Stanislavskis System Essay Example for Free

Stanislavskis System Essay All of our acts, even the simplest, which are so familiar to us in everyday life, become strained when we appear behind the footlights before a public of a thousand people. That is why it is necessary to correct ourselves and learn again how to walk, sit, or lie down. It is essential to re-educate ourselves to look and see, on the stage, to listen and to hear. Stanislavski (Konstantin Stanislavski quotes) Realistic drama was said to be born in the late 1800s, however before that, no director or actor trainer had succeeded in creating a method in order to instil believability in a character through the actor. There were some actors and actresses that used their own individual talent to achieve this, but there was not a developed system or method that one could teach or even pass on to the future generation of actors. In the midst of this thirst of authenticity, Konstantin Stanislavski actor and director extraordinaire developed his own system over a lifetime. When we are on stage, we are in the here and now Stanislavski (Konstantin Stanislavski quotes) Due to the fact that he was born into a wealthy family of merchants, Konstantin Sergeievich Alekseiv, had to begin his service to the family business, but soon realized that nothing could overpower his love for theatre. His family too shared some of his enjoyment for theatre and built him an amateur theatre in which he had his first stage appearances. His family also funded expensive vocal and stage movement lessons from Moscows best teachers. However, his love for theatre intensified to such an extent that in 1884, he was forced to adopt Konstantin Stanislavski as a stage name for his first public debut in order to hide his theatre aspirations from his family. In 1888, although he was still being forced to work in the family business, he co-founded the Moscow Society of Arts and Literature. Being the co-founder of the Moscow Art Theatre helped Stanislavski set up a basis for his own system of training actors. This unique system required actors to research the situation provided by the script according to the characters motivations, create a subtext to their script whereby they show the meaning or the imagination beneath the text their script, and bring to mind their own experiences so that they may use the emotions from their own experiences as emotions for their character in order to make their character more believable. Love art in yourself, not yourself in art. Stanislavski (Konstantin Stanislavski quotes) These requirements forced the actors to perform the actions and reactions of their character based, not only on the actors motivation, but also on the actors personal experiences. It also allowed the actor to match his motivations to that of the character in the script. After having already identified the characters motivations, the actor can recall his emotions and experiences whilst playing the character on stage in order to give a more authentic and convincing performance. His new proposed system for acting had eight questions that the actor must answer in order to build and establish the character. These included: I. Who? II. When? III. Where? IV. What? V. Why? VI. How? VII. What do I need to overcome? VIII. Before time? (Stanislavski for Beginners) These questions helped the actor recognize the characters purpose and establish the actors own movement on stage so that they may be able to project the characters purpose to the audience. Stanislavski developed a number of techniques and principles that he considered fundamental in helping the actor achieve a believable character on stage. Stanislavski felt that most actors assumed that believable acting was derived from simply being natural on stage. However, from his observations, Stanislavski concluded that realistic acting on stage was extremely difficult and can sometimes come across as artificial. Bring yourself to the part of taking hold of a role, as if it were your own life. Speak for your character in your own person. When you sense this real kinship to your part, your newly created being will become soul of your soul, flesh of your flesh. Stanislavski (Konstantin Stanislavski quotes) After having memorized my monologue I figured I knew my character quite well she was a young girl who was sad because her best friend just died. I didnt think I needed to know any more than that in order to deliver a good monologue. However, when the time came to answer the questions above for my character, I resented it and I didnt think it would help in any way. I decided that I would perform my monologue for a class mate before and after answering the questions in order to prove my point. The first thing I realized was that answering those questions was no easy feat for me, which proved how much I didnt know my character. After much use of my imagination, I finally managed to answer the questions in depth. Whilst answering the questions I found out things that never even occurred to me about my character. I felt like I was talking about a real life person who had a past, a present, and even a future. Needless to say, the real impact of what I found out about my character did not hit until I performed my monologue post-questions. I found myself really feeling and actually believing that I was that character and not just impersonating someone. After performing my monologue I honestly felt like I had given birth to an actually human being Undoubtedly, I received the most positive feedback about my monologue post-questions. Some of the principles of the Stanislavski System included: * The actor is aware that the play is fiction, but he must question himself about how he would behave if the situation was real. This helps the actor transform the play as if it were real. * The actor must question himself about his character and must understand not only what, but why he is saying what he is saying and doing what he is doing. * The actor must not get distracted by the audience and must concentrate on what is happening on stage. * The actor must learn how to rid his body of muscle tensions and relax himself so that he may call upon his actions with ease in order to reach his goal as the character. The relaxation and observation exercise was quite an experience for me because I was able to tap into emotions so deep that at times I virtually forgot that I was in Drama class. When Ms. Kennedy was declaring the emotions that we had to feel, experiences that never occurred to me popped up in my head. For instance, when Ms. Kennedy declared that we were to feel jealous, an incident that popped up in my mind was one of which I was unaware that I felt jealous at that moment! I presume that it was my mind reminding me that I was subconsciously jealous at that moment. With every emotion that Ms. Kennedy declared, I found my body subtly changing. This change occurred from the tilt of my head to the direction of my toes. What amazed me the most was that it felt as though my body was changing by itself. The changes were so subtle and gradual at first, and then when they got to be a little more intense was when I realized that I was tapping my toes or holding my breath. I presume that it is these subtle movements and actions that make acting more believable on stage. * The actor must consciously perform the small physical actions that people perform unconsciously do in real like in order to make his character look realistic. When Ms. Kennedy told us to stand up and imitate the actions of the members of my ensemble, I realized how unconsciously we perform little actions that make us who we are. For instance, I am constantly running my hand through my hair because of my fringe that comes in my eyes. I am so used to this action that I do it without being aware of what I am doing. When I did so during this exercise I was taken aback when my ensemble started imitating me and I thought to myself, Did I just do that?. I saw similar reactions from the members of my ensemble. Through these exercises I learnt that it is the little actions that make us unique. * The actor must recall his emotional experiences from his emotional memory. This will bring truth to his character. * The actor must establish good communication with his ensemble (i.e. the other actors on stage) by listening to what they are saying and by looking directly at them, unless when the script requires them not to do so. * It is vital for the actor to understand the play and perform his part with determination. He must also feel for his part to such an extent that his portrayal of the character looks nothing but authentic and convincing on stage. * In order to convince the audience, the actor must use the techniques to call upon memories that help him react to other characters in the play as well as act. This makes his character more believable. (The Stanislavski System) Some techniques of the Stanislavski System include: * Objective Words o The actor must understand the objectives of the character behind each and every line that they say. I used this method to first indentify the intentions of my character behind every line, and then match those intentions with an action. This gave every action behind every line a purpose and made it easier for me to recall my emotional memory when I needed it. * Magic If The actor must connect with the character by asking how he would behave if his characters situation was real and was actually happening to him. This helps the actor think like the character and not just impersonate him. Stanislavskis Magic If and As If has really helped me in my monologue as I have to imagine that I am speaking to a corpse of my best friend. Throughout the monologue, I really enjoy that I am forced to use my imagination and make-believe that a table is a casket and boxes are a deceased human being. Although I dont find it that hard pretending that I am speaking to my deceased friend, I really enjoy the challenge of making my audience believe and see what I am seeing. With more practice and more rehearsal of my monologue, I will be able to make my audience feel not only the pain of losing a friend, but also the pain of my own personal experience that I drew out to play this part. * As If o The actor should get in role and as himself what he would do if here was to be in his characters situation. This brings about convincing actions and reactions for the character. Before I first practiced this technique, I immediately told myself that I would imagine that I was at the funeral of my best friend. However, this will be hard to improvise because I just simply cannot imagine my best friend dying. It is unthinkable. Thus, I decided that I would bring back the memory of when I was at my uncles funeral and use those emotions in the context of my monologue. This helped my monologue significantly as it was easier to bring back emotions of things that have already happened. While I was performing my monologue, I really felt as though I was back at my uncles funeral and I was able to use the emotions I felt then to emphasize the lines of my monologue. Although my uncles funeral was some 5 years ago, this technique helped me realize that those feelings are still alive. Although this technique benefited my monologue, it also benefited my life as when I brought those emotions back I felt that I was able to deal with them better than I did those 5 years ago. * Subtext o The actor must know the emotion and meaning that lays underneath his characters lines. The actor does not speak this, but portrays this though choice of action, gestures, posture, pauses etc. Subtext generally increases the audiences involvement in the play as it acts as a secret between the audience and the character with the subtext as opposed to the other characters present on stage. o Inner Monologue * The actor must know all the thoughts that are going through the characters mind not only while he is speaking his dialogue, but also while he is listening to the other characters on stage. o Mental Images * The actor must bring together all the pictures that he sees in his mind as the character and communicate this to the other actors on stage. This method really taught me how to break down the text of a script and read in between the lines in order to fully understand my character. After I had determined what was going through my characters mind at every line in the play, * Given Circumstances o Whilst building his character, the actor must take into account all the information the playwright has given the actor through the script. This technique helped me exert all the circumstances that my playwright had given me, and with this information I was able to establish my character and her personality more. This technique also taught me how to apply the emotions that I derived from the previous techniques like As If. * Imagination o The actor must work really hard in order to use imagination to fill in the gaps of his characters life where the playwright hasnt given enough information. Imagination was my key component in any Stanislavski technique that I attempted and applied to my monologue. However, Imagination was most useful to me when I first began creating my character and her personality. I used my imagination to first answer my WHERE, WHEN, WHAT, WHY, WHENCE, BEFORE TIME questions which in turn helped me create a really descriptive and in-depth character analysis. Imagination also helped me be less mechanic and more authentic on stage. I used imagination to give life to the words on paper and give life to a real character. This process is really similar to giving birth. * Circles of Attention o Although they are in public and in front of an audience, the actor must feel as though they are alone on stage and they must throw circles of attention on their actions in order to really concentrate. The actor must be able to draw into a small circle of attention, if they need arises, even though he may be performing in front of thousands. It is difficult for the actor to take in whole spaces at once and therefore must focus on the space bit by bit. This will increase the actors attention because as one could have a small, medium or large circle of attention. As the circle grows larger and larger, your concentration it tested at its limits. Thus it is recommended for actors to withdraw to a small circle of attention if they find their attention wavering in order to rebuild into their larger circle of attention. * Perspective o Perspective requires the actor to see their role as a whole. It requires them to sustain their concentration, focus on their objectives and also watch for any problems that could possibly occur on stage. They must develop a pace for their acting as the play unfolds on stage. Funnily enough, Perspective really helped me develop my costume and what message I was wanted to portray with my costume. I was debating to either wear boyish clothes that showed off my characters tom boyishness and establish her to the audience in that manner or to wear girly clothes and emphasize my characters uncomfortable feeling. I chose to go with the second choice to really show how isolated and uncomfortable my character feels in the situation that life thrust her in. For my costume I decided on an off-white skirt with black flower embroidery, topped with a black t-shirt-like blouse and black boots. Although my character hates skirts and anything girly, I am wearing a girly outfit to show that my character is uncomfortable with not only what she is wearing, but where she is, what she is about to do and the situation as a whole. My costume consists mainly of the color black because she is attending a funeral and black is the code mourning color. I am accompanying my outfit with boots to show that my character, although caved in into wearing a skirt and blouse, refused completely to wear high heels or sandals. The boots keep some of my characters personality alive. * Tempo-Rhythm o Tempo * Actors must realize that every action that they have planned will take time and they can either chose to decelerate the tempo whereby they will be giving themselves more time to speak and perform or to accelerate the tempo which would have the opposite effect. o Rhythm * The actor must know how and what to stress while he is on stage in order to portray the message that he is trying to portray. (The Stanislavski System Growth and Methodology) These techniques and principles of the Stanislavski System helps the actor develop an interior monologue for the character, so that each action that the actor takes as the character comes across as spontaneous to the audience. In addition, Stanislavski also believed highly on the use of costumes, sets and props contributing to the realism of the character. He believed that every prop must serve a purpose, and if a prop was placed on stage, then the actor must know the history of the prop in relation to the play (where it was bought, who it was bought by and how it came to be in this particular location). Stanislavski also worked on something called The Method of Physical Actions whereby he focused on physical action encouraging truthful emotion. The main aim was to reach the subconscious mind through the conscious mind. (Method Acting) Due to the fact that the theatre held great social and educational significance for Stanislavski, he found it difficult to separate the social context that was attached to his theatre. He was known to use the stage to reflect the social issues that were occurring during the civil unrest that lead to the Russian Revolution in 1905 and the Soviet Union being established. However, even though he responded to criticism saying that he never staged contemporary Communist plays by directing several plays of revolutionary significance, he was still criticised for catering to progressive middleclass audiences. Thus he refused his company to produce plays that were undeserving of its traditions and high standards in order to maintain his integrity and dignity. Fortunately for Stanislavski, he was caught in the midst of the violence of the revolution and needed to be protected by Lenin from being eradicated alongside the Czar Dom. The communists had elected his system and made the Moscow Art Theatre the fountainhead of social realism. (Stanislavski, Konstantin) His theatre quickly began producing Soviet propaganda due to an allegiance that was being maintained between the USSR and Stanislavskis socially conscious method of production. Needless to say, Stanislavski survived both Russian Revolutions of 1905 and 1917. The Stanislavski System is known to only be as good as the person who uses it. It is not something that will immediately turn a bad actor into a good one, nor will it guarantee success. The Stanislavski System is simply a serious of developments, techniques and ideologies that help the actor make use and develop his skills and talents and to gain control of his gift in order to become a better actor. Using the system requires time and understanding that are not so easily summoned up these days. However, who so ever have studied and have been trained in the Stanislavski System know that it is a diligent method that requires a lot of work, but also makes seem more effortless and believable. Stanislavski always told his actors to leave your ego at the stage door as you come in and those who intend to follow the Stanislavski System must know that it is not solely based on the actor himself. The actor must not only develop his own talent, but must also develop a bond with his ensemble and know that a performance can only be put on when there is trust and dependence among the actors. (Stanislavski and the Actor, 149) Thus I will end with a quote from the master himself, In the creative process there is the father, the author of the play; the mother, the actor pregnant with the part; and the child, the role to be born. (Konstantin Stanislavsky quotes) and say that one must commence on the journey that is the creative process in order to realize the true value of Stanislavskis teachings. Bibliography Allen, David. Stanislavski for Beginners. New York City: Writers Readers Publishing, 1999. Benedetti, Jean. Stanislavski and the Actor: The Method of Physical Action. New York: Theatre Arts Book, 1998. Jones, Trevor, and Bradley W. Bishop. Stanislavski. Untitled Document. 22 Feb. 2009 http://www.kryingsky.com/Stan/Biography/bot.html. Konstantin Stanislavsky quotes. Find the famous quotes you need, ThinkExist.com Quotations.. 22 Feb. 2009 http://thinkexist.com/quotation/love_the_art_in_yourself-not_yourself_in_the/166692.html. Method Acting. Moderntimes: Classic Film Pages. 22 Feb. 2009 http://www.moderntimes.com/palace/method.htm. Stanislavsky, Konstantin: Biography from Answers.com. Answers.com Online Dictionary, Encyclopedia and much more. 26 Feb. 2009 http://www.answers.com/topic/konstantin-stanislavski. Sawoski, Perviz. The Stanislavski System Growth and Methodology. Homepage. 22 Feb. 2009 homepage.smc.edu/sawoski_perviz/Stanislavski.pdf. Stanislavski Quotes. Free Website Hosting Tripod free website templates to make your own free website. 22 Feb. 2009 http://members.tripod.com/~Jim_68/stan.htm. Stanislavskis system Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 22 Feb. 2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanislavskis_system. The Stanislavski System. Teachit. 19 Feb. 2009 www.teachit.co.uk/attachments/stanis.pdf.

Womens Prostitution and the Criminal Justice System Essay -- Female W

In the following assignment, it is my intention to produce a research report, examining women involved in street prostitution and how they end up entering the criminal justice system. Within the report I will look at three pieces of research, review their main findings, the type of research that was used, and look to identify where I believe further research is required. My reason for choosing women in the criminal justice system is that I have expressed an interest in the criminal justice setting and my elective module is in this area. Anything that I learn from undertaking this assignment will aid my understanding and increase my knowledge base when undertaking my second placement. Prostitution has been defined as: "Prostitution involves the exchange of sexual services, sometimes but by no means exclusively, sexual intercourse, for some kind of reward, money, drink, drugs, a meal or a bed for the night" (Shaw & Butler 1998) Another simple definition offered was, prostitution is: "The purchase and sale, involving cash payment of sex" This is the preferred definition of Glasgow's Street Working Women as stated in: Stewart, A (2000). Historical Background ===================== Throughout the UK and internationally, the issue of prostitution is seen as an ever-increasing problem. For the purpose of this assignment I will concentrate on the issue of prostitution within the United Kingdom. There has been a marked rise in the incidence of street prostitution since the 1980s and a growth in the proportion of intravenous drug users involved in street prostitution. In Glasgow, police estimate that ar... ...emale population in Cornton Vale Prison is represented by black or ethnic minorities, (HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland 2001). One Area that could use further research was highlighted in the Herald newspaper this week; it has become a very worrying state that women are apparently being coerced into working in illegal saunas as prostitutes. Sauna owners are buying the women's debt they then 'work' to 'pay off' the debt, according to retired Chief Inspector Nannette Pollock " the wording that refers to these women is debt-bonded", (The Herald 1/11/02) One other area for further research could be the use of language used within the criminal justice system, terms like 'common prostitute' could and should be removed then maybe some of the stigmatisation that these women are subjected to would also be removed.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder- the Things They Carried

Taylor Lineberger Mrs. Eddins English 3 CP December 5, 2012 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a type of anxiety disorder. PTSD usually occurs after someone has seen or experienced a traumatic event that involved the threat of injury and death. It is commonly associated with the soldiers who have fought in wars or conflicts. All of the symptoms of PTSD are classified and categorized into three distinct groups: â€Å"reliving†, avoidance, and arousal. Some of these symptoms include flashbacks, repeated nightmares, detachment, hyper-vigilance, and being easily angered, along with many others. (PubMed Health, PTSD) (*1). According to a survey conducted by the Veteran’s Administration, some 500,000 of 3 million troops suffered from PTSD after the Vietnam War. The survey also states that rates of divorce, suicide, and alcoholism and drug addiction were higher among Vietnam veterans. † (History, Vietnam War) (*2). We may never fully know how much this disorder has truly affected our troops. Most veterans are not open about their condition, however some have accepted it and open up about it. So, how much does PTSD really affect someone? The trauma that causes PTSD is just as unique as the suffering individual themselves. Any fearful trauma can produce symptoms of PTSD. Being in the Vietnam War did not help any of this. These soldiers were torn away from the only things and the home they had ever known and dropped into a foreign place where the situation was â€Å"kill or be killed. † They had no other choice but to be exposed to the unimaginable horrors that awaited them. Cases of people with PTSD are famous for their abuse of drugs or alcohol; however, ex-soldiers have an additional addiction that often lands them in trouble, or jail: an addiction to adrenaline. The one thing that caused them to have this condition may very well be the one thing that decides their fate. Inside every person with PTSD is a time bomb. It is merely a matter of time before symptoms begin to show up. One may exhibit all manner of symptoms in nearly everything they do, and still live what appears to be a normal life. However, it doesn’t take much to bring out full-blown symptoms of a case of PTSD. Retirement and additional stress can be a catalyst to cause the occurrence of symptoms to appear sooner than they normally would. Wellness Directory MN, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) (*3). â€Å"The war was over and there was no place in particular to go† (O’Brien, 131). Thoughts of sorrow and loss overwhelm the Vietnam veterans upon their return back home. Crushed from the horror of war, they have to come back to even bigger disappointments and sadness. Instead of the calm lives they lead before they left their country and the presence of warm and caring everyday life, most of them encounter empty beds, a cold family and overall loss. Already physically and emotionally defeated, they find betrayal instead of recuperating trust. There is nothing to nourish them; they do not find anything to rely on. Even in instances of supportive partners, the inevitable horrors of the war haunt them in sleep or come back to them in daydreaming. They all came back with multitude of disorders, mostly with a post-traumatic stress disorder with the common symptoms of recurring nightmares, hypersensitivity, avoidance behavior, and intrusive thoughts, feelings and memories-commonly found in war vets. â€Å"The Things They Carried† is a documentary novel written by Tim O’Brien, a Vietnam War veteran. There are many stories within the novel that show various examples of post-traumatic stress disorder. According to O'Brien, upon their arrival home the veterans imagine, or even hallucinate, what things would have been like if they had not suffered through the war. Examples of such occurrences exist in the stories â€Å"Speaking of Courage† and â€Å"The Man I Killed. † Norman Bowker in â€Å"Speaking of Courage† dreams and fancies of talking to his ex-girlfriend, now married to another guy, and of his dead childhood friend, Max Arnold. He lives his unfulfilled dream of having his Sally beside him and having manly conversations with Max. He cannot stop day dreaming and dwelling in the past. Unemployed and overwhelmed by inferiority and disappointment, Bowker lacks a motivating force for life. Emotionally stricken, he only finds satisfaction in driving slowly and repeatedly in circles around his old neighborhood in his father's big Chevy, â€Å"feeling safe,† and remembering how things used to be when â€Å"there has not been a war† (O’Brien, 158). These recurring events also spring memories f the beautiful lake where Norman used to spend a lot of time with his now married ex-girlfriend Sally Kramer and his high school friends. The lake invokes nostalgic and sentimental memories both of his girlfriend and his long gone – drowned – best friend, Max Arnold. Nothing fulfills Norman Bowker anymore. Instead, a terrible confusion has taken over his mind in the form of blur and chaos. He d esperately needs someone to talk to. The guys go crazy in their unsuccessful attempts to maintain healthy balance of their minds and spirits. However, even though they might not realize it, or not at least at the time, most of the veterans end up losing sanity. They act upon and laugh at the most bizarre things. In â€Å"How to Tell a True War Story,† Rat Kiley thinks of â€Å"a gore of about twenty zillion dead gook fish† as the â€Å"the funniest thing in world history† (O’Brien, 65). The result of the post traumatic experience of seeing his nineteen-year-old best friend, Curt Lemon’s, body being blown up into pieces by a grenade, is that Rat Kiley takes his anger out on a baby buffalo by shooting him pieces by pieces multiple times. He shoots the animal, until â€Å"nothing moved except the eyes, which were enormous, the pupils shiny black and dumb† at which Dave Jensen, one of the two who collected Lemon's body pieces off of the tree, gets childishly amused† (O’Brien, 76-79). Not realizing his new condition of mental imbalance, Dave Jensen goes on to make jokes and sing about the â€Å"Lemon Tree. † This is a parallel to Dave Jensen's insanity, O'Brian, even after twenty years, still gets woken up by the memories of this event: â€Å"Twenty years later I can see the sunlight on Lemon's face† (O’Brien, 80). As a consequence of PTSD, O'Brien both despises and values the war. Even though Tim O'Brien might not sound very convincing with the credibility of his own memories as a narrative, the post-traumatic stress disorder remains a scientific certainty. The results of the trauma soldiers suffered in the war, along with the emotional baggage, (grief, terror, love, and longing) show of all of the veterans' post-war turmoil and heartache.Sources:*1: Vorvick, Linda J. and Timothy Rogge. â€Å"Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). † PubMed Health. N. p. , 13 Feb. 2012. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. . *2: â€Å"Vietnam War. † History. N. p. , 2003. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. . *3: â€Å"Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. † Wellness Directory MN. N. p. , 2006. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. .

George Carruthers and the Spectrograph

George Carruthers has gained international recognition for his work which focuses on ultraviolet observations of the earths upper atmosphere and of astronomical phenomena. Ultraviolet light is the electromagnetic radiation between visible light and x-rays. George Carruthers first major contribution to science was to lead the team that invented the far ultraviolet camera spectrograph. What Is a Spectrograph? Spectrographs are images which use a prism (or a diffraction grating) to show the spectrum of light produced by an element or elements. George Carruthers found the proof of molecular hydrogen in interstellar space by using a spectrograph. He developed the first moon-based space observatory, an ultraviolet camera (see photo) that was carried to the moon by Apollo 16 astronauts in 1972*. The camera was positioned on the moons surface and allowed researchers to examine the Earths atmosphere for concentrations of pollutants. Dr. George Carruthers received a patent for his invention the Image Converter for Detecting Electromagnetic Radiation especially in Short Wave Lengths on November 11, 1969 George Carruthers Work With NASA He has been the principal investigator for numerous NASA and DoD sponsored space instruments including a 1986 rocket instrument that obtained an ultraviolet image of Comet Halley. His most recent on the Air Force ARGOS mission captured an image of a Leonid shower meteor entering the earths atmosphere, the first time a meteor has been imaged in the far ultraviolet from a space-borne camera. George Carruthers Biography George Carruthers was born in Cincinnati Ohio on October 1, 1939, and grew up in South Side, Chicago. At the age of ten, he built a telescope, however, he did not do well in school studying math and physics but still went on to win three science fair awards. Dr. Carruthers graduated from Englewood High School in Chicago. He attended the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, where he received a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering in 1961. Dr. Carruthers also obtained his graduate education at the University of Illinois, completing a masters degree in nuclear engineering in 1962 and a doctorate in aeronautical and astronautical engineering in 1964. Black Engineer of the Year In 1993, Dr. Carruthers was one of the first 100 recipients of the Black Engineer of the Year award honored by US Black Engineer He has also worked with NRLs Community Outreach Program and several outside education and community outreach organizations in support of educational activities in science at Ballou High School and other DC area schools. *Description of Photos This experiment constituted the first planetary-based astronomy observatory and consisted of a tripod-mounted, 3-in electronographic Schmidt camera with a cesium iodide cathode and film cartridge. Spectroscopic data were provided in the 300- to 1350-A range (30-A resolution), and imagery data were provided in two passbands (1050 to 1260 A and 1200 to 1550 A). Difference techniques allowed Lyman-alpha (1216-A) radiation to be identified. The astronauts deployed the camera in the shadow of the LM and then pointed it toward objects of interest. Specific planned targets were the geocorona, the earths atmosphere, the solar wind, various nebulae, the Milky Way, galactic clusters and other galactic objects, intergalactic hydrogen, solar bow cloud, the lunar atmosphere, and lunar volcanic gasses (if any). At the end of the mission, the film was removed from the camera and returned to earth.George Carruthers principal investigator for the Lunar Surface Ultraviolet Camera, discusses the instru ment with Apollo 16 Commander John Young, right. Carruthers is employed by the Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C. From left are Lunar Module Pilot Charles Duke and Rocco Petrone, Apollo Program Director. This photograph was taken during an Apollo lunar surface experiments review in the Manned Spacecraft Operations Building at the Kennedy Space Center.