it would seem hard to NOT get 320 pounds of dominican in front of a grounder. suggested: use the other side of the glove, might work a little better.

Another Heartwarming Family Story
LONDON (Reuters) - A British father who arranged for an armed gang to rob his drug-dealer son of cocaine worth 4.5 million pounds was jailed for 20 years Tuesday.

Martin Williams, 60, passed information to three underworld figures that his son Shane had 76 kilos of cocaine in a house in Sanderstead, south London.

"Your role was despicable," Judge Stephen Kramer at London's Old Bailey told the father. "You are a family man, a carpenter. Your motive was pure greed."

During the robbery in May 2003, a stun gun was used to shock Shane Williams, 36, while his friend, taxi driver Nicholas Smith, was hit over the head with a crowbar.

"You may think it was a perfect robbery, a victimless robbery," the jury heard. "Because what drug dealer is going to complain to the police about being robbed?"

But police were already watching the house and all six were arrested.

Shane Williams and Smith were jailed for 20 years for conspiracy to supply cocaine. The three armed robbers received sentences ranging from 18 years to life imprisonment.

it seems there are some out there that doubt that a curve ball actually does curve. while this topic might seem to be outside the bailiwick of this blog (due to its lack of either large mammaries, gaming or canine aspects), there is quite a bit a material on this topic that seems worthy of sharing.

it seems that this belief may have been fostered by an article that Life published in september of 1941 where it was concluded that "a baseball is so heavy an object . . . that the pitcher's spinning action appears to be insufficiently strong to appreciably change its course."

perhaps the pictures that accompanied this misstatement were so lush and evocative that the patent inaccuracy slipped by.

in 1982, Science reached a similar conclusion, referring to the "apparent break in a curveball" as an "illusion".

in the context of researching this topic (read: time-wasting) the reason for the persistence of this line of thinking emerged as something like the following. there is in fact an illusionary component that contributes significantly to the effectiveness of breaking pitches, which in fact have been proven to curve by more aerodynamicists than you can shake a stick at, if you for some reason get your jollies from shaking sticks at fusty people in labcoats.

let's take the two components in turn, starting with the question of if a curve ball actually curves.

the relevant forces contributing to the curving of the curve ball are depicted above.

a cocktail party level summary (does anyone really go to cocktail parties any more?):
the spin imparted on the ball creates a difference in pressure via the "magnus force".
(dirty harry comes out of retirement to settle some unfinished hurling business, and plays some jazz piano along the way. summer, 2005.)

much data backing up this claim is available in the links below, and in the links on the linked pages, and the links on those pages as well, weaving together into a veritable "web" of information, almost a superhighway of information.

now, on to the optical illusion aspect of breaking pitches.

a curve ball's deviation from the path it would be expected to take if it were thrown without the necessary spin is shown below.

in the example pitch above, the batter perceives a rather nasty 14.4 inch break from where the ball came out of the pitcher's hand to where it crosses the plate. this amount of perceived break is determined by comparing where a straight fastball from the same release point (the bottom dotted line) would cross the plate with the eventual location of the bender when it crosses.

however, from the perspective of aerodynamics/physics/science, the only important deviation is between the actual path of the thrown curveball, and the straight line between the release point and where the ball actually crosses the plate. (the thin gray line in the picture above) this difference (called the sagitta) is a considerably less butch 3.4 inches.

so, expectations play a role in enhancing the effectiveness of the curve. the batter is comparing the breaking pitch that is on its way with the path of a fastball that is sadly not in the offing. also consider that there is an amount of time where the batter doesn't know what pitch is coming. the curve is happily curving during all that calculating time, moving further away from the unthrown fastball's path so that, by the time the batter picks up the spin, (or processes the change in arm action/wrist turn, or whatever mechanism he uses to identify a curve ball) he is engaged in an unfortunate game of catchup. this phenomenon, coupled with the fact that a breaking pitch actually does most of its curving towards the end of its trip to the plate, results in the perception of a hella big, hella late break.

as if all these factors weren't enough, the ball is all the while traveling closer and closer to the batter, using foreshortening to amplify all the perceived distances.

selected links:
• Do curveballs really curve? (The Straight Dope)
  probably the most concise summary
• Dizzy Dean Right: It Ain't No Optical Illusion for Batters!
  written in 1959
• Aerodynamics & Curve Balls
  account of one of the first attempts to address this question scientifically
• The Physics behind Baseball: THE CURVE BALL
  probably the best link with regard to detail
• Thrown for a Curve
  from the excellent exploratorium site
• Does A Curve Ball Really Curve?
  balance of history and lite science
• Does the Ball Really Curve?
  a particularly good illustration of the sagitta v. straight line
• The Mechanics Of A Breaking Pitch by former major league pitcher (and major league grouch, it seems) jim kaat
• Dr. LeRoy W. Alaways' Dissertation: Aerodynamics of the Curve-Ball
  1 MB acrobat pdf, could be slow loading. you might have better results right clicking this link and selecting "save target as.." from the context menu. it is also really techincal, including much math and, sadly, no big juggs. (unless you count the juggs pitching machine he used for some of his data collection.)
• The Physics of Baseball
  an excellent book that covers the operative forces of pitches and many many other aspects of balls in flight in an accessible, yet rigorous, manner

oh, and a rising fastball doesn't actually rise. (it just falls slower than one might expect.)
also, someone might be skeptical of a thrown ball's ability to actually curve, while accepting that batted balls hook and slice due to the magnitude of the comparative forces involved.

and the green monster doesn't spin out nearly as lively of caroms as one might expect.

all apologies for not getting this out sooner. area blog now getting caught in the wake of the news.


you know a nice trekker would treat her better. hell, the trekker would treat the doll (sorry, action figure) better.

and they say romance is dead...

mr. sensitive.

not sure it is necessary to allude to or delineate any other issues. kinda like nicole brown's family trying to paint oj as a serial toilet seat pisser, or sink beard stubble leaver.

Britney Spears Engaged to Dancer Boyfriend
NEW YORK - Pop singer Britney Spears is engaged to her dancer boyfriend, a representative of Spears' record label confirmed Friday. "I can confirm that yes, she is engaged," said Sonia Muckle of Jive Records. Spears, 22, and Kevin Federline, 26, have not yet set a date, Muckle said.

The two began dating a few months ago, after Spears' wedding to childhood friend Jason Alexanderin Las Vegas in January. That marriage was annulled within days.

Federline appeared in the movie "You Got Served" and performed as a backup dancer for singer Justin Timberlake, Spears' former boyfriend.

He was previously involved with actress Shar Jackson, of TV's "MoeshaThey have a 2-year-old daughter together and are expecting another baby in July.

Spears recently canceled her summer tour because of a knee injury she suffered during a video shoot. Her latest album, "In the Zone," was released in November and has sold more than 2.6 million copies.

choose your own snarkventure:
• it might be time for brit to remove her WWMD (what would madonna, sorry, esther, do) bracelet.
• once shar jackson gets a look at ms. spears' financials, young kevin will acquire knowledge of a new meaning to the phrase, 'you got served'.
• and the right is all concerned about the gays' attack on the sanctity of the noble institution of marriage
• other (use post comment below)

ok, this one again might be a bit too easy.

but, can't anyone beat theDJB on these?

Find a word for a holy place, then take away one letter to find a word that means “to glow brightly.”

Find a word that means “to cut off hair,” then change one letter to find a word that means “disgrace.”

please use the "Post Comment" link below to provide your answers.

Olsen Treated for Eating Disorder

according to their words on the matter,

probably should have seen this coming. like that french guy that kept saying "i'm going to steal your girlfriend." directly saying something and couching in the terms of a joke is the most popular manner of actual communication in a lot of instances. people are constantly trying to tell you their deep dark secrets. what's the point of having a secret so awful if you can't at least play brinkmanship games with its potential discovery? if you watch and listen, everyone is telling on themselves big time, all the time.

i suppose lines should be taken on what day ashley ends up in a thingy.

Facts are stupid things.."
—Reagan, '88

"...a faceless mass, waiting for handouts."
—Reagan, '65, describing Medicaid recipients.

"Because Vietnam was not a declared war, the veterans are not even eligible for the G. I. Bill of Rights with respect to education or anything."
—Reagan, '80

"Taxes should hurt. I just mailed my own tax return last night and I am prepared to say `ouch!' as loud as anyone."
—Reagan, '70, after approving California's largest tax increase in history. Reporters soon pointed out that Reagan didn't pay a cent on state taxes that year. For all his talk about shrinking government, California's state budget more than doubled under his governorship, from $4.6 billion to $10.2 billion.

"I know all the bad things that happened in that war. I was in uniform for four years myself."
—Reagan, '85, justifying laying a wreath at a Nazi cemetary in Bitburg. Reagan spent WWII in Hollywood, making films.

"They haven't been there. I have."
—Reagan, '85, justifying his policies on Nicaragua. Ronald Reagan had never visited Nicaragua.

"They have eliminated the segregation that we once had in our own country..."
—Reagan, '85, praising the government of P.W. Botha in South Africa, during the height of Apartheid.

"I cannot recall anything whatsoever about whether I approved an Israeli sale in advance or whether I approved replenishment of Israeli stocks around August of 1985. My answer therefore and the simple truth is, 'I don't remember, period'"
—Reagan, Feb. '87

"Mr. President, why don't we openly support those 7,000 guerillas that are in rebellion rather than giving aid through covert activity?"
"Well, because we want to keep on obeying the laws of our country, which we are now obeying."
"Doesn't the United States want that government replaced?"
"No, because that would be a violation of the law."
—Reagan, ''87. At the time of the press conference, the U.S. was giving the indiscriminately murderous Contra guerillas covert aid, in direct violation of the law. Reagan's lie was so obvious that members of the press corps laughed loudly and openly at his statements.

"A few months ago, I told the American people I did not trade arms for hostages. My heart and my best intentions still tell me that's true, but the facts and evidence tell me it is not."
—Reagan, Mar. '87

"If the question comes up at the Tower Board meeting, you might want to say that you were surprised."
—Reagan, '87, accidentally reading the notes for his stage directions aloud which told him to act surprised should the issue of arms-for-hostages come up.

"They are the moral equivalent of America's founding fathers."
—Reagan, '85, referring to the brutal Contra rebels in Nicaragua, who indiscriminately attacked civilians.

"...an example to the world of the ideals we hold most dear, the ideals of freedom and independence."
—Reagan, '85, praising the Afghan Mujahaddin. These "freedom fighters" included prominent leaders of Al Qaeda, such as Osama Bin Laden, as well as many of the leaders for the Taliban.

"Hollywood has no blacklist."
—Reagan, '60. FBI records have since shown that this was a lie, and that Reagan personally informed on several actors, later shown to be innocent, destroying their careers in the process.

"I would have voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964."
—Reagan, '66

"If there has to be a bloodbath, then let's get it over with."
—Reagan, '69, prior to having national guard soldiers break up a peaceful protest on the UC Berkeley campus. The protesters were teargassed and fired upon with buckshot, killing one protester and wounding at least 128 others.

"... a tragic illness."
—Reagan, '67, desribing homosexuality. When two of his aides were found to be gay that year, he asked for their resignations.

"Maybe the Lord brought down this plague [because] illicit sex is against the Ten Commandments."
—Reagan, '89. Reagan didn't even mention AIDS until 1987, by which time it had spread into the heterosexual population and over 25,000 Americans had died.

"What we have found in this country, and maybe we're more aware of it now, is one problem that we've had, even in the best of times, and that is the people who are sleeping on the grates, the homeless who are homeless, you might say, by choice"
—Reagan, '84.

"For the first time ever, everything is in place for the battle of Armageddon and the Second Coming of Christ. It can't be too long now. Ezekiel says that fire and brimstone will be rained upon the enemies of God's people. That must mean that they will be destroyed by nuclear weapons."
—Reagan, '71

"It's silly talking about how many years we will have to spend in the jungles of Vietnam when we could pave the whole country and put parking strips on it, and be home by Christmas"
—Reagan, '65

"Trees cause more pollution than automobiles do."
—Reagan '81

"A tree is a tree. How many more do you have to look at?"
—Reagan '66, opposing expansion of Redwood National Park

"I have flown twice over Mt St Helens out on our west coast. I'm not a scientist and I don't know the figures, but I have a suspicion that that one little mountain has probably released more sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere of the world than has been released in the last ten years of automobile driving or things of that kind that people are so concerned about."
—Reagan, '80. At its peak, Mt. St. Helens released 1/40th as much sulfur dioxide as cars do every day.

"All the waste in a year from a nuclear power plant can be stored under a desk."
—Reagan, '80. (In fact, a single nuclear power plant can produce up to 22,000 cubic feet of of radioactive waste per year.)

"There is today in the United States as much forest as there was when Washington was at Valley Forge."
—Reagan, '83. The US Forest Service estimated only about 30 percent of forest lands of 1775 still existed 208 years later.

"80 percent of air pollution comes not from chimneys and auto exhaust pipes, but from plants and trees."
—Reagan, '79

Lohan's Dad Arrested on Assault Charge
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. - The father of teenage actress Lindsay Lohan has been charged with assaulting a relative at a party at the family's Long Island home, authorities said.

Michael Lohan, 42, was accused of striking his brother-in-law, Matt Sullivan, at a first communion party at the family's home in Merrick on May 23.

Lohan was arraigned Thursday in First District Court in Hempstead on charges of second-degree assault and aggravated harassment. He maintains that Sullivan was drunk and was responsible for the fight.

Lindsay Lohan, 17, has starred in "Mean Girls," "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen" and "Freaky Friday." She is scheduled to host the MTV Movie Awards on June 10.

Her father is due back in court on June 8.

the assault is regrettable, yet understandable, since everyone know what contentious and fractious affairs first communion parties always are...

"Family Ties" Tyke Busted for DUI
In Colorado, ex-Family Ties tyke Brian Bonsall was rung up on drunken-driving charges, while in California, erstwhile Home Improvement clan member Zachery Ty Bryan was similarly accused.

The Bonsall arrest occurred Friday at 2 p.m. in the onetime prime-time kid's hometown of Boulder, Colorado, police there said.

Bonsall, now 22, was pulled over after an officer watched him pull over his Chevrolet SUV to the side of the road, let his passenger throw up out the window, and then return to traffic, Sgt. Kurt Matthews of the Boulder Police Department said.

Bonsall was booked on suspicion of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license. His passenger, a 19-year-old man, was booked on suspicion of giving a fake name to police, Matthews said.

When police asked Bonsall how much he'd been drinking, he allegedly replied, "Plenty." When asked to be more specific, he allegedly said, a "half-pint of Jim Beam."

Matthews said police didn't recognize Bonsall as Michael J. Fox (news)'s TV kid brother from Family Ties, the NBC sitcom on which he appeared on as a preschooler from 1986 to 1989.

Bonsall, however, isn't an unknown to local authorities, Matthews said. "Brian isn't exactly a saint," he said. "He's had a record here."

Per one report, Bonsall, who has dabbled as a punk rocker post-Ties, was convicted of DUI in 2001.

Bonsall was released Saturday from the Boulder County Jail on $1,000 bail, officials there said. He has a July 19 scheduled court date.

an even better account comes from cnn which includes the following:

Bonsall, 22, was arrested early Friday by police who said they saw someone vomit out the passenger side window of his car. Asked how much he had to drink, Bonsall responded, "Plenty," then failed a roadside test.

presumably, answering "half-pint of jim bean" consistutes failure.

response to the last edition was so resounding (deafening silence, anyone?) that it seems right to try again.