Saturday, August 2, 2008

Everyone has his own way to pass the time. While some people engage in conventional efforts like competitive sports or writing poetry, a group of math prodigies got together at Harvard University in March to put their own passion on display. Rachel Paiste was at the annual Pi Day celebration in April, where entrants put their brains to the test, memorizing hundreds or even thousands of digits of Pi.

Indy move over, make room for the Zoopolis 500! The 27th annual event, which consisted of several tortoises “racing” around a track, took place at the Indianapolis Zoo this past May, with some surprising results. Bill welcomed Indianapolis Zoo’s Judy Gagen to the program.

Math is not usually the favorite subject of 7th grade girls. That's why all girl's math classroom has been created at the Winthrop School in Bridgeport, Connecticut. And, contrary to the idea that girls don't like sports, the teacher there is finding success in a curriculum that teaches math through fantasy sports. Bill Littlefield covers this story from January.

Although Minor League Baseball can serve as a launching pad for some players, it can be like quicksand for others, a frustrating experience that has driven many players from the game. But even after spending more than a decade cycling through some of baseball’s back channels, journeyman Chris Coste kept pushing until he broke through with the Phillies in ’06. Bill Littlefield talked with Coste about his new book, The 33-Year-Old Rookie, telling the tale of his long, strange trip, and finds out just how tough it was to make it to the show.

W.C. Heinz, celebrated sportswriter, died in March. Bill Littlefield talked with Jeff MacGregor, who profiled Heinz for Sports Illustrated, about the work and life of the writer who truly left his mark on sports, and on writing.

The North Bennett Street School is not your typical college. It's the country's oldest trade school where students, many of whom are on their second or third careers, learn skills like bookbinding, violin building, and restoration carpentry. So, why does the school have an "Athletic Director." And why did that man pass out varsity letters to fully half the school's population last December? Only A Game's Karen Given has that story from January.