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Watch The Physics of the World Cup: VAR, Smart Balls, and Soccer Aerodynamics
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31:29>> Very, very nice, very, very beautiful. This year's ball is also derived from a Platonic solid, but actually from the simplest one. From the tetrahedron, not from the icosahedron. And this is where the genius of like starting to use three, because you still want to use triangles cuz triangles have that three. So, what you do is you take the triangle, the equilateral triangle in your tetrahedron, you start shifting the shape such that the points become these flaps. Those flaps then have the patterns for the three countries. >> Mhm. >> And then you put that together just as the tetrahedron was, but now in terms of a sphere. >> Mhm. >> Okay? >> And so, we're just basically sort of slight taking the the core shape of the triangle and just taking the stat

32:09surface area and making it a blob. >> Yeah. >> That can then be patched together. >> That can then be patched together, right? Now, the problem is compared to the buckyball, this has fewer seams, right? >> Yes. >> And if it's got fewer seams, there are fewer grooves within the ball. >> Right. >> Right? The buckyball has um 20 hexagons, 12 pentagons, so a lot of these edges. >> Yes. >> And so, there's a a roughness there. >> Yes. >> With this one, there's fewer seams, so there's fewer grooves. The ball is going to be a little bit smooth. So, you have to counteract for that. And this was especially bad in South Africa with the Jabulani ball that apparently everyone hated.

32:49>> Yes, and this was 2010. >> Yeah. >> The Jabulani ball >> Jabulani. >> was famous. We were sophomores? >> Yeah, I was I was just graduating. So, I had just graduated. >> Uh yes, yes, yes. >> I just I remember I just graduated high school and we were in India for >> for the for the World Cup for the World Cup. >> for the World Cup, yeah. >> This is so and you know, at the time, it's so funny because I remember

From the episode
  1. EP 45

    The Physics of the World Cup: VAR, Smart Balls, and Soccer Aerodynamics

    A World Cup special on the science behind the beautiful game, from VAR and smart-ball sensors to soccer ball aerodynamics, pitch engineering, and match momentum analytics.

    The Physics of the World Cup: VAR, Smart Balls, and Soccer Aerodynamics

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