Politically Correct Language in George Carlin

American stand-up comedian George Carlin is notable for his long-standing popularity from the early 60s up until his death in 2008. In this paper, I examine George Carlin’s stance on politically correct language. Focusing on his three books Brain Droppings, Napalm and Silly Putty, and When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?, I show how his attempts to remove himself from a politically correct system ultimately fail as he adheres to his own ideals of language and morality. Using his texts and various work from Stanley Fish to support these claims, I show how Carlin ridicules the redundancies and hypocrisies that exist when groups claim words as their own. While breaking down these claims on political correctness, Carlin implements his own set of values. I show how there is no direct way to escape politicizing language. However, Carlin’s position as stand-up comic allows for a more fluid approach to politically correct language, as it offers a way to shift leanings and explore various forms of ideology permitting audiences a way to think differently about the world around them

Multiple View 3D Reconstruction of Micro- to Nano-Scopic Specimens

Range images and 3D modeling are often utilized on large scale specimens, but have been somewhat overlooked on the microscopic scale. This thesis concentrates on overcoming some of the difficulties of capturing images and creating both 3D models and 2D range images on this scale. During the scope of this thesis we take a deeper look into the optical mechanics of the laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) to understand the formation of the images and use that information to create our algorithms. With the use of the LSCM we can obtain a stack of 2D images of microscopic specimens. Our algorithm is able to process that stack of images and obtain both a 2D range image and a 3D model of a specimen from a single view. Through the use of computational methods and a set of eucentrically tilted images from the SEM we are able to obtain a surface point cloud of the specimen being modeled. By rotating the specimen and imaging it from several different angles a complete 3D model can be obtained. Through the implementation of our LSCM algorithm we have been able to obtain highly complete 3D reconstructions of both industrial and biological specimens of multiple size and shapes. The LSCM results produced and illustrated in this thesis exceed that of the current software available for producing both range images and 3D models. The results obtained from the SEM algorithm are a bit more modest yet offer an important understanding of the 3D characteristics of the specimens modeled. The point clouds produced and illustrated in this thesis show the accurate reconstruction of multiple points in a 3D space and when coupled with the 2D images produced by the SEM can help offer better depth understanding and measurement of features located on the specimen. Through the course of this thesis we have solved a few of the problems associated with 3D modeling on the microscopic level and offered a very good starting point from which to build upon. These reconstruction methods can be utilized individually or together for the use of better understanding and mapping microscopic organisms, reverse engineering, and quality control checks of microscopic parts

Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Supervisees’ Experiences of LGB-Affirmative and Nonaffirmative Supervision

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) supervisees were interviewed regarding their experiences of LGB affirmative and nonaffirmative supervision. Supervisees were asked to describe one of each type of event (i.e., affirmative, nonaffirmative) from their past supervision. In LGB-affirmative supervision, all supervisees felt supported in their LGB-affirmative work with clients. Supervisees perceived that the affirming events also positively affected the supervision relationship, client outcomes, and themselves as supervisees. In LGB nonaffirming supervision, supervisees perceived supervisors to be biased or oppressive toward supervisees’ clients or themselves on the basis of LGB concerns or identity. From supervisees’ perspectives, the nonaffirming events negatively affected the supervision relationship, client outcomes, and supervisees. Implications for research and supervision are discussed

Enhanced backscattering of seismic waves from irregular interfaces

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, 1994.Includes bibliographical references (p. 272-280).by Craig A. Schultz.Ph.D

Common Metrics for Human-Robot Interaction

This paper describes an effort to identify common metrics for task-oriented human-robot interaction (HRI). We begin by discussing the need for a toolkit of HRI metrics. We then describe the framework of our work and identify important biasing factors that must be taken into consideration. Finally, we present suggested common metrics for standardization and a case study. Preparation of a larger, more detailed toolkit is in progress