In the sport of freestyle aerials, skiers are judged on their ability to perform complex jumps in the air. Emily Cook, a 12-year veteran of the U.S. Freestyle team, and Paul Doherty, a Senior Scientist at the Exploratorium in San...

One of the most popular team sports in the Winter Olympics is hockey. More than just a physical game, for scientists, it's a showcase for physics on ice - especially when it comes to the slapshot. Three-time Olympian Julie Chu, Thomas...

The ice skates worn by hockey players, figure skaters and speed skaters are vastly different from what were once used. Melissa Hines, the Director of the Cornell University Center for Materials Research, and Sam Colbeck, a retired...

Speed skating is all about force and movement - what, in physics, are known as Newton's First Three Laws of Motion. J.R. Celski, a U.S. speed skater, and physicist George Tuthill of Plymouth State University explain.

The winter games in Vancouver provided a chance for the United States' four-man bobsled team to win its first gold medal in more than 60 years. With the help of Paul Doherty, senior scientist at the Exploratorium in San Francisco,...

In skiing events like the downhill, slalom or ski jump, it's often the skis that are bound to an athlete's feet - and the materials used to make them - that give these athletes an edge over the competition. U.S. Ski Team members Julia...

To get "max air" off the half-pipe without losing their balance, snowboarders might want to check out this experiment that Paul Doherty, a senior scientist at the Exploratorium in San Francisco, cooked up, using a skateboard and a glass...

Cross-country skiers are among the fittest athletes in the world. Deborah King, an associate professor in the Department of Exercise and Sports Sciences at Ithaca College and Joseph Francisco, president of the American Chemical Society,...

Curling has been in the Winter Olympics for a while now, but it still seems a little strange to most of us. John Shuster, the captain - or "skip" - of the U.S. Curling Team in the Vancouver Winter Olympics, explains this unusual sport,...

Olympic athletes have long worn special competition clothing to gain an edge. Science and technology continue to improve on what they wear. Hear from Olympians Chad Hedrick, Steve Holcomb and Erin Hamlin, and Melissa Hines, the director...

One of the most popular team sports in the Winter Olympics is hockey. More than just a physical game, for scientists, it's a showcase for physics on ice - especially when it comes to the slapshot. An Olympian and two scientists break...

Snow is an essential part of the Winter Olympics. A former Winter Olympian, who is also a glaciologist, and a chemist discuss how humidity and temperature help form snow. [4:40]