On Billiards and Physics

What sets apart a natural born pool player from the average one? On top of the obvious gifts (focused eye, steady hand and good correlation between them), a pool player usually has an intuitive understanding of physics.

In an interview to Frontline – India's National Magazine, Sheldon Lee Glashow, co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics and the proud owner of a home antique billiards table, talks about his upcoming book on the relations between billiards and physics. Prof. Glashow bases the billiards part of the book on his past experience as a student who has been spending long hours at the university pool room studying the movements of billiards balls.

"Physics and the Game of Billiards" will discuss "variety of mathematical methods and applies them to the motions and impacts of hypothetical spherical bodies" such as the interactions between billiards balls, cue tips, billiards table rails during a pool game. The book intends to be approachable to every pool fan, including those who've majored in arts, but its main objective is to introduce mathematical physics theories to students in a very vivid way.

Top 5 Pool-Billiard Blogs

There's more than one thing a pool enthusiast can do with the internet; on top of playing online pool 24/7 one can also read (as well as manage) blogs about pool and billiards!

From in-depth reviews on the history of billiards to blogs written by pro players through silly little pool blogs, the blogosphere is loaded with pool and billiards fans who enjoy sharing their insights, experiences and impressions on the game.

In this post I want to recommend on my favorite pool/billiards/snooker blogs. These recommendations are entirely based on my personal liking, so all you unmentioned pool bloggers out there, despair not! You still have the chance to be included in my next review of pool and billiard blogs.

Best Pool-Billiards Blogs (in my opinion and in random order)

Ace's Pool Blog

Is Ace my lost soul mate? Could be! The guy who describes himself as "an incredibly lousy pool player" and later confesses on spending too much time in front and too little around the pool table, is a sharp writer and, at least according to his blog posts, a knowledgeable pool player.

Diary of a Pool Shooter

First thing you notice when you enter Fast Mikie blog is its beautiful design. This is exactly how my dream pool room looks like! Additionally, the blogger knows how to rhyme! And most importantly, he shows to support to his fellow bloggers! In one liner: informative pool blog written in verses with pool videos, info on pool tournaments in California (not to mention Fast Mikie's pics as a toddler …)

Kendrick’s Billiards Blog

The greatness of Kendrick’s Billiards Blog (which has recently celebrated its 3 years anniversary) is known and acknowledged. Written by the owner of a billiards hall in Bellingham, Washington, Kendrick's blog is filled with smart, funny and fascinating stories from his workplace. Moreover, he is not skimping in providing tips and advice for pool hall owners and wannabes.

Guardian's Games Blog

Not exactly a pool-billiards blog, still if you are interested in online pool games, there is more than the slightest chance that you'd appreciate the Guardian's blog dedicated to online games, mobile games, game consoles, game culture and so on. Updated on a daily basis, the blog is one of the best places on the internet to keep track on the ever changing gaming market.

Snooker Billiards Pool

A relatively new blog ran by a guy who lives world of pool (and snooker and billiards) equipment. But technical specifications of all sorts of billiards accessories is not all you can find here; Snooker Billiards Pool blog is seasons with snooker-billiards-pool news from both sides of the Atlantic. Its main hitch is that it updates rarely. Anyway, if you are a sucker for new, shining cue sticks, Snooker…blog is worth following.

What happens to the cue ball on coin-op pool tables?

What causes the cue ball to return from a scratch when playing pool on a coin operated tables?
Where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over?
Did you ever wander about it?

Well, I don't have any breaking news about the ducks, but if this cue ball paradox has held you from sleeping, I've got some relaxing news for you.

It turns out that the cue ball happily returns to the table after the scratch because it is slightly bigger than the object balls or because a magnetic mechanism controls the mechanism of the table.
If you want clearer explanations, you can find them in this article:
Pool Cue Ball by Play89.
I know what you are asking now... How can I play pool with a heavier cue ball? Will the Earth's magnetic field spoil my aim?
Well... I guess you'll have to answer these by yourself