And then there's good old fashioned panic: In a 2009 study, Jordet found that players who approach the ball less than 0.2 seconds after the referee blows the whistle succeed on less than half of their kicks compared with players who take longer (they score on 80%).

WSJ: Euro 2012: An Apologia for the Penalty Kick Shootout

Researchers from nearby Ball State University's Center for Media Design will conduct a study of the command center, analyzing its strengths and weaknesses.

CNN: Super Bowl gets social-media command center

Some speculate that the ball in use today is "juiced-up, " and a formal study is being conducted for Major League Baseball at the University of Massachusetts to determine if that is so.

FORBES: Fact And Comment

Fewer than 300 people in the study had gastric bypass surgery, a more dramatic technique in which the surgeon creates a golf-ball-shaped pouch to curb food intake.

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