Browsing by Subject "Films"
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Item Auteurs of Contemporary Science-Fiction Cinema: The Nature of Truth and Reality In The Works of Christopher Nolan and The Wachowskis(2017-04-19) Stamper, Scott Woodrow; Wiedenfeld, Grant; White , Chris; Johnson , Robin; Shields , RonaldContemporary science-fiction cinema raises two important issues. Can a genre known for the spectacle of computer-generated imagery say anything about truth and reality? Can a filmmaker articulate philosophical ideas through such a collaborative and commercial medium? In fact, these issues have confounded the art of the cinema since the beginning. Auteur Theory, developed in the mid-twentieth century, is the belief that the director is the most important cog in the wheel of filmmaking because he or she ultimately shapes the final vision of the film: how it moves and how it plays. By focusing on auteur directors film critics can find rich and layered meaning in films that might otherwise appear to be nothing more than mere entertainment for the masses. Even today in the film factory of Hollywood artists can still speak to philosophical questions of human existence. This study will consider directors known for sci-fi blockbusters: Christopher Nolan and the Wachowskis. Their films have a unique style and a consistent ideology that makes them worth studying as the works of auteurs. This critical study of key films across their respective careers reveals that Nolan and the Wachowskis are pondering the same question, the nature of truth and reality; however, they come at it from different perspectives. Nolan concentrates on the power of the lie while the Wachowskis advocate the beauty of truth. The best films of these auteurs address how we perceive reality and what it means to be human.Item The children are always watching : violence, distressed children, and signs of hope in the cinema of Michael Haneke(2011-05) Tate, Adam Wyatt; Staiger, Janet; Kearney, Mary C.This thesis is an analysis of director Michael Haneke’s theatrically-released films. Using a neoformalist approach, it is a dissection of how the director uniquely employs violence and child and youth characters in his films to critique society while looking for potential signs of hope. I argue that Haneke is a successor to those filmmakers who have taken violence to a new extreme in the cinema. However, Haneke has created a signature form of depicting violence in his films. I also argue that although Haneke typically places child characters in peril, a narrative facet that perhaps turns away some viewers, their placement in such scenarios serves to reflect his consistent view of a crumbling, insensitive society. Despite these representations of violence and children in peril, Haneke still finds places to infuse glimmers of hope in his narratives.Item Deposition and properties of Co- and Ru-based ultra-thin films(2009-12) Henderson, Lucas Benjamin; Ekerdt, John G.Future copper interconnect systems will require replacement of the materials that currently comprise both the liner layer(s) and the capping layer. Ruthenium has previously been considered as a material that could function as a single material liner, however its poor ability to prevent copper diffusion makes it incompatible with liner requirements. A recently described chemical vapor deposition route to amorphous ruthenium-phosphorus alloy films could correct this problem by eliminating the grain boundaries found in pure ruthenium films. Bias-temperature stressing of capacitor structures using 5 nm ruthenium-phosphorus film as a barrier to copper diffusion and analysis of the times-to-failure at accelerated temperature and field conditions implies that ruthenium-phosphorus performs acceptably as a diffusion barrier for temperatures above 165 °C. The future problems associated with the copper capping layer are primarily due to the poor adhesion between copper and the current Si-based capping layers. Cobalt, which adheres well to copper, has been widely proposed to replace the Si-based materials, but its ability to prevent copper diffusion must be improved if it is to be successfully implemented in the interconnect. Using a dual-source chemistry of dicobaltoctacarbonyl and trimethylphosphine at temperatures from 250-350 °C, amorphous cobalt-phosphorus can be deposited by chemical vapor deposition. The films contain elemental cobalt and phosphorus, plus some carbon impurity, which is incorporated in the film as both graphitic and carbidic (bonded to cobalt) carbon. When deposited on copper, the adhesion between the two materials remains strong despite the presence of phosphorus and carbon at the interface, but the selectivity for growth on copper compared to silicon dioxide is poor and must be improved prior to consideration for application in interconnect systems. A single molecule precursor containing both cobalt and phosphorus atoms, tetrakis(trimethylphosphine)cobalt(0), yields cobalt-phosphorus films without any co-reactant. However, the molecule does not contain sufficient amounts of amorphizing agents to fully eliminate grain boundaries, and the resulting film is nanocrystalline.Item Highly conductive, nanoparticulate thick films processed at low processing temperatures(2012-08) Nahar, Manuj, 1985-; Kovar, Desiderio; Ferreira, Paulo J.; Becker, Michael F.; Keto, John W.; Bourell, David L.Applications such as device interconnects require thick, patterned films that are currently produced by screen printing pastes consisting of metallic particles and subsequently sintering the films. For Ag films, achieving adequate electrical conductivity requires sintering temperatures in excess of 700˚C. New applications require highly conductive films that can be processed at lower processing temperatures. Although sintering temperatures have been reduced by utilizing finer nanoparticles (NPs) in place of conventional micron-size particles (MPs), realization of theoretically achievable sintering kinetics is yet to be achieved. The major factors that inhibit NP sintering are 1) the presence of organic molecules on the NP surfaces, 2) the dominance of the non-densifying surface diffusion over grain boundary or lattice diffusion 3) agglomeration of NPs, and 4) low initial density of the NPs. Here, we report a film fabrication technique that is capable of eliminating these deleterious factors and produces near fully dense Ag films that exhibit an order of magnitude higher conductivity when compared to other film fabrication techniques at processing temperatures of 150 – 250 °C. The observed results establish the benefits of NP diffusion kinetics to be far more profound when the deleterious factors to sintering are eliminated. The sintering behavior exhibits two distinct temperature regimes – one above 150 ᵒC where grain boundary diffusion-dominated densification is dominant and one below 100 ᵒC where surface diffusion-dominated coarsening is dominant. An analytical model is developed by fitting the experimental data to the existing models of simultaneous densification and grain growth, and combining this model with existing models of the dependence of conductivity on grain boundary scattering and pore scattering. The combined model successfully describes the evolution of density, grain size and conductivity of nanoparticulate films as a function of annealing treatment, with reasonable accuracy. The model was also used to evaluate the effect of initial NP size and initial relative density of films on the final sintered properties and conductivity of films.Item Influence of technology on perceptions of films: How audience gender, audience grouping, and presentation format affects enjoyment of content displayed on television, PCs, and laptops.(2005-08) Fisher, Howard D.; Callison, Coy; Reeves, Jimmie; Youngblood, EdHow presentation technology influences perceptions of films displayed on that technology as well as how gender dynamics influenced perceptions of technology and viewing experience was investigated. Research participants (N = 282) were divided into three technology conditions (television, desktop computer, laptop computer) and into four group conditions (mixed-gender, all female, all male, individuals). Participants viewed portions of two films and answered questions regarding their perceptions of the films, the group environment (for those participating in groups), and the equipment on which the films were viewed. Results indicated that participants perceived no differences in the films based on the technology on which they viewed them. Group participants also indicated a preference for viewing films when members of the opposite sex were present rather than absent. Participants perceived the greatest ease of use when working with the laptop computer instead of either the TV or the desktop computer. The results imply that, for this generation at least, technology has no impact on perceptions of films and that corporations may market convergent technologies such as the Playstation Portable without worrying that content will be negatively affected by the technology on which it is viewed.Item Mucoadhesive films for the buccal delivery of insulin(2012-12) Morales, Javier Octavio; Williams, Robert O., 1956-; McConville, Jason Thomas; Smyth, Hugh D; Cui, Zhengrong; Roy, KrishnenduTo address the need of a patient friendly and therapeutically effective method of administration of insulin (Ins) we sought to develop mucoadhesive films for delivery through the buccal mucosa. Ins is a labile molecule exhibiting limited activity and stability in solid solutions in films and other solid delivery devices. Early investigations outlined in Chapter 3 revealed the need for a certain particle size (below the one micrometer) for the addition of particulate material in films. In Chapter 4 a novel method for the manufacture of protein-coated nanoparticles (PCNP) is depicted. Successful particle batches were achieved in terms of size, uniformity, stability and activity and these particles were further investigated for their inclusion on films for buccal delivery. The method of manufacture of particles was based on an antisolvent co-precipitation process that immobilized macromolecules to the surface of crystalline core particles resulting in high yields and highly active protein loaded particles. Films loaded with PCNP were developed and characterized in Chapter 5. Lysozyme was utilized as a model macromolecule and high yields and activity were obtained after manufacture, demonstrating that after all the processing the protein is subjected to, activity is preserved. Using Eudragit® RLPO (ERL) as the matrix forming polymer, films with excellent mucoadhesion were developed. Here is described a high mucoadhesion for ERL that was even further increased by the addition of the water soluble PCNP. This occurred by the water movement into the ERL matrix that the solubilizing particles generate. Finally, films containing Ins were developed and assayed for permeation through buccal mucosa. By adapting the method of manufacture, Ins-coated nanoparticles were obtained and embedded in films. ERL films corroborated previous findings by exhibiting excellent performance. Investigations on the permeation of Ins through buccal mucosa revealed that the inclusion of Ins in films enhanced its permeation in comparison with a control Ins solution. Thus here is described the successful development of mucoadhesive films for the buccal delivery of Ins.Item Topological phases in thin films of pyrochlore iridates along the (111) direction(2015-08) Hu, Xiang; Fiete, Gregory A.; Yao, Zhen; Niu, Qian; MacDonald, Allan H; Goodenough, John BTopological states in (quasi) two-dimensional systems have attracted a lot of attention, both theoretically and experimentally, since the discovery of quantum Hall effect. In this thesis, we first introduce the ruby lattice which is able to host an extremely flat topologically non-trivial band. This helps to realize integer and fractional quantum Hall effect in lattices. We then study the thin films of pyrochlore iridates grown along the (111) direction. We first investigate a semi-empirical model described by a multi-band Hubbard model. Using Hartree-Fock approximation, our phase diagrams predict that the bilayer and triangular-Kagome-triangular trilayer structures are the most favorable for topological phases. We then check those structures with firstprinciples calculations, and find they are able to support the Z₂ topological metallic phase and Chern metallic phase. We study in detail the extended nature of 5d orbitals. As a consequence, the charge-density wave caused by nearest-neighbor interaction may serve as a possible way to turn these topological metallic phases into their insulating counterparts.