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With the World Cup soccer ___1___ 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 ___2___. 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.
The Sports Technology Research Group at England’s Loughborough University designed the ball. The sections aren’t ___3___ together anymore. Instead, the seams are glued or ___4___. 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.
Also watch for the effects of altitude. Some of the games in South Africa will be played at ___5___ over a mile high, which could make catching one’s breath the primary goal.
tournament afoot stitched heat-sealed elevations
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。 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。 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”。