• Measurement

Galileo Galilei (1564–1642) is often referred to as the father of modern science. Initially a medical student, his obsession with measurement soon turned him to physics, mathematics and astronomy. Galileo was the first to accurately measure time by harnessing the principles of the pendulum and his improvements of the telescope led to massive advances in the fields of physics and astronomy. In particular, he provided the first empirical evidence that the earth revolved around the sun, and not vice versa. The 17th century's ‘Steve Jobs’ figure, Galileo invented the microscope, thermometer and compass. Just as Jobs revolutionised our thinking towards mobile computing by promising ‘a thousand songs in your pocket’, Galileo rocked his world by saying ‘measure all that is measurable, and make measurable what is not.’

Is our digital revolution going be considered another ‘golden age’? For sports clinicians and scientists, technological advances are opening up possibilities we could previously only dream of, particularly when it comes to measuring what was previously …