Austria performed poorly in alpine skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics, winning "only" four medals. The men were shut out of the medals, after taking 8 in Torino and 7 in Salt Lake City. The rheometer shown in this video was manufactured in Graz, Austria by Anton Paar. Would the Austrians like to take their instrument back?
Source: Wikipedia
Blogging the Field of Rheology
Showing posts with label Olympics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Olympics. Show all posts
Monday, March 15, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Canada's Medal Count Comparison
Medal counts at the Olympics are due to many factors: individual performances, location, etc. Following up on the previous two posts, let's compare Canada's skiing, snowboarding, and speed skating medal count in the last two Winter Olympics.
2006 Torino
Skiing
1 gold, 1 silver, and 1 4th-place in cross-country skiing
3 4th-place finishes in alpine skiing
Snowboarding
1 bronze and 1 4th-place in snowboardcross
Speed Skating
3 silver, 2 bronze, and 2 4th-place finishes in short-track speed skating
2 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze in speed skating
Total top-4 finishes: 23
2010 Vancouver
Skiing
1 4th-place in crosscountry skiing
1 gold and 1 4th-place in ski cross (new sport)
Snowboarding
1 gold in snowboard slalom
1 gold and 1 silver in snowboardcross
Speed Skating
2 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze, and 2 4th-place finishes in short-track speed skating
2 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze, and 1 4th place finish in speed skating
Total top-4 finishes: 18
In terms of the finishes listed here, Canada did better at these speed sports in 2006.
2006 Torino
Skiing
1 gold, 1 silver, and 1 4th-place in cross-country skiing
3 4th-place finishes in alpine skiing
Snowboarding
1 bronze and 1 4th-place in snowboardcross
Speed Skating
3 silver, 2 bronze, and 2 4th-place finishes in short-track speed skating
2 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze in speed skating
Total top-4 finishes: 23
2010 Vancouver
Skiing
1 4th-place in crosscountry skiing
1 gold and 1 4th-place in ski cross (new sport)
Snowboarding
1 gold in snowboard slalom
1 gold and 1 silver in snowboardcross
Speed Skating
2 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze, and 2 4th-place finishes in short-track speed skating
2 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze, and 1 4th place finish in speed skating
Total top-4 finishes: 18
In terms of the finishes listed here, Canada did better at these speed sports in 2006.
Video of the Moment: Rheology at the Olympics
The video below shows Professor Hatzikirakos's lab at the University of British Columbia. (It's the same lab that was referenced in this post.
(The relevant video starts 15 seconds in.)
The video shows that rheology, and not just polymer science, was part of the research.
(The relevant video starts 15 seconds in.)
The video shows that rheology, and not just polymer science, was part of the research.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Link of the Moment: Polymer Science at the Olympics
This article in the Vancouver Sun discusses that some of Canada's "Own the Podium" program went for polymer science studies for a new ski and snowboard base.
...a water and snow-resistant plastic base for skis and snowboards. The plastic can reduce friction by up to 20 per cent, which could mean a one per cent reduction in time for an athlete.
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