Published nearly a year ago, this article by Mark Wilson delivers a hard blow to the National Football League's hope of combatting concussions by building better helmets. Relying on solid physics principles and interviews with the world's best minds on helmet design, Wilson suggests that "if the NFL wants concussion-free football, they’ll need to redesign football." As one physicist put it, the easiest way to stop concussions is to equip the helmet with a 15-inch thick piece of foam that surrounds the skull. Unfortunately, the impact of a wider reciever with a safety trusts in 1.5 inches of foam to decelerate a player's head gently enough to prevent the brain from bouncing around inside the player's skull. Given that no player is going to surround their skull with a 15-inch thick piece of foam, Wilson concludes that a concussion-proof helmet is a pipe dream.
Learn more about Wilson's research at ...
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