2019 – Year In Review
And so we come to the end of year number two for Sword STEM.
Totally Scientific Reasons You Need a New Sword
When I published “Do Swords Really Wear Out?” I was accused of robbing people of the ability to justify sword purchases. Fear not, I am here for the community. Just in time for Christmas, here are five totally valid scientific reasons you can use to justify the new sword purchase.
Full Afterblow Smackdown: 1&2 vs 2&3
The most common point allocations for Full Afterblow tournaments are 1&2 and 2&3 points. Thanks to HEMA CM we can observe what difference that makes.
Myth of Knees Over Toes
A common piece of advice you may have heard is to never let your knee move forward beyond the front of your foot. This is well-meaning, but not actually true.
Do Swords Really Wear Out?
Does HEMA gear really wear out? You may be surprised to hear the answer isn’t necessarily yes…
Slow is slow and fast is fast. And don’t let anyone tell you otherwise
The quote “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast” is a good reminder to prioritize learning speed through coordination, but it is seriously misleading if you think that it means you can get away with training slowly all the time.
Historical Injury vs Modern Tournament Targeting
Comparing the archaeological injury patterns from Matzke’s 2011 “Armed and Educated” to statistics from modern HEMA tournaments.
It’s Not “All in the Hips”
A colloquialism associated with generating power is “it’s all in the hips”, but this is a little bit misleading, as the hips themselves aren’t really the source of the power.
Don’t Give Points When People Withdraw From Matches!
In some tournament formats a competitor will be given a win and the maximum match points if their opponent doesn’t fight. This is a terrible idea and unfair to all the other competitors.
Project Smart Sword
Final Design Project of recording sword impacts for an ECE 4710 university course in the Spring 2015 term.