Table Tennis Back-To-Back With 130 Tables In a Circular Configuration - Last Man Standing

The other day, I was talking to an acquaintance about their incredible ability to play table tennis, as they had played for over 30 years. They seem to be so well adapted, that they could probably play blindfolded, as they played the game almost like a reflex. Now you may say this is impossible, but consider some of the things that you are very good at doing, you can practically do them in your sleep.

Let's discuss this, and here is a question; could you play to games of tabletop tennis back-to-back, no, I don't mean one after the other, I mean literally back-to-back where you would be playing one opponent, and then have to turn around and play a different opponent simultaneously. You could listen for the shot behind you as you hit the shot ahead of you, and then turn, and know approximately where it would be to return that shot as well. If you could synchronize your play, you would always have time to turnaround, as the opponents would not be firing at the same time.

Okay so, we can probably design a computer algorithm using artificial intelligence and robotics to create a system which could do this, whereas only the top table tennis players in the world that are human could attempt this and achieve any sort of success. Let me take this one step further. What if we took a 130 tables, each one slightly offset by 3-degrees, not enough to be very noticeable, but enough to make a full circle. Each one of the players would be playing back-to-back in this circular configuration. Is it possible to keep the game going using a computer program and robotic players?

Is it possible to keep the game going if we used the top table tennis human players in the world? Now then, how would I go about creating such a computer program? Well, it turns out that Battelle Corporation in Washington State had done studies with traffic jams where the 10 or more cars flowing around in a large circle. It turns out that even if all the drivers followed each other at the same rate of speed, eventually their reaction time and breaking, would bottleneck on one side of the circle. However, I think that we have had enough practice with computational computer science and tricky algorithms to solve this problem using the Google autonomous car, or a group of 10 or more of them.

Therefore, in this musical chair table tennis trick, it is my belief that the humans would eventually fail, but we could indeed design artificial intelligent robotic computer systems to achieve this lofty challenge. Okay so, I hope you will please consider all this and think on it not only from a computational theoretical standpoint, but also from a philosophical one because if we can solve that problem, I do believe there are applications which are endless in many domains of the human endeavor.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on the Science of Sports. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/

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Owning A Swimming Pool Provides A Number Of Advantages

Whether you're adding a pool to your home to improve the value of your home or just want a form of fun recreation right in your own backyard, a swimming pool provides hours of fun and also has health benefits. A pool also serves as an instant gathering place for family and friends. With the variety available through custom designed pools, residents can enjoy a pool that fits their budget, their backyard, and their recreational needs.

Create an Instant Party

When you have a swimming pool in your backyard, you can create an instant party without the need for much preparation. People enjoy swimming and gathering outside during nice weather, so with a few refreshments you can quickly throw together a pool party for any type of celebration. Kids also enjoy having a swimming pool because it can turn a normal day around the house into a fun-filled day when they invite a couple of friends over to swim. Add a slide or waterfall to your pool and you'll notice that your family spends more time outside than inside when the weather's favourable.

Health Benefits of Owning a Pool

Swimming pools aren't just for fun and recreation. Many people find that their pool is useful for exercise and even pain management. Since swimming is a low-impact form of aerobic exercise, people at different fitness levels can take advantage of water aerobics, lap swimming, and even water walking or jogging without putting any strain on muscles or joints. Water therapy is sometimes prescribed by doctors for people with chronic pain, and having a pool on your property is one of the easiest ways to manage your health.

Swimming Pool Designs Cater to Any Style

This area is known for its outdoor recreation along the coast, but not everyone has the ocean in their backyard. Packing up the family and making the trek to the ocean where the peak seasons have plenty of crowds can get tiresome for some and can mean you don't get an opportunity to swim as much as you want. With the various pool designs, families can have a pool that's designed to remind them of the ocean, blend in with their landscaping, or take the most advantage of the space available in the backyard. With a custom pool, you can feel like you're at your favourite vacation spot every day. A pool designer can also add in waterfalls, waterspouts, a hot tub, great lighting, and other features that will make your pool a popular place to be during the summer months. Owning a pool has countless benefits, with opportunities to have fun and take care of your health.

At Pool Developments, we have professional swimming pool consultants and designers. We specialise in design, engineering and construction of Perth swimming pools, with over 35 years of experience in the swimming pool industry.

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Pilates Principles: What They Are And How Important They Are To Pilates Success

While Pilates has many characteristics that make it similar to other exercise regimes, there are also some fundamental differences that make it unique with the application of six key Pilates principles being central. So what are these six key principles, how did they come about and why do they make so much of an impact? This article will reveal all.

A by-product of the creation of Pilates as opposed to a starting point, the principles of Pilates were not actually developed by its creator, Joseph Pilates, but something that has naturally evolved as other instructors have put his concepts to use. It is therefore important, at this point, to note while at their core the principles may be the same, there is often some variation in the way they are termed.

The first principle we will be looking at is breath. A key component in all Pilates exercises the deep conscious inhalation and exhalations not only help the body's ability to stretch to its full potential, but also are a great tool in releasing tension.

The next principle is centering. One of the elements that makes Pilates stand out from similar regimes, which have a more general focus, Pilates brings the focus of each exercise to 'The Core' or 'Powerhouse' (the area between the bottom ribs and pubic bone including the abs, lower back muscles and those around the hip joint) of the body.

To get the full benefit of these exercises, it is important your mind is playing as much of a role as your body and this is where concentration comes in. Related to the conscious understanding and control of not only each movement, but each body part within it, this degree of focus really does set it apart from other methods.

The fourth principle is flow and is something that follows on beautifully on from the above principles. To reach the full potential with each exercise, it is essential that each movement not only flows, but that the muscle, breath and body position of each one is done with perfect timing.

Control is the next on our list. Complimenting all of the other principles, this one is related to ensuring that you are aware of every muscle and body part as you perform each exercise, an element that only helps improve the quality of your exercises, but the impact it has on you.

The final principle is precision and acts to tie all six together. Related to the necessity to be aware structurally of each movement and the exactness and alignment of each body part in relation to each other, if you and your instructor are ensuring all six of these Pilates principles are central to each and everything you do then you can be assured the full benefits of Pilates will be coming your way.

Winston Carney is the owner and lead instructor of Winston Pilates, a Santa Monica Pilates studio offering group and individual classes to clients across Los Angeles and surrounding areas.

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The Benefits of Taking Children Camping

We came back recently from a family trip to Yosemite. 5 days, 4 nights of camping in Crane Flat with three kids and my husband. It's not everyone's ideal vacation, but considering that the trip covered both my birthday and my wedding anniversary, I think you can safely say I enjoy it. So did my husband and our kids. There's a lot to be said for taking children camping.

It Teaches Them to Appreciate Nature

One of the big things kids get from camping is an added appreciation for nature. Mine already enjoy hiking, but it had been too long since we had gone camping with them. Hadn't taken the youngest at all yet.

In Yosemite, they were able to see a wider range of what nature has to offer. This was the first time they ever saw a chipmunk, although they're plenty familiar with squirrels. They saw deer in a meadow and deer up close when the deer wandered by Curry Village's dining area.

They also got to climb really big rocks. My oldest wanted to climb Lembert Dome, but not on the path, so she only made it up part of the way. Now she wants to be a professional rock climber (as well as at least a half dozen other things).

We also were able to see firsthand how much the current drought is affecting Yosemite. Yosemite Falls, usually still a great waterfall to see this time of year, was barely a trickle. On the other hand, the kids had a grand time climbing around the rocks at the bottom, which are usually too wet to be safe.

Getting comfortable with nature is important to children. I've recommended Last Child in the Woods before, and I still do. Getting children out into nature beyond backyards and playgrounds is very healthy for them... and their parents.

Camping is also a great time to talk about respecting nature and taking care of it. Yosemite, for example, is very strict about the use of bear boxes for anything which might attract bears to your campsite. It's the perfect excuse to talk about how our behavior can hurt animals.

They Get Dirty

I'm a firm believer in dirt. I don't stress about things getting a little dirty, especially in places where there's little choice in the matter. It made for quite the laundry pile when we got home, and some challenging stains, but it was certainly worth it.

There's a theory that getting dirty may be good for the immune system. Basically, it's the small exposures to germs over time that help your immune system become strong. It makes sense to me, and so I enjoy it when the kids get dirty.

Time Away From Electronics

No one gets to use electronic toys when we go camping. I had my iPad along, but only for music in the car on long drives. It didn't come on hikes and it didn't get used in the evenings while we sat around the campfire. Yes, my kids were quite frustrated with that rule, although a little less so when I pointed out the lack of internet access. While camping, my kids declared certain areas to be clubhouses, pretended to be pirates, climbed rocks and generally had fun.

Children need to be limited in how much they use electronics throughout their day. I know mine do far more interesting things when I tell them to turn all screens off and go play. They interact more with each other and really work their imaginations.

Learning to Do With Less

Camping is very much an exercise in making do with less than you usually have. There's only so much food you can put in an ice chest or otherwise keep at your campsite. No microwave, just the campfire or the camp stove to cook meals. Very few toys aside from what natural objects they could find. Everyone sleeping in one (admittedly large) tent at night.

I'll admit there was one experience I could have done without. The bathrooms for our section of the campground were closed and replaced with porta potties. Definitely could have done without that. Sometimes we walked extra to get to the regular bathrooms, but when a three year old says she has to go, that's usually right NOW, not five minute from now. Then again, porta potties are far better than nothing.

Making Random Friends

My oldest was fortunate enough to meet a girl a little younger than her at a nearby campsite. Instant friendship, and we'll see if it sticks over time or not, as they exchanged phone numbers. They spent mornings and evenings playing whenever they had the chance.

Camping is a great time to meet people you'd never know otherwise. We had camp neighbors from a few other countries, as well as people from more local areas. Yosemite is of course a huge attraction to people all around the world, so you never know where the people you meet have come from until you start talking.

Family Time

Camping was great for ensuring lots of family time. We were pretty much always together, sharing experiences and having fun as a family. No one had to go to work or school, no one was distracted by the television or other electronics. I only got one cell phone call, and that was an auto-dialed call by some company talking about diabetes, so an easy hangup.

Exercise

Camping means a lot of exercise. Most of what you do takes more physical effort than it would at home, plus you're likely to go hiking, swimming or do some other physical activity during the day. We didn't get to hike quite as much as my husband would have liked, but there's a limit to how much a three year old will hike, especially in the hot weather we had during our trip. Still, it was all great exercise.

Teach Respect for Fire

Kids don't necessarily get to do much around fires at home very often, but when camping, fire is something they just have to deal with... at least if that's how you keep warm and prepare your food. My kids had so much fun finding little bits of wood to add to the fire, and were awed by how my husband handled the firewood barehanded.

While fire is dangerous and burns are painful, I believe it's a good thing for children to learn how to deal with fire, most especially how to respect it. Dealing with it in circumstances less controlled than the burner on a kitchen stove gives them that chance, whether it's figuring out just how close they can get a marshmallow to the flame without catching it on fire (or having to blow one out), or seeing how quickly different things burns.

Overall, this was a really wonderful camping trip for us. I've told my husband we need to plan more camping trips each year. We're thinking at least two bigger trips each summer, plus weekends when we can manage it. Because we didn't get to Mariposa Grove in Yosemite, we're thinking one trip next year will be Sequoia National Park, as the kids really want to see some redwoods.

Stephanie Foster runs Green Stay at Home Mom as a resource for green parenting. Learn more about encouraging children to play outside at her site.

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Buying a Cue for Snooker or Pool

Whichever side of the pond you happen to be on, cue sports are as popular as ever. Having the best cue can be a significant advantage - not just because the cue itself is better, but because you feel good holding it. Buying a cue is largely a matter of personal choice, but there are a few basic factors to bear in mind.

Material

There was once a time when cues were only made of ash or maple, but now there are versions made of fibreglass, graphite and other high-tech materials. While there are differences between these in terms of look and feel, there is much debate as to whether one is better than another. Partly your choice will depend where you intend to play. Having a neon pink graphite cue might look a little silly if you are playing in a reserved British snooker club.

Most cues are still made from wood. Traditionally ash has been more popular in the UK, and maple in America, although the main difference between them is one of appearance. Ash is darker in colour and has a more noticeable grain, whereas maple is pale and more uniform. In essence, pick a cue you think looks good.

Quality

A good way to tell how good a cue is, is to look at how the heavy butt of the cue is joined to the main shaft. The butt is usually made or a contrasting wood such as ebony and is spliced into the shaft with four or more pointed sections. A handmade cue will usually have more rounded ends to these points and on very cheap cues they may be painted on!

The brand is another important indication of quality. It is often best to go for a cue made by a recognised name that you can trust, rather than a cheaper make. Cue manufacturers often rely on their reputation to sell their products, so it can be useful to do some research.

One-Piece, Two-Piece or 8 Ball Cue

The next decision is whether you want a cue than can be taken apart or not. Many people think that one-piece cues are better as there are no joints, but the convenience and practicality of a two-piece cue cannot be over-emphasised. As the cue comes in half the case can be half the size. The modern joints that are used shouldn't loosen in play, although if you only play at home you might prefer a one-piece cue.

There are also ¾ and 8 ball cues, which were originally designed for playing pool but are equally suited to snooker. ¾ cues have a join ¾ down the shaft, and 8 ball cues have a small section which can be removed from the butt end of the cue. These cues are useful when playing in cramped conditions, as they can be made shorter without sacrificing too much length.

Weight and Length

While cues were traditionally made to suit the height of the user, 57" has become the standard size. If you are an adult of average height, this will probably be fine for you. Some manufacturers make cues of different lengths, though, so it can be useful to keep an eye open for these if you are particularly short or tall.

Weights vary from 12 to 18 oz, with most towards the upper end of this range. Again, this is a matter of personal choice. Some people think that a heavier cue gives you more power, but this is not necessarily the case. A very heavy cue may cause you to get tired more quickly.

Cue Power specialise in snooker and pool equipment, from cues to tables. They have a wide range, including ¾ and 8 ball cues, and their friendly experts are happy to give advice.
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