive force.  You couldn't put a helmet possessing enough magnetism to do any good anywhere near something made out of steel- um, like a locker? 

    I will tell a story of our favorite fun with magnets game in college. One of my roommates was in Electrical Engineering Technology and managed to get hold of an extremely high Gauss magnet. Want to play some pinball? That silver ball is never going to drain.  Playing Time Tunnel, you could just keep shooting the ball into the magic tunnel, back to start, rack up millions of points & dozens of  free games- then take the magnet off and play all night on your quarter.  Problem was- we eventually magnetized the ball which made the game sort of interesting.  🙂 

  • nickersN nickers wrote on last edited by
    #27

    Don't worry.. in 5 years GOD-del is gonna rename it the P.F.L...Pussy-Fied -League.

  • C calfoxwc wrote on last edited by
    #28

    I thought water-lined helmets were designed for somebody years ago as an experiment.

    Larry Csonka?

    anyways, they are working on a safer helmet.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-football-concussion/florida-researchers-developing-football-helmets-to-reduce-concussions-idUSBREA071IH20140108

    magnets. I would think that if they did work, it would lead to serious neck injuries....

  • jcam222J jcam222 wrote on last edited by jcam222
    #29

    I suspect that the CTE reports grossly exaggerate the rate of occurrence. More importantly the "symptoms" can be driven by a host of other issues as well. Rage, depression, drug addiction, alcohol abuse, many of those can also be driven by being predisposed and on top of that years of steroid and pain pill abuse. I'm not suggesting that CTE doesn't cause issues, simply saying there is no direct correlation. It would be interesting to see data comparing rates of those symptoms in a larger data set of players vs. the general population. Here's a good article. https://www.google.com/amp/amp.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2017/07/the_press_is_overhyping_the_latest_study_on_cte_in_the_nfl.html

  • @orion said:

    I should think that 'in theory' they WOULD reduce the stress of impact...to some small degree, as a repulsing magnetic field is not a static solid object.  There should be 'some' slow down and not a sudden stop.

    Did a little research- Neodymium magnets (strongest available) are certainly small enough, but putting them in helmets- look out! Besides, anyone that's played with magnets knows they have both an attractive and repulsive force.  You couldn't put a helmet possessing enough magnetism to do any good anywhere near something made out of steel- um, like a locker? 

    I will tell a story of our favorite fun with magnets game in college. One of my roommates was in Electrical Engineering Technology and managed to get hold of an extremely high Gauss magnet. Want to play some pinball? That silver ball is never going to drain.  Playing Time Tunnel, you could just keep shooting the ball into the magic tunnel, back to start, rack up millions of points & dozens of  free games- then take the magnet off and play all night on your quarter.  Problem was- we eventually magnetized the ball which made the game sort of interesting.  🙂 

    Tour2maT Tour2ma wrote on last edited by
    #30

    @hoorta said:

    Besides, anyone that's played with magnets knows they have both an attractive and repulsive force. 

    lol... could bring a whole new meaning to "drawing the defense offsides."

    But seriously... if hits from one direction are repulsed, then...

    @calfoxwc said:

    magnets. I would think that if they did work, it would lead to serious neck injuries....

    Bingo... could rival some of the worst facemask grabs ever seen.

  • IbleedbrownI Ibleedbrown wrote on last edited by
    #31

    Good post and something that eats at me a little bit with this sport. I have no solutions and concede that the violent nature and physicality of the sport is part of the appeal.

    However, l spend time rooting for the guys on my favorite team, and l can’t help but want them to be able to retire from the game with their faculties intact, able to walk and think and such. Especially the Joe Thomases, Josh Cribbs, and Bernie Kosars of the world. 

  • Don't worry.. in 5 years GOD-del is gonna rename it the P.F.L...Pussy-Fied -League.

    IbleedbrownI Ibleedbrown wrote on last edited by
    #32

    @nickers said:

    Don't worry.. in 5 years GOD-del is gonna rename it the P.F.L...Pussy-Fied -League.

    I get this line of thinking too. Be a man, pound chest and carry on. This way of thinking l suspect has reduced the burden on the healthcare industry since before it could be considered an industry. It’s not war though, it’s a sport for our entertainment. What cost should that carry?

  • jcam222J jcam222 wrote on last edited by
    #33

    Some other outside the box ideas if in fact CTE is as prevalent as the hype suggests. 1)Implement an actual PDE testing program in college and the NFL. Return players to normal athletic human sizes. This would signicantly reduce the force of impact. If you think the current programs are effective your heads Buried so deep in the ground you can see China. 2) Decrease college careers to 2 years 3) Implement "term limits" by position in the NFL 

  • I suspect that the CTE reports grossly exaggerate the rate of occurrence. More importantly the "symptoms" can be driven by a host of other issues as well. Rage, depression, drug addiction, alcohol abuse, many of those can also be driven by being predisposed and on top of that years of steroid and pain pill abuse. I'm not suggesting that CTE doesn't cause issues, simply saying there is no direct correlation. It would be interesting to see data comparing rates of those symptoms in a larger data set of players vs. the general population. Here's a good article. https://www.google.com/amp/amp.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2017/07/the_press_is_overhyping_the_latest_study_on_cte_in_the_nfl.html

    Tour2maT Tour2ma wrote on last edited by
    #34

    @jcam222 said:

    I suspect that the CTE reports grossly exaggerate the rate of occurrence. More importantly the "symptoms" can be driven by a host of other issues as well. Rage, depression, drug addiction, alcohol abuse, many of those can also be driven by being predisposed and on top of that years of steroid and pain pill abuse. I'm not suggesting that CTE doesn't cause issues, simply saying there is no direct correlation. It would be interesting to see data comparing rates of those symptoms in a larger data set of players vs. the general population. Here's a good article. https://www.google.com/amp/amp.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2017/07/the_press_is_overhyping_the_latest_study_on_cte_in_the_nfl.html

    Agree... I do not believe there are too many instances of "Grandpa sure acts normal... maybe we should donate his brain to science."

    And again few brains have entered the data set since the advent of the era of Concussion Awareness.

  • Canton MikeC Canton Mike wrote on last edited by
    #35

    I get so tired of all (what I call) "trick" solutions & talk...MAGNETS now?

    We can start with STRICT PENALTIES for cheap shots (especially to the head). I have long been an advocate of....

    1) Immediate ejection + next game penalty (I don't care if the "next game" is the Super Bowl!)

    2) In case of injury to the player hit, the offending player remains suspended for EVERY game the injured player misses due to injury PLUS 1 more game.

    I put all this on Roger. I also would like to know WHY the Shazier injury to himself (due to his own helmet leading hit) has not been used as an example of why improper tackling technique can cause serious injury. As tragic as the injury was, something positive could be gained from it, IF the NFL would get off their asses and address the REAL issue. Eliminate the dirty plays & players....fines & helmet technology aren't getting it done.

    Mike

  • Soccer will take over. 

    Football is going to slowly die as parents won’t sign their kids up for it.

    Then there will need to be an outdoor fall sport to replace the void, with Spanish soon to be the most spoken language in this country, it’s a no brainer

    mjp28M mjp28 wrote on last edited by
    #36

    @lionofbuddha said:

    Soccer will take over. 

    Football is going to slowly die as parents won’t sign their kids up for it.

    Then there will need to be an outdoor fall sport to replace the void, with Spanish soon to be the most spoken language in this country, it’s a no brainer

    Soccer is so boring it's pathetic.

  • @hoorta said:

    Besides, anyone that's played with magnets knows they have both an attractive and repulsive force. 

    lol... could bring a whole new meaning to "drawing the defense offsides."

    But seriously... if hits from one direction are repulsed, then...

    @calfoxwc said:

    magnets. I would think that if they did work, it would lead to serious neck injuries....

    Bingo... could rival some of the worst facemask grabs ever seen.

    mjp28M mjp28 wrote on last edited by
    #37

    @tour2ma said:

    lol... could bring a whole new meaning to "drawing the defense offsides."

    But seriously... if hits from one direction are repulsed, then...

    Bingo... could rival some of the worst facemask grabs ever seen.

    But how are they going to huddle up, did anybody else think about that, eh? 

    .......or maybe they'll just text each other from anywhere on the field, "MFL" the Millenials' Football League.  😆

    No need for any contact or interpersonal skills at all.

  • @lionofbuddha said:

    Soccer will take over. 

    Football is going to slowly die as parents won’t sign their kids up for it.

    Then there will need to be an outdoor fall sport to replace the void, with Spanish soon to be the most spoken language in this country, it’s a no brainer

    Soccer is so boring it's pathetic.

    L LionOfBuddha wrote on last edited by
    #38

    @mjp28 said:

    Soccer is so boring it's pathetic.

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

  • @mjp28 said:

    Soccer is so boring it's pathetic.

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

    mjp28M mjp28 wrote on last edited by mjp28
    #39

    @lionofbuddha said:

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

    No its probably because it originated in and is largely  played in dirt poor countries all over the world. No uniforms or equipment necessary not even shoes just a ball. 

    And yes it's boring, unless you actually like 0-0, 1-0 games. "Recess for big kids", 😆

  • mjp28M mjp28 wrote on last edited by mjp28
    #40

    From The Worst Things in Sports thread......

    Just screen shot this, how does anyone watch this stuff? In this segment 6 games, 5 teams didn't even score, 3 ties? ZZZZzzzzzooooool.

    Screenshot_2018-02-26-08-01-48.png

  • @tour2ma said:

    lol... could bring a whole new meaning to "drawing the defense offsides."

    But seriously... if hits from one direction are repulsed, then...

    Bingo... could rival some of the worst facemask grabs ever seen.

    But how are they going to huddle up, did anybody else think about that, eh? 

    .......or maybe they'll just text each other from anywhere on the field, "MFL" the Millenials' Football League.  😆

    No need for any contact or interpersonal skills at all.

    Tour2maT Tour2ma wrote on last edited by
    #41

    @mjp28 said:

    But how are they going to huddle up, did anybody else think about that, eh? 

    lmao...

  • @mjp28 said:

    Soccer is so boring it's pathetic.

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

    DieHardBrownsFanD DieHardBrownsFan wrote on last edited by
    #42

    @lionofbuddha said:

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

    Pussified world.

  • @lionofbuddha said:

    Yeah, that’s probably why it’s the most popular sport in the world 

    No its probably because it originated in and is largely  played in dirt poor countries all over the world. No uniforms or equipment necessary not even shoes just a ball. 

    And yes it's boring, unless you actually like 0-0, 1-0 games. "Recess for big kids", 😆

    L LionOfBuddha wrote on last edited by
    #43

    @mjp28 said:

    No its probably because it originated in and is largely  played in dirt poor countries all over the world. No uniforms or equipment necessary not even shoes just a ball. 

    And yes it's boring, unless you actually like 0-0, 1-0 games. "Recess for big kids", 😆

    Dude, it’s is the most popular sport in every first world nation in europe. It’s not a poor man’s sport. Yes, it’s easy for poor kids to play, but people from all social backgrounds play it and love it. It’s going to be the biggest sport here too, eventually