Sport Science, featuring WSU's Cynthia Bir, takes home two awards at 30th annual Sports Emmys

DETROIT - Sport Science, the popular television series featuring WSU's associate professor of biomedical engineering and Plymouth resident, Cynthia Bir, won two of the five Sports Emmys it was nominated for Monday, April 27, at Lincoln Center in New York City.

The Sport Science team took home awards for Outstanding Graphic Design and Outstanding New Approaches and was nominated for Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology, Outstanding Technical Team Studio and Outstanding Production Design/Art Design. Sport Science also was nominated last year for four Sports Emmys and won for Outstanding Graphic Design.

The series, which is in its second season, brings professional sports stars and scientists to Sport Science's elaborate sports laboratory in Los Angeles to test athletic prowess and feats of the highest level. This season welcomes many new athletes into the Sport Science lab, including NFL stars Ray Lewis, Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Vernon Davis and Tank Johnson; NBA stars Stephon Marbury, Kevin Love, Amare Stoudemire and Luke Walton; and Major League Baseball's Matt Kemp and James Loney of the Los Angeles Dodgers and pitcher Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres.

This season's first episode tested what generates more power - natural adrenaline or an adrenaline shot, with mixed martial arts fighter Houston Alexander agreeing to be injected with a dose of epinephrine.

"The shows are appreciated by a lot of different audiences, different age groups and backgrounds," says Bir. "In all the shows we've applied the tools developed in the lab to record, measure and map the speed, force and range of the human body, specifically the athlete. The final product is not only entertaining, but educational."

Last season the show caught the attention of many science teachers who then used it as a teaching tool. This year, Wayne State University is providing science teachers with a curriculum based on segments of the show.