Written by: Theo, reporter in ISFM
In this article, we’ll be talking about bowling.
Bowling originated in ancient Egypt in around 3200 BC. In a royal tomb, archaeologists found some drawings on the wall representing Egyptians playing a game of bowling. There was even a Bowling ball, and pins found in a child’s grave. In Polynesia, a game called Ulu-maika was similar to bowling. The middle age was a period where the sport was so popular amongst Kings and soldiers it caused some to get less training. Some cities in Austria, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands banned the pastime as a response to the missed training. 9 pin bowling, (10 pin bowling didn’t exist yet) was mostly played in Europe and the American Colonies until 1841, when it got banned in the U.S. as it caused crime and gambling. Texas was the only country that allowed bowling, but that’s because people paid their taxes. When 10 pin bowling was invented, it was to bypass the law. When the electric point systems and automatic pin replacing were invented, slowly, 9 pin bowling started to disappear in Texas. But the game itself wasn’t the only thing that changed, the point system aso changed alongside the ball. In 1892, the first balls were made out of lignum vitae, and by the time of the 20th century, rubber had replaced the wooden balls. If you cut a bowling ball in half, (don’t try this) you will notice it has an asymmetrical core made out of polyester (plastic) resin that helps the ball curve. If you ever go to your local bowling alley, the lane might look like hardwood (oak angiosperm, and maple) like in the past, but they are made of plastic to make it harder. It doesn’t matter if you play 9 pin bowling or 10 pin, the lane will always be 60 ft long and 3 ft 6 inches in width (hardwood can be soft or hard, it just means that the seed of the tree is protected by a fruit or a shell).
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Thank you for reading! Written by: Theo, reporter in ISFM
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