Comments

Anybody else remember "It's not about whether you win or lose; it's how you play the game?" Technology seems to improve function in a lot of areas (a premise most of us PopSci readers probably hold true) where accuracy is the highest priority, but that priority is a function of the end-result. For example, accuracy is important in surgery because the possible results are either life or death. Sports, however, are (or should be) a different story. Pick your priority, and you'll have your opinion on this article ready-made. What's more important: a sense of community, tradition, and camaraderie (which serves to uplift the individuals who play the games and their fans), or technical accuracy and proper scoring (which, as I see it, determines how many millions of dollars flow from one franchise's ticket sales, endorsements, and world cup merchandise)? In my mind, sports technology exists primarily to make a rich owner richer--where does the investment money come form? Not from the fans, but from those who stand to profit from the sideline cams and implanted chips: merchandisers, owners, promoters, agents, and all the other leeches that so detract from the game itself.