Sherry's Opinions about "The 39 Steps”

This is a very old British film ,which was made in 1935 by Alfred Hitchcock, and adapted from a novel, shared the same name “The 39 steps” .

Let’s talk about the background informations first. Alfred Hitchcock, origin United Kingdom, is a world-famous film director, especially good at shooting horror and thriller, he created and perfected the art of making suspense, to let audience participate in the story of the films, so that he controls not only the episode,but also the audience's attention, as a result of this, he became a popular entertainment expert and has a famous name "Masters of Horror". “The 39 Steps” novel was written by John Buchan in 1915, he got an inspiration when the UK had declared a war against Germany and spies made people in panic, including Alfred Hitchcock’s version ,this novel has been adapted to 4 different versions in 1935、1959、1978、2008 respectively.The director Hitchcock said: "When I read the novel for the first time , I think it must be made into a great film." However, he found that if copy too much sophisticated reasoning from the novel, the film would become boring, so in order to increase the entertainment value of this film, Hitchcock remove some scenes of spy organization, instead of this ,he put the key on a character named "Mr. Memory " ,add humor and romance episode into the film.

Turn back to the film. Fistly, I found that this film is filled with a notable feature of the British humor. For example, Mr.Memory ues a lot of jokes to answer audience’s questions at the begining of the film, when a man asked "How old am I ?" He solemnly replied: "Of course I know! But I would not just tell a lady’s age. ".And when Hanna escaped from the apartment, finding the killers were wandering out of the door, he wanted to exchange clothes with a milkman to run away from danger ,at this time, his excuse is “There is a married woman in my apartment, the two men outside, one is her husband, another is her brother.”and the milkman helped him without hesitation “ Why don’t you tell me earlier? Don’t worry , maybe I have to ask for your help for this kind of things someday.”and so on. In this film, British humor are always appear in the dangerous scenes, which made the audience laugh in a tense atmosphere.

Secondly,the film has an anti-hero named Hanna. He was innocent but was involved in spying activities, on the other word, he is also a victim. “The 39 Steps” is the typical work of Hitchcock using the “wrong man” model in films, which is a innocent person at the wrong time in the wrong place and meet the wrong things, so that the situation has changed into trouble again and again, the “wrong man” was usually charged of murder at the begining of the story and cleared all the charges in the end. The “wrong man”model makes the film different in hero’s personality, via discuss about how do we face to death、chase、unjust with audience.  

To talk about the Britain portrayed and visual style. As Andrew said in lecture, the film is also lack of big scenes even in the chasing and killing situations.There are only 4 women in this film, the spy、the farmer、the master of hostel and a young lady ,although the hero has some ambiguity emotion with the young lady, the film still without romantic stories. Furthermore, the location of this film is also in UK, the story happend in Scotland, and the farmer’s hometown is Glasgow,they mentioned London、Edinburgh and other famous cities as well.

In my opinion, this film also has some short episode to satire politics, for example, when Hanna escaped to a meeting of election, he know nothing about the candidate, but also make a speech and get everyone's support until the policeman took him away. And I found some scenes in Clockwork Orange showed the satire of politics as well in last week. So, I am not sure about whether all the British films have the tend to satire the politics or not,.is this a notable feature of British films? What do you think of that? 

Q4 by Jessica

Qestin4:What are the origins of the internet? Who invented the worldwide web?

Answer:The first recorded description of the social interactions that could be enabled through networking was aseries of memos written by J.C.R. Licklider of MIT in August 1962 discussing his "Galactic Network" concept. In spirit, the concept was very much like the Internet of today.

The first paper on pack swithing theory was published in July 1961 and the first book on the subject in 1964. which was a major step along the path towards computer networking. The other key step was to make the computers talk together.

In September 1969 BBN installed the first IMP at UCLA and the first host computer was connected. By the end of 1969, four host computers were connected together into the initial ARPANET, and the budding Internet was off the ground.

In December 1970 the Network Working Group (NWG) working under S. Crocker finished the initial ARPANET Host-to-Host protocol, called the Network Control Protocol (NCP). As the ARPANET sites completed implementing NCP during the period 1971-1972, the network users finally could begin to develop applications.

In October 1972, there was the first public demonstration of this new network technology to the public. It was also in 1972 that the initial "hot" application, electronic mail, was introduced. This was a harbinger of the kind of activity we see on the World Wide Web today, namely, the enormous growth of all kinds of "people-to-people" traffic.

Sir Tim Berners-Lee

Web Inventor and Founding Director of the World Wide Web Foundation

Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989 while working as a software engineer at CERN, the large particle physics laboratory near Geneva, Switzerland. With many scientists participating in experiments at ‪CERN and returning to their laboratories around the world, these scientists were eager to exchange data and results but had difficulties doing so. Tim understood this need, and understood the unrealized potential of millions of computers connected together through the Internet.

Tim documented what was to become the World Wide Web with the submission of a proposal specifying a set of technologies that would make the Internet truly accessible and useful to people. Despite initial setbacks and with perseverance, by October of 1990, he had specified the three fundamental technologies that remain the foundation of today’s Web (and which you may have seen appear on parts of your Web browser): HTML, URI, and HTTP.

He also wrote the first Web page editor/browser (“WorldWideWeb”) and the first Web server (“‪httpd“). By the end of 1990, the first Web page was served. By 1991, people outside of ‪CERN joined the new Web community, and in April 1993, CERN announced that the World Wide Web technology would be available for anyone to use on a royalty-free basis.

A graduate of Oxford University, Tim teaches at Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a 3Com Founders Professor of Engineering and in a joint appointment in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at CSAIL. He is a professor in the Electronics and Computer Science Department at the University of Southampton, UK, Director of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), and author of Weaving the Web and many other publications.

Dr.No Review By Elise

Dr.No

                         - Face to face with James Bond

This is not the first time for me to watch the 007 film franchises. It might be one of the most successful film Franchises ever. Since the Metro-Golden-Mayer face the bankruptcy problem, but the audience still welcome for 007 series 23^rd.However since I hadn’t watched the ‘Dr.No’before, it was still surprised me because it made in 1962.

Firstly, I have to say it is an old movie, especially compared with those recent ones. No vivid figures and special gorgeous effects, this movie is not for a technology competition. What it rely on, is the stars'acting. Although there are still some obvious weaknesses in the plot, it's a nice movie. A case in point is that it is too easy for Mr. Bond got rid of the prison and too east for the boss to die since the boss can flatten the gold.

the golden Buddha was flattened

the iron gird is too weak

Secondly, it established many distinguished features for 007 movies.

ü  The music – when the movie starts, you can hear the famous and familiar sound. And then you would know that Mr. Bond was coming with his bond girls.

ü  Bond, James Bond – the most famous line.

ü  Flirting – Mr. Bond would not let one lady off without flirting with her, even she might be a spy. In addition, in the‘Dr.No', our charming Mr. Bond had slept with three ladies. The last one who acted by Ursula Andress laid the images of bond ladies only being some beautiful women.

http://www.jamesbondmm.co.uk/bond-girls (a website show the bond girls list)

ü  Gentlemen – when talk about British, we always believes that the British people are all ladies and gentlemen with well mannered. Mr. Bond is absolutely a British gentleman. He wiped his hand after he had shoot on person and he clean up his suit after he had beaten a bad guy.

Mr.Bond is cleaning up his suit

Another thing I want to talk about is China. In this movie, the boss has been designed as a Chinese science geek with criminal brain. He controlled an island as his aromatic experiment laboratory. He came from China with a dangerous Dragon which is be trusted by the local people. There are three points I feel curious:

ü  Name – his name is Dr.No. Why call him‘No’and why he came from China? Is it because Chine is the few countries that with the different social system? Is it because after the World War II and Korean War, China was trying to say ‘No’ to the law of power?

ü  Nuclear – the weapon which the boss used to threaten the world is an Aromatic weapon. Why this kind of thing has become terrorism and it has come from china? I did a quick research on the history of Chinese nuclear power. What I have found is that the first Aromatic Bomb has explored in 1964, and it is just two years later than this movie. And China has started the formal work for the nuclear study from 1960. Is that means the Western felt fair and concern about China, especially because the Aromatic power?

ü  Chinese Elements– the Chinese cloth in this movie is full of traditional feature. They were all mandarin Dress (Qipaos) and Chinese tunic suit. And I also did another research to find out whether Chinese wore in that way in 1962. However the result is not. As shown in the picture, what we had worn is just like present, and there were not many differences.

people in china 1960's

   Although wear Qipao can show the Chinese element, the dragon part is also a funny thing. Because the ‘Dragon’ is not like a traditional Chinese dragon and even not like a mythical western dragon. Is that means people from western still think Chinese people are all mysterious with strange magic power?

Last but not least, I want to talk about how British is this movie and 007 series.

ü  Every Bond is British man.

ü  Dr.No is filmed in London and Jamaica

ü  Plots are based on British Novels.

ü  Mr. Bond in ‘Dr.No’ is a graceful gentleman. He rarely uses his gun, he likes to use his intelligence such as use hair to check whether anybody has opened his wardrobe.

However something has changed. Mr. Bond in ‘Casino Royale’ has killed more than 20 people and more and more amazing cutting-edge weapon has been made for Mr. Bond in each series. People feelthat the new Bond being cooler and cooler no matter he is fighting or flirting, but people like that!

So what has changed? What is changing?

Q5 by Saaya

Q5: Why do Liverpool football club have a bad relationship with the Sun newspaper?

Answer:  Because of the report about the Hillsborough disaster by the Sun in 1989.


15th April 1989, the Hillsborough disaster was happened at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield during the game Liverpool F.C. vs Nottingham Forest F.C. (FA cup semi-final match). 96 people died and 766 people were injured by this incident.

Situation: About 30 minutes before the game started,  the standing room behind the goal was full of Liverpool F.C. supporters. However, people tried to enter to the stand, and lots of people were waiting outside. So, security guards and police opened the admission gate. As a result,  people were pressed to the wire netting between the pitch and the audience. About 6 minutes after the game began, the referee was aware of that situation, and stopped the game. Some people escaped somehow, but others couldn't, and this incident took a lot of victims.

(News Reports of Hillsborough Football Disaster April 15th 1989 Part one, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z2HDjuu8Cw)



The Sun newspaper reported about the Hillsborough disaster on 19th April 1989 (4 days after the incident happened).

The headline: THE TRUTH
Subheadings: Some fans picked pockets of victims
                     Some fans urinated on the brave cops
                     Some fans beat up PCs giving the kiss of life

In the report, there were some stories of Liverpool fans at the Hillsborough disaster.

"Drunken Liverpool fans viciously attacked rescue workers as they tried to revive victims of the Hillsborough soccer disaster, it was revealed last night.

"Police officers, firemen and ambulance crew were punched, kicked and urinated upon by a hooligan element in the crowd.

"Some thugs rifled the pockets of injured fans as they were stretched out unconscious on the pitch.

"Sheffield MP Irvine Patnick revealed that in one shameful episode a gang of Liverpool fans noticed that the blouse of a girl trampled to death had risen above her breasts.

"As a policeman struggled in vain to revive her, the mob jeered: 'Throw her up here and we will **** her'"

The story went on: "One furious policeman who witnessed Saturday's carnage stormed: 'As we struggled in appalling conditions to save lives, fans standing further up the terrace were openly urinating on us and the bodies of the dead."

A 'high-ranking' police officer was quoted as saying: "The fans were just acting like animals. My men faced a double hell - the disaster and the fury of the fans who attacked us.

(7 Jul 2004. What the Sun said 15 years ago,http://www.theguardian.com/media/2004/jul/07/pressandpublishing.football1)

Those were written with no evidence, so Liverpool supporters were enraged, and began to refuse to buy the Sun newspaper. In July 2004, the Sun run an article of apology, and James Murdoch who is News International's executive chairman apologized in 2011. However, most Liverpool supporters did not forgive, and have continued the boycott.

(24 February 2012. Liverpool's 23-year boycott of The Sun newspaper, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-17113382)

(11 Jul 2011. BBC iPlayer, Boycott of The Sun newspaper,

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00hpfqh/Witness_Boycott_of_The_Sun_newspaper/)

THE IRAQ WAR

After 911, American government made a list called Axis of Evil which includes
Iraq. The Iraq government was charged with having weapons of mass destruction(WMD). And then, in 2003, Britain and USA steered clear of the UN Security Council. (So this war is illegal.)The war lasts for almost 9 years until 31/12/2011.

What are the reasons for Britain and USA invade Iraq in 2003?

First of all, it is because of the oil. Obviously, most people would understand that the United Army was ordered to occupy the oil fields in Iraq. The most important reason of war or international affairs often comes the economic and political profits.Iraq is rich in oil resources. And Saddam government showed no compromise in the contest with USA which caused problems or bad influence to American economic profits.

Other long words（lofty） reasons are to destroy Saddam's dictatorship.And to search and destroy hidden weapons of mass destruction, and to destroy the terrorists.to provide humanitarian assistance.

The out come of the war


About the Iraq war, it seems that the United States won, but it was also said that the U.S. has failed. From a military perspective, the United States has defeated Saddam, the initial objective was achieved, and thus the United States regarded the victory. However, from the overall strategic situation, from a political, military, economic, social, moral and other comprehensive perspective, the U.S. is actually largely failed.

Q10 about Rolf Harris by Sherry

The Question is:

Who is Rolf Harris and why has his reputation recently been damaged?

This is my answer:

Rolf Harris is a great entertainer. He is a musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter, and television personality all over the world.

Rolf Harris, born on 30th March 1930 in perth, Western Australia, was a champion swimmer before studying art. In 1952, he moved to the United Kingdom, where he started to draw animations for television programmes. Harris soon afterwards began a musical career, initially singing and playing the piano. In 1957, he wrote "Tie Me Kangaroo Down，Sport"(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4gru7Ial3k), which later became a Top 10 hit in Australia, the UK and the United States. While performing in Canada he introduced a longstanding, popular routine around his song "Jake the Peg"(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS-itkO9ia8). Harris often uses unusual instruments in his performances: he plays the didgeridoo, is credited with the invention of a rhythmic percussion instrument, the wobble board, and is associated with the Stylophone, a small electronic keyboard instrument. During the 1960s he became a popular television personality, later presenting shows including Rolf's Cartoon Club, Animal Hospital and various programmes about serious art. In 2005 he painted an official portrait of Queen Elizabeth II that was the subject of a special episode of Rolf on Art. But In 2013 he was charged with nine counts of indecent assault and four of making indecent images of a child, having previously denied any wrongdoing.

Obviously , his reputation recently been damaged by these sex abuse scandals and the sex allegations. (he was charged with indecently assaulting two under-age girls in the 1980s. He is further charged with three offences of indecently assaulting a girl aged 14, in 1986. As a result of a law change, which increased the punishment for offences committed after 1985, the maximum jail term is ten years. And he is also charged with four offences of making indecent images of a child between March and July 2012. The offence carries a maximum ten-year sentence.)And at the same time, his works also be criticized because of the “merchant”, Some art critic said that he paints the same picture all the time or paints the pictures in the same way, other artist also thought that he was not really someone who is very active in the art world, but focus on business and public to make him “sell his works”and be popular .This is the online newspaper of daily mirror, talking ahout his scandals.http://www.mirror.co.uk/all-about/rolf%20harris 

Topic 9 By Elise

Topic 9: Who is Alan Sugar? What is his involvement in popular culture?

Answer:

Sir Alan Sugar, one of the UK’s best-known businessmen and the star of BBC One’s The Apprentice program.

He was born in Hackney, east London, and Sugar left school at 16 and took on a range of jobs – from the back of a van.

His business started with selling electrical products in 1968, aged 21 and he established a company Amstrad.

Company website

Sir Alan Sugar is a key player in the business and media world and one of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs, which was recognized in 2000 when he was knighted for services to industry. Amstrad has become a manufacturer and supplier or Telecoms, Audio, TV, Video and Digital Satellite products and it has established its reputation as making innovative technology accessible to the mass market. Although he has sold Amstrad to BSky but within his Amshold family company there are business such as executive jet firm Amsair and Amsprop, and investment firm.

And now he is knighthood，a net worth of plenty of money and with 3 book that written by him.

three books (include his autobiography)

In addition, Sugar is well known for his opinionated views but he famously caused a storm with his attitude towards women in the workplace. He argues that current law make inequality for women to find jobs. A case in point is that some companies evaluate the women’s CV based the question: whether she plan to have children.

Last not least, Sugar has been a household successful business man since the reality TV show on BBC: The Apprentice. Each week, Sugar ‘fires’ a candidate, until one candidate is left, who is then employed in his company. ‘You’re fired’ has become a very popular catchphrase.

BBC One

The funny moment for Sir Alan Sugar~

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KytKQhtD48Y