helmet safety law sparks debate in Girls' lacrosse !!!

ICC World Cup is over ~ soon the Nation would get hooked to IPL, cheering for club teams ….. the non-performers would be forgotten.  Meantime, I have never heard of this earlier, touted as the ‘fastest sport on two feet’ – sometimes shortened to wlax or lax, a sport played with 12  players on each team.

The game is “Lacrosse”,  a team sport played using a small rubber ball  and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick. It is often played as a contact sport. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh designed to catch and hold the lacrosse ball. The  objective of the game is to score by shooting the ball into an opponent's goal, using the lacrosse stick to catch, cradle, and pass the ball to do so. Defensively, the objective is to keep the opposing team from scoring and to gain the ball through the use of stick checking and body contact or positioning.

Wlax is ‘women lacrosse’ - originally played by indigenous peoples of the Americas, the modern women's game was introduced in 1890.  The rules of women's lacrosse differ significantly from men's field lacrosse.  In nascent stages, geography and tribal customs dictated the extent to which women participated in these early games.

In USA, the news is that Cleveland State University will discontinue funding its 52-year-old wrestling program in fall 2016. The world's oldest sport will be replaced by men's lacrosse - the fastest growing college sport in the last decade. Its first season will start in the spring of 2017. The moves are a result of a "program prioritization process" led by Athletic Director that explored factors including funding, competitiveness and national trends, the university said in a statement.

~ and in another, a move in the name of safety sparks debate in Girls lacrosse !

Worried about the risk of serious head injuries in a sport where the players wield reinforced sticks and rifle shots with a hard, unyielding ball, Florida last month became the first state to require high school girls lacrosse teams to wear protective headgear. Again, this is not new or unique - Boys lacrosse teams nationwide have worn hard-shell helmets for many years. Girls, who play by vastly different rules that generally forbid contact, have historically spurned most protective gear. In Florida, where lacrosse is a new sport, state officials instead reasoned that all lacrosse players are at risk for head trauma and defied the sport’s traditionalists by mandating a soft form of headgear for everyone in a girls lacrosse game or practice.

But in a volatile example of how thorny and tangled the debate can become as communities nationwide implement new rules to protect the brains of young athletes, Florida’s mandate has created a combative firestorm that has reverberated across the country.  Ann Carpenetti, vice president of lacrosse operations at US Lacrosse, the sport’s national governing body, called Florida’s decision “irresponsible” and said the headgear decision could make the game more hazardous because it might embolden players to be more aggressive. Coaches across the state have panned the new rule. “It serves no purpose, other than being a costly distraction to parents and the players,” said Nikki Krakower, the coach of the girls team at Gainesville High School. “It’s ridiculous.”

Opponents of the mandate said the new rule was especially flawed because the Florida-approved headgear — the type used most commonly is a 10-millimeter-thick headband — is flimsy. “A headband is only going to prevent minor contusions and abrasions if they happen in the two inches the headband covers,” said Lynn Millinoff, the coach of the girls team at Buchholz High School in Gainesville. “But Florida officials seem to think they’re smarter than the entire rest of the lacrosse-playing world.” An online petition denouncing the new rule garnered more than 3,500 signatures.

Proponents of the rule point to data that shows that girls lacrosse has the fifth-highest rate of concussions in high school sports — only football, ice hockey, boys lacrosse and girls soccer rank higher. As the Florida High School Athletic Association board of directors was deliberating on whether to approve headgear, it heard emotional testimony from a mother whose daughter had sustained a devastating head injury while playing lacrosse.

Helmets, while universal in many contact sports, are a frequent source of controversy because of misconceptions about their protective value. Studies have generally indicated that helmets do not protect against many kinds of concussions, although they can help prevent certain kinds of concussions, as well as skull fractures. Most of the concussions in girls lacrosse occurred when players were struck by the ball or a stick, a finding Comstock said was highly relevant and helmets are very good at preventing direct transfer-of-force injuries.  It certainly does not sound a good logic to say that protection will create a gladiator effect !

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

Photos and news inputs from : NYtimes.com

Do you bite your nails ? .... may be you are perfectionist !!!

At Auckland, Suresh Raina hit a rollicking century as India recovered from a top-order collapse to prevail over minnows Zimbabwe by six wickets, finishing their group league engagements with a clean slate in the Cricket World Cup here today.  Raina’s unbeaten 110; equally important 85 by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and their record partnership of 196 took India from 92/4 to a win.  

Earlier, at Perth, India beat the West Indies by four wickets at Perth in a tense match that saw both sides losing wickets rapidly. Set 183 to win, the men in blue got home with 185 on board in 39.1 overs.  WI folded; the Indian innings was just a shade better, losing 4 wickets with just 78 on board. Things began to look up when Suresh Raina fell for 22 with 107 on board. Tension mounted in the Indian stands when Russell sent Jadeja back with 134 piled up for India. In the end – it was ‘nail-baiting’ of sorts as Dhoni alongwith  Ravichandran Ashwin partnered to deliver another win. 

“nail-biting”  -  a nail-biting event or period of time makes one feel very nervous, usually because one is waiting for something important to happen.

We have seen players, coaches and involved spectators biting and chewing their nails towards those suspense-filled last moments of the game.  This habit can harm  teeth and also herald disease.  Though not all resort to such tactic, nail biting is an extremely common disease (age is no bar), that is taken lightly by everyone and is usually brushed off as a 'bad habit'.  Nail biting, clinically known as Onychophagia, is an impulse control disorder, in which sufferers start biting their nails and the skin around the nails and cuticle, whenever they get anxious or nervous. For nail biters, the habit is a self-soothing action, a way to keep themselves alert and awake. According to dentists, it detrimental to oral health,  and  is unhygienic as well. It is stated that "Bacteria and germs from surroundings can enter through the oral cavity and infect one."

Nail-biting might have an underlying psychological problem, is what makes it grave. "Nail-biting is like an obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) ? it is a clear indication of deep-rooted anxiety, passive aggression. It needs psychological treatment."   Nails are hard. So, when you bite, one cause excess stress to one’s  teeth. Over time, this weakens them and can eventually result in a tooth chipping or breaking." Nail biting, say experts, can permanently damage nails, gums and teeth and may cause teeth to become crooked and irregular." Nails carry visible and invisible dirt that clings on even after a wash. Doctors say this could cause various illnesses.

According to another report in MailOnline, those who bite nails, would probably be perfectionists.  Experts studied 48 people - half of whom suffered with repetitive behaviour.  People who suffer from repetitive behaviours are more likely to bite their nails or pull their hair when frustrated - which is a sign of perfectionism.  In tests, participants were more likely to start nibbling when frustrated and bored - both feelings commonly associated with perfectionists.

The so-called body-focused repetitive behaviours (BFRB) included nail-biting, hair-pulling and skin-picking. 'We believe that individuals with these repetitive behaviours maybe perfectionistic, meaning that they are unable to relax and to perform tasks at a 'normal' pace,' said author Professor Kieron O'Connor from the University of Montreal. 'They also experience greater levels of boredom.'  He said there is a strong 'cognitive component' to this style of action typically accompanied by perfectionist beliefs relating to how organised a person is.  'Although these behaviours can induce important distress, they also seem to satisfy an urge and deliver some form of reward',  says Kieron O'Connor.

Each participant took part in four sessions designed to cause either feelings of stress, relaxation, frustration, or boredom. Individuals with a history of repetitive behaviours reported a greater urge to engage in these behaviours than those in the control group during the boredom and frustration sections than when relaxed. The stress session involved watching a video of a plane crash, while the video in the relaxation section showed waves on a beach. Individuals with a history of repetitive behaviours reported a greater urge to engage in these behaviours than those in the control group during the boredom and frustration sections, but not in the relaxation situation.

Frustration was triggered by asking the participants to complete a task that was supposedly easy and quick, but wasn't. Boredom was induced by leaving the participant alone in a room for six minutes. Individuals with a history of repetitive behaviours reported a greater urge to engage in these behaviours than those in the control group during the boredom and frustration sections, but not in the relaxation situation.  'The findings suggest that individuals suffering from [these] behaviours could benefit from treatments designed to reduce frustration and boredom and to modify perfectionist beliefs.' The findings are published in the Journal of Behaviour Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

16^th Mar 2015.

Higher the income - more satisfaction with life .... Engel's law of family expenditure

Happiness is a state of mind -  primarily  a mental or emotional state of well-being characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy; though some Philosophers often define happiness in terms of living a good life, or flourishing, rather than simply as an emotion.  There are simple persons in life, who live life as it is ~ taking things as they come… reads simple, but too difficult to follow !!  For many life is full of expectations, it is unending long ‘wishlist’…there are so many things that we desire to have ~ and many a times wish that we have, what others do not have…

Ernst Engel,  was a German statistician and economist, famous for the Engel curve and the Engel's law.   In 1850, he was directed by the government to assist in the organization of the German Industrial Exhibition of Leipzig (the first of its kind). His efforts were so successful that, in 1854, he was induced to enter the government service, as chief of the newly instituted statistical department.

Engel's law is an observation in Economics stating that as income rises, the proportion of income spent on food falls, even if actual expenditure on food rises. In other words, the income elasticity of demand of food is between 0 and 1. Engel's Law doesn't imply that food spending remains unchanged as income increases: It only suggests that consumers increase their expenditures for food products (in % terms) less than their increases in income. One application of this statistic is treating it as a reflection of the living standard of a country. A  low Engel coefficient indicates a higher standard of living. Communist thinkers cite Engel's coefficient as a quantitative measure of the misery of the working class.  Engel’s  curve describes how household expenditure on a particular good or service varies with household income.  The shape of Engel curves depend on many demographic variables and other consumer characteristics. In Micro Economics, Engel curve shows how the quantity demanded of a good or service changes as the consumer's income level changes.

The oft repeated myth in tinseldom is ‘rich men are not happy mentally and do not get to enjoy good sleep’ while poor are in happier state of mind and sleep well.  There is also the oft repeated wrong notion that poor are healthier.  In dispelling such wrongful fancied notions, University of Michigan study reveals that ‘money  really does buy happiness’  Economists discover the higher a person's income the more satisfied they are with life !!!

Economists Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers say in their paper the May 2013 American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings that there is no evidence of a 'satiation' point in the link between money and happiness.  Their study found the more money a person has the happier they are ~ Whoever said money can't buy happiness was very wrong, new research has found.  The  study of 1,014 people contradicts previous research that said the correlation between money and happiness diminishes when the basic needs of a person are met.

People were asked to rate their levels of happiness and their income was recorded. They wrote: 'While the idea that there is some critical level of income beyond which income no longer impacts well-being is intuitively appealing, it is at odds with the data.' Everyone with an income of £306,250 a year or more classed themselves as 'very happy'.  The University of Michigan study found that all those earning £61,250 a year or more also described themselves as either very or fairly happy.  However, only 35 per cent of people taking home £6,125 - the equivalent of $10,000 in the exchange rate used in the study - claimed they were happy.

A total of 21 per cent in that income bracket said they were 'not too happy'. The economists wrote: 'The income-well-being link that one finds when examining only the poor, is similar to that found when examining only the rich', according to AFP.  They added: 'We find no evidence of a significant break in either the happiness-income relationship, nor in the life satisfaction-income relationship, even at annual incomes up to half a million dollars.' People with the lowest incomes were more likely to describe themselves as 'not too happy'

The latest study comes after a separate study found people who splash out on ‘experiences’ such as days out and concert tickets are happier than those who buy possessions. Psychologists asked 9,600 people about their shopping habits, as well as questions to ascertain personality traits, values and life satisfaction. 'Experiential shoppers', who bought treats such as concern tickets or weekends away, rather than clothes or gadgets, reported greater life satisfaction, according to the study led by San Francisco State University Assistant Professor of Psychology Ryan Howell.

Are you happy ? ~ you need not be a rich man though, you can be and still be !

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

Epsom Derby - Women's suffrage and more !

According to Election Commission of India, 62.6 million people were eligible for vote in TN Elections 2021- Sholinganallur assembly constituency had the highest number of eligible voters with 694,845 voters.  Female voters outnumbered men –Female being 31940880 while Men were 30995440 – women power !!  One needs to read History to understand its significance.

Suffragette is a 2015 British historical drama film about women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, directed by Sarah Gavron and written by Abi Morgan – it was the first feature film to be shot in the Houses of Parliament. The film was released in the United Kingdom by the French film company Pathé through its British distributor 20th Century Fox with a limited release in the United States.

Jockey Adam Kirby won the Derby at Epsom on 16-1 shot Adayar just two days after being replaced on another leading contender by Frankie Dettori. Kirby guided the winner, for Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby, to victory by four and a half lengths from 50-1 chance Mojo Star, with Hurricane Lane in third.

The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby,   is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey on the first Saturday of June each year, over a distance of one mile, four furlongs and 6 yards (2,420 metres).  It was first run in 1780.  It is Britain's richest flat horse race, and the most prestigious of the five Classics. It is sometimes referred to as the "Blue Riband" of the turf. The race serves as the middle leg of the historically significant Triple Crown of British horse racing. The name "Derby" (deriving from the sponsorship of the Earl of Derby) has been borrowed many times, notably by the Kentucky Derby in the United States. The name "Epsom Derby" is often used in the United States, in order to differentiate The Derby from races such as the Kentucky Derby or Florida Derby.

Emily Wilding Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was an English suffragette who fought for votes for women in Britain in the early twentieth century. A member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) and a militant fighter for her cause, she was arrested on nine occasions, went on hunger strike seven times and was force-fed on forty-nine occasions. She died after being hit by King George V's horse Anmer at the 1913 Derby when she walked onto the track during the race.  Emily Wilding Davison made headlines around the world when she ran out in front of King George V's horse at the Epsom Derby on June 8, 1913. The Suffragette, who died four days later, has been remembered ever since as the campaigner who lost her life while trying to secure the vote for women.

To mark the anniversary of the shocking incident, a statue of Davison was recently unveiled in the Surrey town where she met her fate after a campaign by a group of volunteers. The depiction, by sculptor Christine Charlesworth, shows Davison sitting on a bench holding a pamphlet. Next to her is a university mortarboard and pile of books.  The campaigner obtained a first-class honours degree from Oxford University but was unable to graduate due to the then rules banning women from doing so. Davison was part of the militant organisation the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), which was led by Emmeline Pankhurst.

Many have argued that the group's persistent high-profile campaigning, which included the use of civil disobedience, direct action and even the planting of bombs, did much to persuade politicians to give some women the vote in 1918.  The statue was produced after a long-running campaign by the Emily Davison Memorial Project (EDMP).  Ms Charlsworth, its sculptor  said: 'Emily was an extremely intelligent woman and gained two first class University degrees although, being a woman, she was not allowed to graduate.  'She felt that joining the suffragette movement gave a whole new meaning to her life and she was often the first to think up ideas to bring the movement to public attention.

Philippa Bilton, whose great-grandmother was the campaigner's first cousin, said it was a 'great honour' to part of the unveiling. 'It is due to her sacrifice and that of many others that women today have equal rights in law and opportunities to fulfill their potential that Emily's generation could only dream of'. Labour MP Emily Thornberry added: 'As someone who led the campaign for a monument to Emily Davison in Parliament, I am truly delighted to see this statue unveiled in Epsom today, capturing the vibrancy and passion of this extraordinary woman.

Ms Charlsworth had been on the verge of retiring when she was commissioned to make the statue of Davison. The statue was first made in clay before being reproduced in bronze.   Ms Charlsworth then re-used the clay to create figures of both feminist composer Dame Ethel Smyth, who wrote the Suffragette anthem 'March of the Women', and Ms Thunberg. The artist added that she hopes to use the clay once again to create another sculpture of 'a woman who should be remembered.'  

The women's suffrage movement began in the mid-1800s as organised campaigns began to take place across the UK after Mary Smith delivered the first women's suffrage petition to parliament. In 1866, a women's suffrage committee was formed in London, which soon sparked other groups being set up in other areas, such as the Manchester National Society for Women's Suffrage. They were known as 'suffragists', as they believed in enfranchising women by peaceful means such as protests and petitions.  

The First World War was a turning point in the history of women's suffrage. The WSPU called an immediate halt to their suffrage activism in support of the British government's war effort. Emmeline Pankhurst believed that the danger posed during the First World War by what she called the 'German Peril' outweighed the need for women's suffrage.

The Government passed the Representation of the People Act 1918. The Act,which was passed on February 6, 1918, granted voting rights to certain women over the age of 30.  Ten years later, the age limit was lowered and the law changed to ensure women had the same rights as men.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
8^th June 2021.