Lightning Bolt Monday - Shocking You Back to Work! (5/19/08)

Let me take a little time to set up this edition of lightning bolt of the week.

Below is a nice little clip from a new show on FSN (foxsports net) called 'Sports Science'. Seems like a nice little idea for a show - they've have episodes in the past with Lance Armstrong talking about his lung capacity and things like that. Really breaking down why some athletes can perform at elite levels and do the things they do.

I think the name of the show really sets us up for what we're going to see below though. Let's look at it in reverse order. First - Science - when one thinks of science there are a lot of connotations involved. We think of designing controlled experiments to test worthwhile hypotheses and finding the real explanations behind things that seem almost unexplainable through those tests.

Second - Sports. Sports conjures up images of the eternal struggle between man and man. A level playing field where athletes train for hours on end to improve their skills in an effort to show superiority over their fellow competitor. A chance the show heart, grit, and determination - the true spirit of man.

Lastly - Fox. Unlike science and sports Fox (the TV network, not the animal) typically does not make is think of the higher ideals of mind and body. In fact Fox typically is associated with dragging us down to the lowest common denominator. For reference see Bundy, Al.

So what happens when we combine Fox, sports, and science? Watch below for your answer.



If you guessed nut shot, you win the prize. If that video doesn't shock you back to work I don't know what will. Leave it to fox to make about 3 good episodes of a new show, and then bring it right into the nut shot. I mean I guess it's sports because they are hitting him with a tennis ball and not a hammer (new show fox construction science coming this fall). The idea is somewhat related to science because they measure his heart rate (surprise - it goes up!).

The only thing I'm left to wonder now is how fox news is going to work nut shots into coverage of the '08 election. The good news is they can carry out their nut shot plans just the same if Barak or Hillary wins.