The science and technology behind advances in athletic performance - and in enhancements to our own physical vitality - in clear, accessible prose, by Scientific American"s top writers. Science increasingly informs athletic training, and technology is used every day to maintain and even enhance physical performance. In this volume, Scientific American"s top writers present in clear, accessible prose information about present-and future-advances that enhance not only athletic performance, but also the vitality of the rest of the population. Body, mind, gear, and technique are explored. Specific topics include: Whether science can determine if sports psychology works. How the cellular biology of muscle may explain why a particular athlete wins. What skateboarders do to bend the laws of physics. Why there"s concern about a sophisticated new way of cheating - gene doping. This highly informative volume provides excellent...