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Three-dimensional video techniques (50 Hz) were used to obtain images of basketball jump shots from one of three distances--short range (group 1, n = 5); medium range (group 2, n = 5); long range (group 3, n = 5)--from the basket, as performed by members of the men's quarter-finalist teams at the games of the XVI Universiade in Sheffield in 1991. Fifteen sequences were digitized, beginning 20 frames prior to take-off to 10 frames after release. To facilitate analysis, the sequences were rotated about the ball position in the final frame so that the shot direction was parallel to one of the pre-defined orthogonal axes. Mean (+/- 1 S.D.) ball release speed was found to increase with distance from the basket (group 1 = 3.04 +/- 0.65 m s-1, group 2 = 4.71 +/- 0.74 m s-1, group 3 = 6.24 +/- 0.80 m s-1), while mean release angles were similar for all groups (group 1 = 48.8 +/- 10.1 degrees, group 2 = 47.8 +/- 5.8 degrees, group 3 = 51.9 +/- 5.5 degrees). The increased impulse necessary for the ball to reach the basket at increased shooting distances was derived from both an increase in angular velocity of the elbow joint of the shooting arm and an increased velocity of the centre of mass in the direction of the basket at release. Centre of mass speed at take-off was found to be influenced to a greater extent by the angular velocity of the ankle joint than that of the knee or hip joints.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Modern rackets have facilitated a change in playing style from one of technique to one characterised by power and spin. The combination of the increased stiffness of modern rackets and the tendency for tennis balls to have become harder has led to an increased shock transmission from the racket to the player, which is probably a major contributor to tennis elbow. The paucity of tennis specific research on shoes and surfaces makes it difficult to link their characteristics with lower limb injury, although, as their interaction directly affects the magnitude of the forces to which the player is exposed, such a link seems reasonable.

In order to evaluate potential trends in global natural catastrophe losses, it is important to compensate for changes in asset values and exposures over time. We create a Global Normalized Catastrophe Catalogue covering weatherrelated catastrophe losses in the principal developed (Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan, South Korea, United States) and developing (Caribbean, Central America, China, India, the Philippines) regions of the world. We survey losses from 1950 through 2005, although data availability means that for many regions the record is incomplete for the period before the 1970s even for the largest events. After 1970, when the global record becomes more comprehensive, we find evidence of an annual upward trend for normalized losses of 2% per year. Conclusions are heavily weighted by US losses, and their removal eliminates any statistically significant trend. Large events, such as Hurricane Katrina and China flood losses in the 1990s, also exert a strong impact on trend results. In addition, once national losses are further normalized relative to per capita wealth, the significance of the post-1970 global trend disappears. We find insufficient evidence to claim a statistical relationship between global temperature increase and normalized catastrophe losses.

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