Man Ray: Prophet of the Avant-Garde

Man Ray: Prophet of the Avant-Garde originally aired as an episode of PBS’ American Masters in 1997 and provides a succinct overview of the life of the talented Man Ray, a painter, photographer, sculptor, and film maker, who is perhaps best known for his photographic portraits of famous artists, such as Igor Stravinsky, Gertrude Stein, Ernest Hemingway, and Pablo Picasso. The film, engagingly narrated by Stockard Channing, surveys Ray’s life while being attuned to the need to frame his life and work in a cultural and historical context. The often underappreciated Ray is given flattering treatment as director Mel Stuart makes a compelling case regarding Ray’s importance in the 20th Century art world

Battle for the Arctic/The Tipping Point

Although The Tipping Point: Global Warming at the Arctic Circle and The Battle for the Arctic come from different filmmakers and different distributors, they work well together as companion films. Both films are under 50 minutes each, making them a good fit for many classroom settings

Jack Kerouac: Le Sel de la Semaine

In 1967, Jack Kerouac appeared on the French service of the Canadian Broadcasting Service on the program Le Sel de la a Semaine. This Icarus Films release takes a fascinating look at Kerouac’s connection to Quebec where his parents are from. This interview by Fernand Seguin took place just 2 years before Kerouac’s death, making the program all the more poignant

The Last Days of Shismaref

The Last Days of Shishmaref chronicles the lives of several families who live in the eponymous village in northwest Alaska as the effects of global warming begin to decimate their surroundings. This beautifully filmed and meditative documentary focuses on the lives of the Inupiaq Eskimo villagers and does not overtly politicize the often volatile issue of the causes of global warming. The film is more concerned with the effects of climate change rather than the causes

Introducing transliteracy: What does it mean to academic libraries?

Transliteracy is recent terminology gaining currency in the library world. It is a broad term encompassing and transcending many existing concepts. Because transliteracy is not a library-centric concept, many in the profession are unsure what the term means and how it relates to libraries’ instructional mission and to other existing ideas about various literacies. Transliteracy is such a new concept that its working definition is still evolving and many of its tenets can easily be misinterpreted. Although this term is in flux, academic librarians should watch developments in this new field to continually assess and understand what impact it may have on the ways they assist and interact with their patrons and each other

The Suzuki Diaries: Sustainability in Action

Given the number of gloom and doom environmental films flooding the market, the more optimistic approach of The Suzuki Diaries: Sustainability in Action is refreshing. David Suzuki, geneticist, environmentalist, author and broadcaster, takes his daughter, Sarika, around Europe to investigate some of the more proactive approaches various countries have take that lessen their impact on the environment. Suzuki is quick to note that many of these projects were not done to help the environment, per se, but done for practical, economic and quality of life reasons

Design, processing, and testing of LSI arrays for space station

The applicability of a particular process for the fabrication of large scale integrated circuits is described. Test arrays were designed, built, and tested, and then utilized. A set of optimum dimensions for LSI arrays was generated. The arrays were applied to yield improvement through process innovation, and additional applications were suggested in the areas of yield prediction, yield modeling, and process reliability

Design, processing, and testing of LSI arrays for space station

The work on the Process Analysis Structure was continued with the layout being completed, the 100X and 10X artwork being finalized, and the process and test sequences being prepared. Test programs were written for computer-controlled integrated-circuit testing and data reduction

Split Estate

The concept of a split estate refers to the fact that owners of a property do not necessarily own the minerals and resources that reside under the property.Debra Anderson’s Split Estate highlights the more damning aspects of this oddity by documenting how oil and gas companies are setting up shop on homeowner’s land. In some instances, oil rigs are constructing within 100 feet of people’s homes