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NFL Releases Deflategate Report
_xeno_ writes: You may remember back in February that Slashdot covered the NFL asking Columbia University for help investigating Deflategate, a scandal where the New England Patriots were caught deflating their footballs in order to make them easier to catch. The Patriots claimed this was simply a result of the weather, while their opponents disagreed. Well, it's been months, but we finally have our answer: the balls were, in fact, knowingly deflated by the Patriots (to no one's surprise). And while science can explain a little deflation, it cannot explain the amount of deflation seen during the game. Which isn't stopping Boston fans from attacking the science. The report stops short of certainty, though, concluding rather that deliberate underinflation was "more likely than not." Not everyone agrees that a conspiracy is necessary to account for the measured pressure readings.
The balls were under inflated by about one pound, which unless you're some sore loser whose team was trounced by the best NFL team last year (The New England Patriots) doesn't add up to a gnat's arse in terms of any difference it would have made in the AFC Championship slaughter of the Indy Colts. The Patriots then went on to beat Seattle. End of story, roll credits.