Defying Gravity

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Photos (top to bottom): Cedric, Mahima, Sam, Michael, Alex, Allamagen, JC, Victor, Kevin, Cecile, Carlota, Ada.

Basketball players are tall. Volleyball players are tall. They have to be, for all the jumping they do. So doesn't it stand to reason that the taller you are the farther you'll jump? We tested this hypothesis in class. We plotted students' heights x the distance traveled in a standing broad jump, recording the best of three jumps. The results were sketchy, the scatter plot revealing a weak correlation, at best. So what else might be going on? Motivation, leg length, general fitness, technique, clothing, leg strength, practice/experience?

For the complete gallery of photos, see BOT at gallery1 gallery2.