Browsing by Subject "football"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Concussion and Football: Failures to Respond by the NFL and the Medical Profession
    (2012) Orentlicher, David; David, William S.
    The National Football League (NFL) has come under sharp criticism for its approach to the problem of concussion, and many former players have filed a lawsuit against the league. In reviewing the response of NFL to concussion, one can easily think that the league was too slow to worry about the medical consequences of head trauma. Despite concerns being raised for many years about the risk to player health, it took until December 2009 for the NFL to advise its teams that players should not return to play or practice on the same day that they suffer a concussion. But the NFL was not alone in viewing concussion as a relatively mild problem. Physicians also did not worry very much about the medical consequences of concussions. For decades, neurologic experts disagreed as to whether concussions could cause permanent injury, with many attributing patient symptoms to psychological issues or to the incentives created by compensation programs for people with disabling conditions. While the NFL may have responded slowly to problems from concussion, the extent to which its response was unreasonable is unclear. If many medical experts did not worry about concussions, it is difficult to fault the NFL for not worrying either. Still, one can question the NFL’s failure to adopt concussion guidelines in the late 1990’s when they were being issued by medical experts.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Concussions and Sports: Introduction
    (2014) Orentlicher, David; Robert H. McKinney School of Law
    While it has become clear that concussion is a serious problem in football and other sports, it is not clear how best to respond to the problem. When athletes suffer concussions — or injuries that might be a concussion — what steps should be taken? More importantly, has the response to concussion focused too much on management of concussive injury and not enough on prevention of harm? This article provides an introduction to a symposium that sheds light on a number of questions about concussions and sports, from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. The papers inform our understanding about the adoption, implementation, and effectiveness of state statutes and other policies designed to reduce the harm from concussions. Ultimately, we must ask whether some sports are so dangerous that they should no longer be played. It is one thing to assume risks to health when there are meaningful benefits to be gained. But there are many ways to exercise, develop teamwork skills, or gain the other benefits of competitive athletics without playing football or other sports that lead to concussion. Ultimately, the social value of violent sports seems to rest heavily on the entertainment they offer to spectators. And that should lead us to ask whether there is any legitimate role for the levels of physical violence that we tolerate in sport.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Sub-concussive Hit Characteristics Predict Deviant Brain Metabolism in Football Athletes
    (Taylor and Francis, 2015) Poole, Victoria N.; Breedlove, Evan L.; Shenk, Trey E.; Abbas, Kausar; Robinson, Meghan E.; Leverenz, Larry J.; Nauman, Eric A.; Dydak, Ulrike; Talavage, Thomas M.; Department of Radiology and Imaging, IU School of Medicine
    Magnetic resonance spectroscopy and helmet telemetry were used to monitor the neural metabolic response to repetitive head collisions in 25 high school American football athletes. Specific hit characteristics were determined highly predictive of metabolic alterations, suggesting that sub-concussive blows can produce biochemical changes and potentially lead to neurological problems.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Towards a Praxis of Critical Digital Sport History
    (2017) Guiliano, Jennifer; History, School of Liberal Arts
    Exploring praxis as a key construct, this article disputes the understandings of digital history as a relatively recent phenomena by providing an alternative narrative of digital history’s development. Understanding that “digital” history is a constellation of practices drawn from humanities and computing disciplines, this paper argues that digital sport history must demonstrate critical, intentional engagement with interdisciplinary research to achieve its fullest future. Using Michael Oriard’s Reading Football: How the Popular Press Created an American Spectacle as a basis for a speculative design exercise, the paper suggests three alternative research methods that scholars could now use to explore Oriard’s sources. The exercise illustrates how digital sport historians must recognize the digital and its multiplicity of forms as historical objects that are produced, interpreted, and contested. As important, the article closes by presenting core values for our consideration as we move toward recognized methodologies for digital sport history.