The Advent of Sound in Motion Pictures

This study traced the developments which led to the advent of sound in motion pictures. The hypothesis that the advent of sound in motion pictures was the result of many technical developments made between 1894 and 1930 was supported by this work. Following a historical methodology the research focused on four questions: 1) How did motion pictures evolve? 2) How did sound become involved with the presentation of motion pictures? 3) What were the technological developments that led to the advent of sound? 4) What were the events that led to the acceptance of the advent of sound? This study found that the idea of motion pictures has roots in the past. The Chinese Shadow Ball was used as a form of entertainment from 6000-1500 B.C. Leonardo da Vinci described the camera obscura in 1500 A.O. In 1646, Anthanasius Kirchner devised the magic lantern which was developed from da Vinci\u27s ideas. Many inventors modified the magic lantern and photography, developed in the mid 1800s, was applied toward creating the illusion of motion. The first actual motion picture machines were peep-show devices such as Thomas Edison\u27s Kinetoscope. Sound was a part of motion pictures from the beginning. Even ancient magic lantern shows had musical accompanient. Thomas Edison added his phonograph to the Kinetoscope to provide synchronized accompaniment for his peep-show machines. During the first three decades of the twentieth century many inventors experimented with two main methods of sound accompaniment: the sound on disc and the sound on film. Inventors met two main technological problems, synchronization and amplication. When film projectors were improved large audiences could view the pictures, then amplication problems had to be solved. Lee DeForest solved the sound problem by applying the audion tube to his Phonofilm system in 1923. With the right combination of showmanship and public relations the idea of sound films was sold to the public and to the film industry. By 1926 the public was getting accustomed to the medium of sound as a form of entertainment because of the phonograph and the radio. Warner Brothers invested in Vitaphone, a sound on disc system. Their first film, Don Juan became a box office hit. The real turning point in the advent of sound in motion pictures came when Warner Brothers presented their second sound film, The Jazz Singer. The showmanship and magnetism of the star, Al Jolson, excited audiences everywhere. Now the film industry was convinced that there was an audience demand for sound films. All of the major film producers jumped on the bandwagon and ordered sound equipment. Almost overnight Hollywood changed. Many musical films soon followed and by 1930 the silent film era had passed. Sound films were here to stay

Orbit-reflexivity

Suppose $H$ is a separable, infinite dimensional Hilbert space and $T$ and $S$ are bounded linear transformations on $H$. Suppose that if Sx\in\{x, ,Tx ,T\sp2x,...\}\sp{-} for every $x$ implies that S\in\{1, T, T\sp2,...\}\sp{-SOT} then $T$ is orbit-reflexive. Many operators are proven to be orbit-reflexive, including analytic Toeplitz operators and subnormal operators with cyclic vectors. Suppose that if Sx\in\{\gamma x : x\in H, \gamma\in\doubc\}\sp{-} for every $x$, implies that S\in\{\gamma T\sp{n} : n\ge0, \lambda\in\doubc\}\sp{-SOT} then $T$ is \doubc-orbit-reflexive. Many operators are shown to be \doubc-orbit-reflexive. \doubc-orbit-reflexivity is shown to be the same as reflexivity for algebraic operators

Social impact bonds: a wolf in sheep’s clothing?

This article provides a rounded critique of social impact bonds (SIBs): a newly developed and innovative financial investment model, developed in the UK and starting to spread internationally that could transform the provision of social services. Although SIBs have the potential to influence delivery by all providers, this article raises three concerns about their possible effects – in relation to their potential outcomes, unintended consequences for the UK third sector, and governance – and then reflects on SIBs as the latest manifestation of the ideological shift which the UK third sector is undergoing.</jats:p

The new merger: combining third sector and market-based approaches to tackling inequalities

In this paper we discuss the challenge posed by growing inequalities, specifically health inequalities, which have grown increasingly wider in recent decades. Rather than arguing for a wholesale return to state intervention to curb the worst excesses of the market, we put forward a less obvious potential solution, arguing for a greater role - and greater recognition - for the 'social economy': the part of the third or non-profit sector concerned with trading in the market rather than relying upon public funds or charitable donations to stay in business. We present three examples of such organisations, drawn from the UK, and discuss how doing business in such a way presents obvious benefits for, but challenges to, existing thinking, particularly in relation to how 'success' should be measured

Secure Group Management in Large Distributed Systems: What is a Group and What Does it Do?

New Security Paradigm WorkshopThe secure management of groups containing thousands or possibly hundreds of thousands of members with very high rates of membership turnover is claimed to be a critical need for high confidence networking. Among the needs mentioned are the ability to ensure that former group members can no longer obtain access to group materials and to prevent new members from accessing material distributed to the group prior to their entry. Suggestions made in this area exhibit a strong bias towards cryptographic techniques and key management to realize these goals, pointing out the weaknesses in currently available techniques. The purpose of the present paper is to examine some of the assumptions that appear to be implicit in these suggestions. An examination of group function and behavior might indicate alternative ways to manage large groups securely. We note that the call for ever more complex technological solutions to problems that may be sociological in nature continues a disturbing (and largely unsuccessful) trend that began in the pre-TCSEC days and that continues into the present

Motivating Agile Teams: A Case Study of Teams in Ireland and Sweden

This research is an exploratory study, which investigates how the use of three agile practices - the daily stand-up, iteration planning and iteration retrospective - may contribute to motivation or de-motivation in an agile team in two different European countries; namely Ireland and Sweden. Several studies recognize that motivation is an important issue in software development and have identified factors that motivate software developers. However, relatively little is known about motivation in an agile context or how agile practices may impact on team motivation. Seventeen individuals across two teams were interviewed. The results indicate that in both countries agile practices can contribute to team motivation and de-motivation. This study hopes to make an important contribution towards research efforts in the area of motivation and agile software development by identifying factors that can contribute to and inhibit motivation in agile software development teams

A Study of the Use and Effectiveness of Controls in Agile Information Systems Development Projects: A Research-in-Progress (RIP) Paper

This study uses control theory as a lens to examine the use of control in agile information systems development (ISD) projects, specifically within software project teams that use agile methodologies. Traditionally, requirements for ISD projects have been defined at the outset and it has been the role of the project manager to control the project and help the team to achieve their goals. However, the goals of agile ISD projects are flexible and can change frequently, with the consequence that it can be difficult for a project manager to determine the most appropriate and effective type of control to use at each stage of a project. The aim of this research is to: develop a research instrument that will identify the control modes used by project teams in agile ISD projects; conduct a survey to collect data; and develop a framework for assessing the effectiveness of each control mode