'Dunk scientist' reveals flaws in how slam dunk contests are judged

+ what delayed Toshio Mori's first novel ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Like millions of basketball fans around the world, tonight I plan to check out the NBA’s annual slam dunk contest. Thanks to the groundbreaking research of Justin Barber, I’ll be watching the contest with a more critical eye.

Barber is affiliated with the World Dunk Association, a fledgling organization on a mission to build a better appreciation for all the dynamics that go into performing a slam dunk. He explains how slam dunks are not always scored purely on athletic ability. And he offers tips on how to avoid becoming distracted by factors that – while entertaining – have nothing to do with the actual dunk.

This week we also liked articles about why communicating COVID-19 dangers is so complicated, how hard it is to hold gun-makers liable for mass shootings and plague-survival lessons from the ancient Greeks.

Jamaal Abdul-Alim

Education Editor

Only half of a player’s slam dunk score is linked to what they do with the ball and their body. Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Dunkology 101: How the NBA could take a more a scientific approach to scoring the slam dunk

Justin Barber, University of Kentucky

A new database could pave the way for a more fair and consistent way to score slam dunks, a self-described ‘dunk scientist’ says.

Sandy Hook families aimed to hold the makers of the guns used in the shooting responsible. AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Why $73 million Sandy Hook settlement is unlikely to unleash a flood of lawsuits against gun-makers

Timothy D. Lytton, Georgia State University

While it’s a victory for the families of the victims, the settlement leaves a key legal question about the gun industry’s liability shield unanswered.

The film ‘Don’t Look Up’ warns of the dangers of ignoring the findings of science. Marc Ward/Stocktrek Images via Getty Images

Does scaring people work when it comes to health messaging? A communication researcher explains how it’s gone wrong during the COVID-19 pandemic

James Dillard, Penn State

Whether about a comet hitting the Earth or a virus infecting the world, fear-based messages often do not succeed at changing people’s behaviors.

Toshio Mori endured internment camps and overcame discrimination to become the first Japanese American to publish a book of fiction

Alessandro Meregaglia, Boise State University

On Dec. 2, 1941, a publication date was set for Mori’s first book. Five days later, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, upending the writer’s life and throwing the book’s publication into doubt.
Super Bowl ads turn up the volume on cryptocurrency buzz: 6 essential reads about digital money and the promise of blockchain

Eric Smalley, The Conversation

Whether the cryptocurrency hype makes you crypto curious or crypto skeptical, there are many ways your life could be affected by crypto’s underlying technology, blockchain.
Appeal in Sarah Palin’s libel loss could set up Supreme Court test of decades-old media freedom rule

Bill Kovarik, Radford University

Under the Sullivan standard, a public official has to prove that there was ‘actual malice’ in defamation cases. That could be challenged in the Supreme Court.



More from The Conversation US
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'Dunk scientist' reveals flaws in how slam dunk contests are judged

Dunkology 101: How the NBA could take a more a scientific approach to scoring the slam dunk

Why $73 million Sandy Hook settlement is unlikely to unleash a flood of lawsuits against gun-makers

Does scaring people work when it comes to health messaging? A communication researcher explains how it’s gone wrong during the COVID-19 pandemic

Toshio Mori endured internment camps and overcame discrimination to become the first Japanese American to publish a book of fiction

Super Bowl ads turn up the volume on cryptocurrency buzz: 6 essential reads about digital money and the promise of blockchain

Appeal in Sarah Palin’s libel loss could set up Supreme Court test of decades-old media freedom rule

What drives sea level rise? US report warns of 1-foot rise within three decades and more frequent flooding

The Ancient Greeks also lived through a plague, and they too blamed their leaders for their suffering

Can religion and faith combat eco-despair?

How recess helps students learn

First gene therapy for Tay-Sachs disease successfully given to two children

Trust comes when you admit what you don’t know – lessons from child development research

What’s the IOC – and why doesn’t it do more about human rights issues related to the Olympics?

More from The Conversation US

About The Conversation:

Donate now to support research-based journalism

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