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With the World Cup soccer tournament underway in South Africa, a couple of things for the science-interested audience to watch for. First, the games will feature a new ball, called the Jabulani, the Zulu word for “celebrate.” And some players think something foul is afoot. They contend that the ball doesn’t behave the way a normal soccer ball should, that it even turns the wrong way in mid-air. Adidas, which makes the ball, claims that the players complaining all have contracts with Adidas’s competitors.
随着南非世界杯足球锦标赛如火如荼地展开,其中一些有趣的现象也将引起科学爱好者们的关注。首先,这场赛事的官方用球JABULANI(祖鲁语,意为“普天同庆”)颇具特色。一些球员认为,该球使用过程中“表现奇怪”。他们表示,“普天同庆”飞行路线诡异,甚至会在半空中突然转向。对此,该球制造商阿迪达斯声称,提出抱怨的球员都与该公司竞争对手签有合约。

The Sports Technology Research Group at England’s Loughborough University designed the ball. The sections aren’t stitched together anymore. Instead, the seams are glued or heat-sealed. The group leader, Andy Harland, told the Telegraph newspaper, “We have created a ball that is almost perfectly round, and more accurate than ever before.” Well, millions of soccer fans will ultimately decide the latter.
英国拉夫堡大学体育科技研究小组担任了“普天同庆”的设计任务。球体各部分不再采用针线缝合,而是通过胶合或热粘合技术完成拼接。总设计师安迪·哈兰告诉《每日电讯报》记者,“我们做出了一颗圆度几乎完美的球,它的运行线路也前所未有地精准。”当然,后半句是不是真的还得由亿万球迷说了算。

Also watch for the effects of altitude. Some of the games in South Africa will be played at elevations over a mile high. Which could make catching one’s breath the primary goal.
南非世界杯另一显著的特色在于它的“高度”。其中一些赛事将在海拔一英里以上的场地举办,定能让现场观众切实体验到什么叫精彩得“令人窒息”。

—Steve Mirsky
——史蒂夫·米尔斯基

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