The Physics of Curling

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Adi Levy

Professor Loveridge

Physics 12

04 December 2012

                                        The Physics of Curling

        One of the more popular sports that have achieved the title of “chess on ice” (as it is, of course, played on ice similar to hockey) is none other than the sport of curling. There is often fierce competition for this intriguing sport, as it is notoriously played on the Olympics, and it involves two teams with four people on each respective team .Each team is afforded eight stones in which the imperative and goal is for each player (the players take turns) to guide the stones from a fixed distance and as proximal as possible to a center target.  Furthermore, there are two sweepers that attempt to guide the stone as close as possible to the center target(similar to a target one would see at an archery range except this target is embedded into the ice) --- the game requires an immense amount of strategy and hitting the stone (which is essentially the puck) at tactical angles while taking into consideration physical forces which is where the beauty of physics comes into this sport as it does with essentially almost every aspect of nature.

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        Prominent physicist, Mark Shegelski, has actually spent a substantial amount of time, who also devotes a lot of his time researching quantum tunneling and decay, studies how physics applies to the sport of curling. Podcast host, Steve Mirsky, has a conversation with Dr. Shegelski about his findings in regards to the application of physics to curling.

        Sweepers often have a hectic job of slowing down the puck, as it is on its way to its final destination, by “vigorously sweeping in front of the ice” ( The Physics of Curling). After being asked as to why the sweepers in ...

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