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In Don, Shahrukh Khan says 'I am the King' towards the end of the movie. It made me feel as if it was not Don the character, but the real Shahrukh Khan who was saying this because it is the summary of the aura that he possesses to dominate Bollywood for 21 years, despite the roadblocks that he has suffered in his personal and professional life.
Bollywood is like a see-saw, where every Friday the tables can turn with so many actors having that strong desire of making it big in the industry. There are two other Khans he has had to contend with – Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. Although both the actors have created a niche of their own, I have no hesitation in rating Shahrukh Khan higher than both of them and it is no surprise that those two have remained behind him for the majority of their careers in terms of popularity and box-office success.
'King Khan' was born on November 2, 1965 in Delhi where he spent his entire childhood in the famous area of Rajender Nagar. His parents were said to be of Pathan descent as his father, Taj Mohammad Khan was a freedom fighter from Peshawar which was in India at a point of time while his mother Lateef Fatima was from Rawalpindi. Incidentally, 'Shah Rukh' means the face of a king in the Persian language. He also has an elder sister whose name is Shahnaz.
His schooling took place in St. Columba's school where he was an all-rounder, excelling in sports such as cricket, football and hockey being captain of all the three teams which explains the reason why he owns teams such as Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL and the Mumbai franchise of the upcoming Indian car racing league . His record in academics was enviable, in which he scored above 90% in all subjects. While he also participated in several drama competitions, which can describe his initial affinity for films. His success in school life won him the Sword of Honour, an honour bestowed to the student who best represents the spirit of the school as well as laid the roots for a fine career and thus lifestyle.
Shahrukh Khan college life was also sophisticated as he graduated from Hansraj College in the field of Economics and this was crucial in developing his outstanding business acumen. While for post-graduation, he wished to pursue a degree in Mass Communications at Jamia Millia Islamia which helped him in developing his infectious presentation skills and other parts of his speech. But he dropped out after he did a bit of soul-searching and decided to take up acting as his profession in the near future.
He then decided to enroll himself for acting classes to develop his talent, under the mentorship of the famed Barry John who owned the Theatre Action Group (TAG) in Delhi. Following that, he made his debut in the television series Fauji as Commando Abhimanyu Rai and won accolades for his performances. With his appearance in another series 'Circus' produced by Aziz Mirza, he was compared slightly to the legendary Dilip Kumar due to his looks and style of acting.
However, 1991 was the most eventful year of his life. He had to suffer from the trauma of losing both his parents (which perhaps played catalyst to his smoking habits) and moved to Mumbai with his pockets almost empty, in an attempt to make himself big in Bollywood while at the same time pursue his Hindu lady love, Gauri Chibber. He married Gauri in October 1991 despite being unemployed, but then the turnaround happened.
William Shakespeare had written in his play Julius Caesar that "You are the architect of your fortunes". Shahrukh Khan is a living example of this statement and he strived and struggled for close to a year in Mumbai before finally making his debut in the film Deewana as the character Raja Sahai, and the movie was a huge hit in the Indian box-office. This is what he needed to launch his career and for his performance, he was rewarded with the Filmfare Award for the best male debutant in the year 1992.
That year also saw Shah Rukh featuring in four more films, Idiot, Chamatkar where he was given due recognition for his role as Sunder Shrivastava who was an innocent, dim-witted man with Naseeruddin Shah and Urmila Matondkar also starring in the film, Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman in which he was cast with one of his good friends Juhi Chawla for the first time as he played the lead role of Raju and lastly Dil Aashna Hai, which was not that big a hit. Yet, his first year in Bollywood made him the sought after actor in the industry and it was a prelude for Aamir Khan and Salman Khan to be put in the backseat, despite making their debuts in the late 1980s.
The films in which SRK acted in 1993 established his stature as a legend in the making, as he played the villain as a different role altogether, in both Darr and Baazigar. Darr was the first instance of Shah Rukh working with Yash Raj Films, a production company with which he was likely to build one of the most beautiful relationships with in the future. His role of an obsessive lover to Juhi Chawla won him many praises, and his dialogue 'K K K Kiran' is in the lips of film buffs till date.
Shahrukh Khan modified the conventional role of a villain in a Hindi film by portraying his own style of negativity with panache in the movie Baazigar where he plays a man filled with revenge and in the process explicitly murders his girlfriend. This was his first pairing with Kajol, with whom he was to form one of the finest on-screen couples in Bollywood history. The Baazigar effort won him the 1993 Filmfare Award for the Best Actor for the first time. While he also won his second award which was the of the Filmfare Critics for the Best Performance, due to his role as Sunil, a young musician in Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, which is considered by many die-hard SRK fans as one of the numero uno films he has ever acted in.
Earlier in the year 1993 he was involved in controversy for being involved in a passionate sex scene in the movie Maya Memsaab with Deepa Sahi, who was in real life the wife of the director of the movie Ketan Mehta. But the controversy died out during the course of the year, with SRK benefitting the most from it as he was in the Bollywood gossip for a long period of time. His other film, King Uncle was a damp squib.
He teamed up with the gorgeous Madhuri Dixit in Anjaam in 1994, in what was his third movie where he was seen playing a negative role, to be more precise that of a psycho lover. Despite the film not attracting cash counters of cinemas, SRK managed to win another Filmfare Award but this time for Best Actor in Negative Role.
But he bettered the year 1993 with an outstanding 1995, confirming that he was by far one of the top actors in the industry. It began with Karan Arjun, where he teamed up with his friend-turned-bitter foe Salman Khan and opposite SRK was Kajol acting. Rakesh Roshan's film was a super hit as the idea of rebirth of a person to take revenge against his enemy seemed to capture the imagination of Indian audiences.
But the ultimate movie of all, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge released in this very year with Kajol again starring opposite him. Aditya Chopra, the son of Yash Chopra had a fabulous directorial debut, as he made people change their perceptions of SRK, who proved that he was to become the 'king of romance' in the time to come. It was a perfect love story which has lasted for now over 15 years at the Maratha Mandir in Mumbai where the movie is still shown. Shah Rukh played the role of a young lover, who was yet cool and funny in his approach to life of the 90s to perfection, which won him the Filmfare Best Actor Award once again and the movie won as many as 10 awards in the same event. In the box office, it was easily the highest earning movie in terms of revenue.
His four other films in the year were average and it led to a disastrous 1996 with all his three films not being upto the mark. However, he was to shift into an apartment of his own in the posh area of Bandra in the year and in his personal life, he was to face joy with the birth of his son Aryan Khan. 1997 also saw a magnificent comeback with Yes Boss which was his first romantic comedy movie, with Juhi Chawla opposite him again. This was followed by a critically acclaimed performance as Arjun, a true lover in Subhash Ghai's Pardes, who loved a woman for the Indian traditional values she possessed. There was more romance to follow with the movie Dil to Pagal Hai, another Yash Raj Films venture which was a superhit. Shah Rukh Khan won his third Filmfare Award for the Best Actor, for the role of Rahul, a stage director who is involved in a love triangle with Madhuri Dixit and Karishma Kapoor.
The year 1998 saw his female fan following increase with the film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai which was Karan Johar's first film as director, and Johar went on to become SRK's best buddy. The movie starred Kajol, with whom SRK paired for the fourth time and Rani Mukherji, who was making her debut.
The film talked about falling in love in college life, which attracted the youth to watch it and one of his dialogues 'Squeeze me' is used often by boys in Indian colleges to show off their style to flirt with girls. Khan's character Rahul Khanna proved that there can be no difference between friendship and love between a boy and girl if the feeling is strong, but since a huge difference does exist, it can destroy relationships. The movie was the first to be a pioneer in being a sell-out in international markets, having grossed USD $34.58 million.
But coming back to SRK, it had now been taken for granted that any of his top-notch performances especially with the movie being a hit, had to win him the Filmfare Best Actor Award and this was for the second consecutive time. He had now become a cult figure, especially amongst the youth and females going gaga with his cuteness; although by that time he turned 33.
Earlier in 1998 though, he returned to play the villain, but it was a double role in the film Duplicate, where he played the innocent Bablu and the gangster Manu. While his other acclaimed movie Dil Se which was directed by Mani Ratnam, was a hit amongst film critics in which SRK falls in love with a mysterious woman terrorist. The film will also be remembered for the song 'Chaiyya Chaiyya' where Shah Rukh dances with Malaika Arora Khan on the top of a moving train.
1999 was another tough year for him to contend with, following one release and that not faring well in the box office. Baadshah was a rare movie in which SRK played an uncharacteristic role of a detective, who was sharp but flippant which was comic. This was the movie which makes people call him the 'Baadshah of Bollywood' just like Amitabh Bachchan is called 'Shahenshah'. However the 90s was definitely his decade with no other actor coming near to him when it came to having the maximum impact in the minds of the Indian and world audiences.
His daughter, Suhana Khan was born in the year 2000 which gave him the utmost happiness in an otherwise just above average year professionally. He starred in another Yash Raj film, Mohabbatein alongside the legendary Bachchan and several other debutants such as Uday Chopra, Jimmy Shergill and Jugal Hansraj. He played the role of an unconventional college teacher, who advocated the principle of enjoying life like a young boy or man, to spread happiness to others as well. It was both a box-office and critics' success as SRK won the Filmfare Critics Award for the Best Actor for the second time in his career, an award which then would not have attracted him so much as the Best Actor Award.
His other film Josh, again with the beautiful Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was an average grosser with Shah Rukh's role of a tough Goa-based gangster reminding many of his role in Duplicate. His third movie of that year, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani was produced by his new production company Dreamz Unlimited. This was another average movie but as SRK says that whatever roles he has performed till date, he leaves a part of himself in it. This movie showed his patriotic side which he portrayed in a sweet and funny manner, with his business partner Juhi Chawla starring opposite him.
Come 2001 and SRK was to collaborate again with KJo (Karan Johar), in his second directorial venture which was Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, a movie which is known over the years for an influential star cast as SRK was paired opposite Kajol, but had Amitabh Bachchan playing the role of his rich and rigid father while Jaya Bachchan played his loving mother.
He acted with his current pal Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor for the first time. SRK played the role of a man filled with class and maturity, yet with a heart to fall for a girl who was much poorer to him, with elegance. He was nominated for the Best Actor Award but the movie crossed over $ USD 19 million worldwide, making it a huge commercial success of 2001.
Shah Rukh experimented with Indian history by taking up the role of Asoka, the emperor with Kareena starring opposite him this time, the first of many such instances. In India, the movie performed below-average but it was internationally acclaimed, having been screened in Venice and Toronto film festivals respectively.
But 2002 saw his magnum opus performance as in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas, which again brought up comparisons with Dilip Kumar's performances in the old Devdas with some considering SRK's effort far better.
The scene where he breaks a whiskey bottle on his head is a huge hit amongst fans, as he played the role of a depressed and rebellious man who was denied to pursue his love, played by Aishwarya Rai due to his family. It was not only a critical and commercial success in India and abroad, but also won the Baadshah another Best Actor Award.
The film ended with 10 Filmfare Awards and was nominated as India's Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars, not to mention a special screening at Cannes Film Festival.
Till the end of 2003, SRK was out of the wild until he came up with another role which would make even the most strongest of people weep. It was the role of Aman Mathur, a young, vibrant man full of life in the movie Kal Ho Naa Ho.
He had a perennial heart problem which made him sacrifice his love for Naina played by Preity Zinta and instead be her match maker to her best friend, Rohit played by Saif Ali Khan. His comedy with Saif was put beautifully, lightening the mood of what would have been a boring movie otherwise. But the important message his character gave is that it is important to smile and being happy living in the present, because you never know what tomorrow holds for you.
The following year though was one of the King's very best as he revamped his production company Dreamz Unlimited which was not gaining much success, and renamed it as Red Chillies Entertainment which has existed till date and has produced some of the most high quality Hindi movies since the last eight years.
He produced the film Main Hoon Na, with his being the launch pad of his friend and noted choreographer Farah Khan's directorial tenure. He starred in the film as well playing the role of Major Ram Prasad Sharma, which won him the appreciation of many critics although the movie was nothing great as such.
The same year though, saw him play the role of Veer Pratap Singh in yet another romantic Yash Raj film called Veer Zaara where he was paired opposite Preity Zinta who played the role of a Pakistani girl. This Indo-Pak love story was an indication that the strained relations between the countries had a scope to improve while ofcourse the main message being that love owes no boundaries, as SRK at the age of 39 was able to pull off the role of a lover in style.
His next film, Swades which was directed by the talented Ashutosh Gowariker made many respect him and not just love him for his acting. He went one step further to play the role of Mohan Bhargava, an NRI working for NASA, who gradually developed the love for his country and was moved by the plight of the poor people in the villages. This performance won him the Best Actor Award for the sixth time, which was way ahead of his contemporaries and resurgent competitors. This film could have been responsible for Shah Rukh funding a power project in five villages in Bihar in real life.
2005 was another dampener of a year for him as he turned 40, but his movie Paheli in which he was cast for the umpteenth time opposite Rani Mukherjee, was an international success with there being an Oscar's nomination for being India's official entry.
Come 2006 and SRK defying age found his prime. He starred in yet another KJo directed melodrama called Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, in the role of Dev Saran, a promising football player whose career comes to an end with an accident and as a result he becomes bitter towards his wife (played by Preity again) because of her success professionally. It was a commercial success abroad more than India and one of the highest grossing films of the year, as SRK had now made a name for himself across the globe with his work.
It was followed by the movie Don – The Chase Begins Again in the Diwali of 2006, with Shah Rukh Khan playing Don, the same role that Amitabh Bachchan played in the 1978 version of this movie. And SRK proved why he is the ideal No.2 to Bachchan when it comes to the list of Bollywood actors of all time, as he played a double role of the simplistic Vijay and the high profile international criminal Don equally well. The movie captured a significant mindshare in the star-struck India and SRK fans across the world, which prompted the producers to make a sequel to the movie and consequently, Don 2 released in December 2011.
His performance was even better than what it was five years ago, with this being his latest release. He made the Amitabh Bachchan dialogue 'Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahi, naamumbkin hai' (It is not just difficult to catch Don, but it is impossible) famous amongst many in his own style, especially kids even below the age of 10. Both the Don movies show his glamorous side and it kept his critics' mouth shut who believe that he is still not a versatile actor, since he hesitates to perform action on-screen. Don 2 especially saw action scenes of international class, which were reminiscent of Hollywood movies such as Prison Break with SRK jumping off a building from a height of approximately 300 feet.
He decided to return to the television screens to connect to a wider audience, by accepting an offer to host the popular game show, Kaun Banega Crorepati which is a Hindi adaptation of 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire', in January 2007 replacing Bachchan once again. He did not have the charisma as him, but his way of being humorous as a TV presenter and his oratory skills won him appreciation from many. This lasted for three months, as he wished to discontinue following Amitabh wanting to return to the show.
But the channel Star Plus signed a contract with him to host the show 'Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hai', a copy of USA's 'Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?' It was another quiz show but of a different kind. This stint lasted for another three months span with the channel wishing to shut shop off the show mainly due to SRK's date problems. But come February 2011 and he was back on the small screen but with a different channel and show. On NDTV Imagine, he hosted a show called Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout, an adaptation of USA's Wipeout. It was a 24-day show. The last of Shah Rukh's stints on Indian television was on his buddy and director Karan Johar's popular show on Star World called Koffee with Karan where he appears once every season to talk more about himself and present the truth of the events in his life to Indian viewers, who want to know so much about him.
Coming back to the movies, 2007 was the year which earned the King the maximum of commercial success as well as critics' nods. In the summer, Yash Raj Films produced an unconventional themed movie as per their production. 'Chak de India' was a movie based on the lowly ranked Indian women's hockey team which rises from the bottom to become world champions against all odds. SRK plays Kabir Khan, the suave looking and unselfish coach of the team. The passion with which he approaches the sport was effortless, and so the performance was energetic considering the fact that he was reminded of his youth when he was the captain of his school hockey team. Besides, he equaled the record of being the only lead actor in a movie with 16 girls to act with, Rishi Kapoor being the first to do so in Bollywood. All these factors combined in his seventh Best Actor Award victory.
The other movie was Om Shanti Om, again during the Diwali of 2007 which has now become one of his lucky dates in the calendar year. It was typically a past time, entertainer-type movie with the theme of reincarnation once again discussed about, as in Karan Arjun. This was Farah Khan's second directorial venture and the movie was a huge commercial hit with Shah Rukh playing the role of a junior artiste Omprakash Makhija and the superstar Om Kapoor in style. His performance celebrated the evolution of Bollywood over the years and was versatile enough with there being enough drama, comedy, romance and action. SRK had specially built 6 pack abs due to a promise he had kept to Farah for appearing in a song with them, in one of her films since he could not during Main Hoon Na because he was injured. The item number "Dard-e-Disco' was a revolution, topping the song charts for weeks.
However, since 2008 SRK has changed his style of working in films. He decided to be involved in only one release every year on an average, with two being the maximum limit. This is so that his films have more impact on the audience, who would be dying to see him on screen. As a result, he featured in only one movie, i.e., Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi which was Aditya Chopra's third film as director and another Yash Raj piece.
This was a typical love story, but based in Punjab. Anushka Sharma the debutant, was paired opposite SRK who is close to twice her age. The movie was well received by many, with the Baadshah's role as Raj, the fun-loving guy attracting the young male lovers while Suri, the simple and shy geek was a resemblance of a pure heart which had nothing but true love in it for his partner, who did not care for his love until the end of the movie! It was a blockbuster, bettering Aamir Khan's Ghajini which released some weeks later. In both Indian and international markets.
The year also marked Shah Rukh buying the Kolkata franchise of the BCCI's Indian Premier League for a massive $USD 75.09 million.
He named his team 'Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) in order to appeal the youth to support the team. The auction followed where the best T20 Cricket players in world cricket were in this team, making it one of the pre-tournament favourites. The likes of West Indies' Chris Gayle, Australia captain Ricky Ponting, the Kiwi Brendon McCullum, the Australia duo of David Hussey and Brad Hodge as well as the then upcoming Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma were picked in the squad, with the local hero Sourav Ganguly declared as captain and icon player.
The first season, though ended in a damp squib as the team finished sixth out of eight teams in the competition despite a 158 by McCullum in the curtain opener against the Royal Challengers Bangalore as SRK danced if he had never done in a movie. Yet, KKR was the most profitable and successful franchise, with more than $USD 3 million as profit unlike the other seven franchises who struggled to break in the very first year.
Shah Rukh Khan and Sourav Ganguly seemed to be having issues with each other in terms of man-management and other administrative decisions. Which is perhaps the reason why Ganguly was removed as captain the very last minute to be replaced by McCullum for the second season which was to be held in South Africa, as SRK believed that the coach's role was important in guiding the team to better performances. Kolkata finished at the bottom of the table but again were the most successful of all teams, as they were rated the highest in terms of brand value. It went to show SRK's intelligence when it comes to marketing and the brand that he is in the eyes of Indian consumers. Currently, he has 21 endorsements which is the highest for any celebrity in India, with MS Dhoni, the Indian captain being second with 20. This shows that Shah Rukh is the man most Indians relate to, better than anyone else.
Kolkata's commercial success continued in the third season but the reverse was happening on the field as the team again finished sixth despite Ganguly's return as captain. This is where his patience was tested, and fortunately he had the option to revamp the entire roster for the 2011 season. SRK faced huge flak for not picking Ganguly in the team, but it was a successful marketing strategy for Kolkata to top the popularity charts again. Gautam Gambhir, incidentally from the area in Delhi where Shah Rukh used to live in his childhood, was appointed as captain of the side and by the end of the auction, KKR had the record of picking two of the most expensive players officially ever in IPL history. Gambhir was picked for $2,400,000 while the hard-hitting Indian all-rounder Yusuf Pathan was picked for $2,100,000. The other popular players in the side are South African legend Jacques Kallis, Australian Brett Lee, Englishman Eoin Morgan and Bangladesh's Shakib al Hasan.
And the turnaround began. Since SRK's focus was 60% on the on-field performance and 40% off the field, the vision of KKR changed. Eden Gardens in Kolkata did see predominantly empty seats for some of the matches at the beginning of the tournament perhaps in protest of Ganguly's absence from the team, but the stadium started to fill up again as the team begun to win more matches than they lost. For the first time, the team had qualified into the last four only to lose to Mumbai Indians in the knockout match. Although the team earned lesser profits than in the first three years and losing out to Chennai Super Kings in terms of brand value, it was a small price to pay for a good performance for audiences to appreciate.
Kolkata somehow qualified for the Champions League 2011 as the fourth Indian team out of the ten teams from across the world playing. The team was unfortunately knocked out of the first round due to a low net run-rate, despite staging an impressive comeback in the last two games. But it gained more appreciation with SRK playing a double role here too, being KKR's owner as well as the brand ambassador of the Champions League. It is expected that the team has a better 2012, and perhaps go on to win the IPL first.
This was all about cricket. Returning to Shah Rukh's movies, there was not much of him in 2009 with guest appearances in Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance, his home production Billu where he played Sahir Khan the superstar, who was the reflection of the real life SRK to some extent and lastly Dulha Mil Gaya.
But come February 2010, and he was reunited with Kajol on-screen by Kjo in his directed 'My Name is Khan'. SRK made it look like he had natural talent in his acting when he played the role of Rizwan Khan, a liberal Muslim who suffered from Asperger's syndrome and yet inspiringly travelled across the USA to meet the President of the country only to tell them that Muslims are not terrorists as they were projected to be, after the September 2001 World Trade Centre attacks in New York.
Once again, his brilliant marketing skills came to the fore as it seemed like he was purposely detained at New York Airport in real life during a promotional tour because of his surname 'Khan' which was the same as some terrorists in the US watch list.
While in India, he used the IPL to promote the film as the issue going on those days was that of permitting Pakistani cricketers to play in the tournament. Since this issue contained Islamic sentiments, SRK said that they should be allowed, although he did not pick any player in the IPL auction due to pressure from the Indian government or as a compromise with the other seven teams. It created a huge uproar with Shiv Sena, a radical political party in Mumbai threatening SRK, but the issue died down after the film's release. In India, the film did reasonably well but internationally the thoughts portrayed through the film were given accolades and the King's portrayal as an autistic man was given huge approval by autistic centres across the world. The role also won SRK the Filmfare best actor award for the eighth time, equalling the record of one of his idols Dilip Kumar.
Following this film, it seemed as if the actor had taken a sabbatical but returned with his most ambitious project till date, Ra.One which he promoted vigorously during the Champions League T20 2011 as its brand ambassador.
The movie attempted to match up to international standards with SRK leaving no stone unturned in making it atleast a commercial success, by working day and night with the best available technicians, scriptwriters, directors to name a few.
It is the most expensive film ever made in Bollywood and the second most in Indian cinema, as it took close to $USD 25 million, with shooting taking place in London and Mumbai and in the Red Chillies VFX Studios with the maximum of special effects. But only SRK seems to have the money, desire and the class to make Indian cinema go global in its approach, unlike his competitors and this is his unique selling point (USP).
The movie did extremely well across the world as profits were made from day 1 itself, which was again Diwali in the year 2011. The song 'Chammak Challo' was one of the few Hindi songs sung by an American, i.e. Akon and is a blockbuster song till date. Ra One easily beat Salman Khan's Bodyguard by being a higher grosser in foreign markets. While 2011 ended for SRK with another superhit, Don 2.
Besides his professional life, it is said that he is arrogant, which is a misperception. He has been involved in immense charity work but never talks about it much in the media. He is one of the members of the Board of Directors of the Make-a-Wish foundation in India and has helped the Indian government in several health campaigns such as polio, AIDs and the National Rural Health Mission. In Mumbai's Nanavati Hospital, he created a children's ward in the memory of his mother. Last year, he collaborated with Amitabh Bachchan and James Bond's character 'M', Judi Rench to promote Oscar-winning sound mixer Resul Pookutty's foundation which helps in improving the living conditions of underprivileged children in India.
While in his personal life, he is a loving husband and a doting father to his children. He has had no major link-ups with his co-stars and his squeaky clean image makes him dear to all. Despite being a staunch Muslim, he does worship Hindu gods due to his wife being a Hindu. He owns one of the biggest mansions by a Bollywood actor, 'Mannat' which is again in the posh Bandra area of Mumbai
He made it big in the industry in tough times and he had nobody's favours unlike Aamir Khan and Salman Khan, two of his biggest rivals. Besides, Aamir has the intellectual capacity while Salman has raw talent, but SRK has proved it for 20 years in the running that to be successful in your profession, it is not talent but attitude that matters the most. He is an all-round actor, despite not being the best in terms of both looks and skills.
And this is a reason why Shah Rukh Khan should be a role model for everyone, especially for youngsters who aspire to become something substantial in life on his own ability. The motto to his success is simply 'Hardwork and intelligence'. When these two combine in a person, he can do wonders to the world in whatever he chooses to do.
Therefore it is no surprise that he is also known as a 'global Indian'.


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50 insightful entries examining the self-proclaimed urban elite. Skinny jeans? Check. Charity-shop clothing? Check. Non-essential prescription glasses? Check. Beanie balanced artfully on the back of your skull? Check. These items have become the uniform for a new breed of young people - hipsters - determined to take over cities with their "alternative" ways whilst overloading on irony and striving to be original and creative. So You Think You're a Hipster? examines what it takes to become one of this ever-growing tribe of middle-class urbanites, just as desperate to be accepted by their peers as they are to receive the next rent cheque from mum and dad. Over the following pages a series of hilarious case studies will identify typical examples of the subculture, helping you to avoid any future encounters with them. Take thrift-store guy, who at 35 still works selling worn sneakers and threadbare t-shirts for extortionate amounts and still dreams of one day getting his latest album reviewed on Pitchfork. Or the aspiring author who lugs around an oldfashioned typewriter to write down her inspirational musings at a moments notice. Then there's ironic moustache man whose facial hair makes him feel like a highly individual fashion maverick, despite the fact all his graphic designer friends have one, too.
About the Author
Kara Simsek is a journalist specializing in music and the arts, but her true passion is writing about people with 'weird' or 'unconventional' lifestyles. She has written for Vice, Dazed and Confused, The Sun, Metro, The Independent and more. She also watches a LOT of Twin Peaks.
Audience: General
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 128
Published: 1st March 2013
Publisher: Ryland, Peters & Small Ltd
Country of Publication: GB
Dimensions (cm): 13.1 x 19.2 x 1.6
Weight (kg): 0.3
Edition Number: 1

subset: commoncrawl


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We're pleased to announce that we've released new screenshots for Dishonored. You can check these out on the newly launched official site – www.dishonored.com. Bookmark the page today and keep an eye out for new updates.
You can also stay up to speed on everything Dishonored by visiting the official Facebook page.


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All quotes tagged Saying
(7442 quotes found)
"Americans have different ways of saying things. They say "elevator", we say "lift"... they say "President", we say "stupid psychopathic git."
"Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment."
"There's an old saying in Tennessee - I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee...that says, fool me once, shame on...shame on you. Fool me...you can't get fooled again."
"You are always a valuable, worthwhile human being -- not because anybody says so, not because you're successful, not because you make a lot of money -- but because you decide to believe it and for no other reason."
"It is perfectly monstrous the way people go about nowadays saying things against one, behind one's back, that are absolutely and entirely true."
"I once sent a dozen of my friends a telegram saying 'flee at once - all is discovered.' They all left town immediately."
"A good listener tries to understand what the other person is saying. In the end he may disagree sharply, but because he disagrees, he wants to know exactly what it is he is disagreeing with."


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Welcome back to Mets Chat Room.
The news doesn't look encouraging for Carlos Delgado. It's going to be more than the ten days. … Oliver Perez tries to get on track tonight. … Orlando Hernandez is still on for tomorrow.
These topics, plus the game, and whatever else is on your mind is welcome. Looking forward to talking with you throughout the game.


text:
|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|Sep 27, 2011
|Filing date
|Jul 13, 2005
|Priority date
|Jul 16, 1998
|Fee status
|Also published as
|Publication number
|F. Joseph Pompei
|Original Assignee
|Massachusetts Institute Of Technology
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (88), Non-Patent Citations (14), Referenced by (27), Classifications (19), Legal Events (1)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/300,022 filed Apr. 27, 1999 now abandoned entitled PARAMETRIC AUDIO SYSTEM, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/116,271 filed Jul. 16, 1998 now abandoned entitled PARAMETRIC AUDIO SYSTEM.
This invention relates to the projection of audio signals to apparent sources removed from the transducers that generate these signals. More specifically, it relates to a parametric sound system that directs an ultrasonic beam, modulated with an audio signal, toward a desired location, with non-linearity of the atmospheric propagation characteristics demodulating the signal at locations distant from the signal source.
It is well known that an ultrasonic signal of sufficiently high intensity, amplitude-modulated with an audio signal, will be demodulated on passage through the atmosphere, as a result of a non-linear propagation characteristics of the propagation medium. Prior systems based on this phenomenon have been used to project sounds from a modulated ultrasonic generator to other locations from which the sounds appear to emanate. Specifically, arrays of ultrasonic transducers have been proposed for projecting audio-modulated ultrasonic beams, which can be steered to move the locations of the apparent sources of the demodulated audio contents. Moreover, the audio signals regenerated along the path of the ultrasonic beam are characterized by directivity corresponding to that of the beam. The signals can thus be directed to a particular location, with the audio signals being received at that location and not at other locations disposed away from the beam axis.
The directivity of the audio signals is maintained when the ultrasonic beam is reflected from a surface and, in fact, a proposed beam steering arrangement involves the use of a rotatable reflecting surface. On the other hand, if the beam is projected to a surface that absorbs acoustical energy at ultrasonic frequencies but reflects it at audio frequencies, the audio content of the signal will be reflected with reduced directivity, with the sound appearing to originate at the point of reflection. These characteristics give rise to a number of highly useful applications of these systems. For example, one may direct the ultrasonic beam so as to track a moving character that is projected on a screen and the apparent source of the sound will move across the screen along with the character. One may project the beam at a stationary or moving individual in an area in which other individuals are also positioned and the demodulated sound will be heard by that individual, largely to the exclusion of others. Similarly, one may project the beam into an area so that individuals who pass into the area will receive a message keyed to that location. For example, in an art gallery, messages keyed to individual paintings may be projected into the areas in front of the paintings.
With such useful applications for parametric sonic beam technology, one would expect it to have a wide commercial application. This has not been the case, however, and it appears that several factors have militated against commercial acceptance. For example, the transducer arrays that project the ultrasonic beams have heretofore been expensive to manufacture and characterized by low efficiency converting electrical energy into acoustical energy, resulting in bulky and cumbersome systems.
Moreover, the transducers have been characterized by a narrow bandwidth, making it difficult to compensate for distortion as discussed herein.
Another deficiency in prior systems has been the use of a relatively low ultrasonic carrier frequency, e.g., 40 kHz, which can result in modulation components whose frequencies are close to the upper limit of human audibility. Thus the intensities of these components can be such as to damage human hearing without the victims being aware of the high-intensity environment and thus being unaware of the harm to which they are subjected. Moreover, these components are well within the hearing range of household pets and can be very annoying or harmful to them as well. With inefficient transducers it is impractical to use higher frequencies, since atmospheric absorption of ultrasonic energy increases rapidly as a function of frequency.
A parametric system incorporating the invention uses carrier frequencies substantially higher than those of prior systems. Specifically, I prefer to use a carrier frequency of at least 60 kHz. The modulation products thus have frequencies which are well above the audible range of humans and these signals are therefore likely harmless to individuals who are within the ultrasonic fields of the system. It should be emphasized that, as used herein, the term "modulation" refers broadly to the creation of an ultrasonic signal in accordance with an information-bearing signal, whether or not the information-bearing signal is actually used to modify the carrier; for example, the composite signal (i.e., the varied carrier) may be synthesized de novo.
To generate the ultrasonic signals I prefer to use membrane transducers, which couple to the atmosphere more efficiently than the piezoelectric transducers characteristic of prior systems. The preferred membrane transducers are electrostatic transducers. However, membrane type piezoelectric transducers, operating in a transverse mode, are also effective. The transducers are preferably driven with circuits in which the capacitances of the transducers resonate with circuit inductances at the acousto-mechanical resonant frequencies of the transducers. This provides a very efficient transfer of electrical energy to the transducers, thereby facilitating the use of relatively high carrier frequencies.
The high efficiency and versatility of the transducers described herein also makes them suitable for other ultrasonic applications such as ranging, flow detection, and nondestructive testing.
The efficiency of the system can be further increased by varying the power of the ultrasonic carrier, as described below, so as to provide essentially 100 percent modulation at all audio levels. Thus, at lower audio levels, the carrier level is reduced from that required for higher audio levels, resulting in a substantial reduction in power consumption.
Preferably a plurality of transducers are incorporated into a transducer module and the modules are arranged and/or electrically driven so as to provide, in effect, a large radiating surface and a large non-linear interaction region. With this arrangement, the system can generate a relatively high sound level without an unduly high beam intensity, as might be the case with the use of a transducer arrangement having a smaller radiating surface and interaction region, which is driven to generate a higher ultrasonic intensity to accomplish the same level of audible energy transmission. The transmitted beam can be steered either by physically rotating the array or using a rotatable reflecting plate, or by altering the phase relationships of the individual transducer modules in the array.
Atmospheric demodulation, on which parametric audio systems rely to derive the audio signals from the ultrasonic beam, results in quadratic distortion of the audio signals. To reduce this distortion the audio signals have been preconditioned, prior to modulation, by passing them through a filter whose transfer function is the square root of the offset, integrated input audio signal. I have found that when sound effects or certain types of music are used, pleasant effects can be sometimes obtained by omitting some of the preconditioning, or by overmodulating the carrier. When the resulting ultrasonic beam is demodulated by the atmosphere, the music or sound effects have enhanced harmonic effects, and are created more efficiently, and are therefore substantially louder for a given ultrasonic intensity.
The invention description below refers to the accompanying drawings, of which:
As shown in
The signal generator 14 includes an ultrasonic carrier generator 18, one or more audio sources 20 1 . . . 20 n, whose outputs pass through optional signal conditioners 22 and a summing circuit 24. Signal conditioning can also be performed after summation. The composite audio signal from the circuit 24 is applied to an amplitude modulator 26 that modulates the carrier from the generator 18. The modulated carrier is applied to one or more driver circuits 27, whose outputs are applied to the transducers in the array 10. The modulator 26 is preferably adjustable in order to vary the modulation index.
As shown in
The frequency of the carrier provided by the generator 18 is preferably of the order of 60 kHz or higher. Assuming that the audio sources 20 have a maximum frequency of approximately 20 kHz, the lowest frequency components of substantial intensity in accordance with the strength of the audio signal in the modulated signal transmitted by the array 10 will have a frequency of approximately 40 kHz or higher. This is well above the audible range of hearing of human beings and above the range in which, even though the energy is inaudible, the human hearing system responds and therefore can be damaged by high intensities. It is unlikely that relatively high acoustical intensities at frequencies well above the range of hearing will degrade the hearing capabilities of individuals subjected to the radiated energy.
As shown in
As illustrated the electrode unit 32 may be divided by suitable etching techniques into separate electrodes 32 a below the respective apertures 36, with individual leads extending from these electrodes to one or more driver units 27 (
The foregoing transducer configuration is easily manufactured using conventional flexible circuit materials and therefore has a low cost. Additionally, drive unit components can placed directly on the same substrate, e.g., the tab portion 32 b. Moreover it is light in weight and can be flexible for easy deployment, focusing and/or steering of the array.
It will be appreciated that geometries, in particular the depths of the apertures 36, may vary so that the resonance characteristics of the individual transducers in the module 29 span a desired frequency range, thereby broadening the overall response of the module as compared with that of a single transducer or an array of transducers having a single acoustical-mechanical resonance frequency. This can be accomplished, as shown in
The grooves 56 are deeper than the grooves 58 and, therefore, the transducers including the grooves 56 have a lower resonance frequency that those incorporating the grooves 58. The resonance frequencies are spaced apart sufficiently to provide a desired overall response that corresponds to the bandwidth of the modulated ultrasonic carrier.
The back plate electrode unit 52 may be provided with a conductive pattern comprising rings 53, 55 and 57, as shown in
The secondary inductance of the transformer 62 is preferably tailored to resonate with the capacitance of the module 12 at the frequency of the acoustical-mechanical resonance frequency of the transducers driven by the units 27, i.e., 60 kHz or higher. This effectively steps up the voltage across the transducer and provides a highly efficient coupling of the power from the amplifier 27 to the module 12. The resistor 63 provides a measure of dampening to broaden the frequency response of the drive circuit.
It will be understood that one can use a transformer 62 with a very low secondary inductance and add an inductor in series with the transducer to provide the desired electrical resonant frequency. Also, if the transformer has an inductance that is too large to provide the desired resonance, one can reduce the effective inductances by connecting an inductor parallel with the secondary winding. However, by tailoring the secondary inductance of the transformer I have minimized the cost of the drive circuit as well as its physical size and weight.
When a transducer module or array includes transducers having different resonance frequencies as described above, it is preferable, though not necessary to use separate drive circuits tuned to the respective resonance frequencies. Such an arrangement is illustrated in
The spacers 34 (
I have found these PVDF transducer modules to be highly suitable for parametric sound generation. However, a shortcoming of the prior PVDF transducer modules is the necessity of maintaining a vacuum, which may be unreliable in the long run.
The transducer module 82 in
For use in a parametric sound generator provided with broadband operation, as described above, the apertures 96 have different diameters, as shown, to provide different resonant frequencies for the individual transducers, which comprise the portions of the membrane 84 spanning the apertures. One of the conductive surfaces on the membrane is patterned to provide electrodes that correspond with the apertures. The same surface is also provided with conductive paths that connect these electrodes to the circuits 92 and 94. Specifically, the electrodes can be patterned, as described for the electrostatic transducers of
The module depicted in
Atmospheric demodulation of a parametric audio signal substantially boosts the high-frequency audio components, with a resulting amplitude response of about 12 dB/octave. This characteristic has been compensated by a corresponding use of a low-frequency emphasis filter for de-emphasis of the audio signal prior to preprocessing. However, I prefer to provide compensation by using transducers that have an appropriate frequency response. Specifically, rather than providing a transducer response that is essentially flat over the frequency range of the transmitted signals, I prefer to provide the transducers with an essentially triangular response centered on the carrier frequency, assuming double-sideband modulation. The transducer modules described above provide this response when configured for multiple-resonant-frequency operation as depicted. A re-emphasis filter may be used to correct for the non-uniform transducer response.
Alternatively, the front surface 110 a of the wall may be of a material or structure that absorbs ultrasonic energy and reflects audio energy. In that case, there will be no reflected beam. Rather there will be a relatively non-directional source of audio signals from the area in which the beam 112 strikes the wall. Accordingly, if at the same time a moving visual image is projected against the wall by a projector 119, the beam 112 may be made to track the image so that the sound always appears to emanate from the image. The same effect may be provided by using a surface that has irregularities that diffusely reflect the ultrasonic energy. In either case the projected beam can have relatively high ultrasonic energy levels, which results in more audible energy, without causing reflections having a dangerously high ultrasonic intensity. The beam 112 and projector 119 may be coupled for common steering by servomechanism (not shown) or by the use of a common reflective plate (not shown) to provide the desired image tracking; alternatively, the beam may be steered using a phased array of transducers. The wall may also be curved as to direct all audible reflections to a specific listening area.
In still another alternative, the wall 110 may reflect light but be transparent to sound, allowing the sound to pass through wall 110 (to be reflected, for example, from a different surface). The important point is that the sonic and light-reflecting properties of wall 110 may be entirely independent, affording the designer full control over these parameters in accordance with desired applications.
The system depicted in
In order to provide deep bass content in the audio signals, the outputs of the audio sources 20 (
By using two or more ultrasonic beams one may position the apparent source of an audio signal as desired within a three-dimensional space. One or both of the beams are modulated with the audio signal. The individual modulated beams have an intensity below the level at which a significant audio intensity is produced. The beams are directed to intersect each other, and in the volume in which the beams intersect, the combined intensity of the two beams is sufficient to provide a substantial audio signal. In this connection one should note that the strength of a demodulated audio signal is proportional to the square of the intensity of the projected ultrasonic beam. The audio signal thus appears to emanate from that volume and one may therefore move the apparent audio source throughout a three-dimensional space by shifting the intersection of the beams. Indeed, by controlling the interference of two or more beams, it is possible to change the size, shape, and extent of the sound source.
A parametric generator providing this function is illustrated in
Beams 126, 127 (generated as separate beams or as a split beam) can also each be directed to one of the listener's ears to produce stereophonic or binaural audio. In this case, each of the beams 126, 127 is modulated with a separate stereo or binaural channel; in the latter case, maintaining the binaural illusion may require awareness of the position of the listener in creating the audio signals.
When a low-level audio signal is to be reproduced, it is undesirable to simply allow the modulation depth to remain small, while maintaining a high-energy ultrasound beam, as in prior systems. Instead, it is preferred to maintain a modulation depth near unity by adapting the amplitude of the carrier in response to changes in the audio signal level. This assures maximum efficiency of the system, and automatically inhibits the transmission of ultrasound when the incoming audio is absent.
A suitable adaptive system is depicted in
The output of the summer 132 is applied to a square-root circuit 137 and the resulting audio signal multiplies the carrier in a modulator-multiplier 138. The modulated carrier may be amplified by an amplifier 139 before passing to a transducer driver circuit. Some or all of the functions of the circuit elements in
More specifically, a parametric system creates an audible secondary beam of sound by transmitting into the air a modulated, inaudible, primary ultrasonic beam. For a primary beam described by:
p 1(t)=P 1 E(t)sin(ωc t) (1)
where P1 is the carrier amplitude and ωc is the carrier frequency, a reasonably faithful reproduction of an audio signal g(t) can be obtained when:
E(t)=(1+∫∫mg(t)dt 2)1/2 (2)
where m is the modulation depth, with g(t) normalized to a peak value of unity. The resulting audible beam p2(t) is then known to be:
When there is no audio signal (g(t)=0), E(t)=1, the primary beam p1(t)=P1 sin(ωct) continues with transmission of the ultrasonic carrier. This silent ultrasound beam serves no purpose, and wastes energy. It may also be a hazard: a pure-tone sound is generally, at least for audible sound, more dangerous than a wideband sound (with energy spread throughout), and as there is nothing audible, listeners are not aware that they are being subjected to energetic ultrasound.
The circuit of
p′(t)=P 1(L(t)+m∫∫g(t)dt 2)1/2 sin(ωc t) (4)
where L(t) is the output of the level sensor 133 and the quantity L(t)+m∫∫g(t)dt2 is the output of the summer 132. The square root of the latter quantity is provided by the square root circuit 137, and the final multiplication by P1 sin(ωct) is provided by the multiplier 138.
The output, p′(t), of the multiplier 138, as defined by formula (4), can also be provided by means of a conventional amplitude modulator, with both P1 and the level of the audio signal applied to the modulator being controlled according to the peak level of g(t). To obtain a demodulated audio signal whose level is proportional to that of g(t), the level-control signal would be proportional to the square-root of the value of peak g(t). The preferred embodiment of the invention, depicted in
Atmospheric demodulation of the ultrasonic signal results in an audio signal p′2(t) given by
This signal thus includes the desired audio signal mg(t) and a residual term involving the peak-detection signal L(t). The audible effect of the residual term can be reduced to negligible proportions by applying a relatively long time constant to L(t) and thereby materially reducing the second derivative in formula (5) This, however, will result in overmodulation, and resulting unacceptable distortion, when the audio signal level suddenly increases. Accordingly, the peak level detector is provided with an essentially zero time constant for increases in g(t) peak and a slow decay (long time constant) for decreases in g(t) peak. This reduces the audible distortion from the first term of formula (5) and shifts it to very low frequencies. At the same time it provides a carrier level no greater than that required to transmit a modulated beam with a desired modulation depth m.
When there are established safety measures regarding ultrasound exposure, the control system of
Ranging unit 140 can operate in any number of suitable ways. For example, unit 140 may be an ultrasonic ranging system, in which case the modulated ultrasound output is augmented with a ranging pulse; unit 140 detects return of the pulse and, by measuring the time between transmission and return, estimates the distance to the nearest object. Alternatively, rather than sending out a pulse, correlation ranging may be used to monitor the reflections of the transmitted ultrasound from objects in its path, and the echo time estimated by cross-correlation or cepstral analysis. Finally, it is possible to utilize infrared ranging systems, which have the advantage of being able to discriminate between warm people and cool inanimate objects.
It is also possible to compensate for distortion due to atmospheric propagation. The absorption of sound in air is highly dependent on frequency (approximately proportional to its square). While the carrier frequency employed herein is preferably centered near 65 kHz to minimize absorption, the signal is nonetheless wideband ultrasound spanning a range of frequencies that are absorbed to varying extents. Higher ultrasonic frequencies are absorbed more strongly than the lower frequencies, resulting in audible distortion in the demodulated signal. This effect can be mitigated by selectively boosting the ultrasonic output in a frequency-dependent manner that compensates for the nonuniform absorption.
As described in Bass et al., J. Acoust. Soc. 97(1):680-683 (January 1995), atmospheric absorption of sound depends not only on frequency but also on the temperature and humidity of the air; moreover, the overall amount of decay is also affected by on the propagation distance (almost, but not quite, leveling out at far distances). Accordingly, precise compensation would require sensing and adjusting for these parameters. But satisfactory results can be obtained by making assumptions of average conditions (or measuring the average conditions for a particular environment) and basing a compensation profile on these. Thus, as illustrated in
In a preferred approach, the modulated signal is passed through an equalizer 142, which adjusts the signal amplitude in proportion to the expected amount of decay, e.g., at an assumed or actual distance. As a result, the curves shown in
The correction applied by equalizer 142 may be further refined through the use of a humidity and temperature sensor 144, the output of which is fed to equalizer 142 and used to establish the equalization profile in accordance with the known atmospheric absorption equations.
Equalization correction is useful over a wide range of distances, i.e., until the curves diverge once again. In such circumstances, it is possible to improve correction—albeit at the cost of system complexity—using beam geometry, phased-array focusing, or other technique to actually change the amplitude distribution along the length of the beam in order to compensate more precisely for absorption-related decay.
It should be noted that the ultrasonic transducers described earlier can be used for the reception of audible or ultrasonic signals in addition to their transmission. As shown in
Assuming linear operation of the transducers in the array, the audio signals will suffer insubstantial distortion. Alternatively, a multiple-frequency arrangement with multiple electrodes, such as described above, can be used, with transducers that respond in the audio range being used for audio reception without the need for filtering. This allows full-duplex transduction on the same surface, which is difficult with traditional transducers, as well as phased-array reception, providing both a directional transmitter and receiver system.
Although the foregoing discussion highlighted various specific applications of the invention, these are illustrative only. The invention is amenable to a wide variety of implementations for many different purposes. Additional applications include, but are not limited to, creation of entertainment environments (e.g., the use of projected audio to cause the sounds of various musical instruments to appear in specific and changing places about a room, such as locations where visual images of the instruments are projected; or to direct sound to particular audience members; or to give an audience control over the apparent source of sound in interactive sequences; or to provide exact sound placement from home entertainment systems, e.g., in response to cues encoded in recordings and specifying sound pans and/or placement directions; or to steer the beam low to reach children but not their parents); store displays (e.g., directing sound at a displayed item); trade show promotions (e.g., to guide participants through the show or to different booths); military and paramilitary applications (e.g., phantom troops or vehicles to confuse the enemy; directed messages to enemy troops or populations; highly directed bullhorns for police to target alerts to suspects without alarming bystanders); office applications (e.g., to confine sound to particular work cubicles); address systems in public places (e.g., paging systems for arenas where listener locations are known, so that the parametric beam may be directed solely to the occupant of a particular seat without disturbing nearby audience members; or to particular tables in restaurants; or to deliver announcements or warnings in public places, e.g., to pedestrians about to dismount escalators or approaching dangerous areas; or to help direct blind persons; or, with the transducer configured as a ring surrounding a spotlight, following the light beam so sound emanates from an illuminated object); toys (e.g., devices that emanate highly directed whispers or noises such as smashing glass or gunfire); repelling animals; applications whereby sound is projected onto a surface some distance away from an apparent source in order to maintain synchronization between the sound and images; and personal audio sources (e.g., to create individual listening on airplanes, replacing headphones).
It will therefore be seen that I have developed a highly versatile and efficient system for delivering audio via modulated ultrasonic radiation. The terms and expressions employed herein are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.
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|European Patent Office: Communication pursuant to Article 96(2) EPC; Applicant: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Application No. 99 305 632.4-1240, Ref. D037395PEP, dated Jul. 25, 2002, and the claims to which it relates.
|European Patent Office: Communication pursuant to Article 96(2) EPC; Applicant: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Application No. 99 305 632.4-2213, Ref. D037395PEP, dated Apr. 30, 2003, and the claims to which it relates.
|Kamakura, T., et al., "Suitable Modulation of the Carrier Ultrasound for a Parametric Loudspeaker," Acustica 73:215-217 (1991).
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|Frank Joseph Pompei
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|Turtle Beach Corporation
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|Turtle Beach Corporation
|Self-bias emitter circuit
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|Apr 7, 2015
|Turtle Beach Corporation
|Parametric signal processing systems and methods
|Aug 24, 2011
|May 19, 2015
|Massachusetts Institute Of Technology
|Parametric audio system
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|Turtle Beach Corporation
|Amplification system, carrier tracking systems and related methods for use in parametric sound systems
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|Shindig, Inc.
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|Turtle Beach Corporation
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|Nec Corporation
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|Steven M. Gottlieb
|Audio systems and methods employing an array of transducers optimized for particular sound frequencies
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|U.S. Classification
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|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification


text:
Global Chaos Signals World Currency System Will Be Recast
June 25, 2013
As the two-year cyclical bearish phase in the gold and silver markets is coming to an end, today John Embry told King World News increased global chaos now signals "the entire world currency system" will be recast. Embry also spoke with KWN about how Western propaganda is being used to paint a false picture about the harsh reality of what is really taking place around the world. Below is what Embry had to say in this powerful interview.
Embry: "What's going on right now in gold and silver is preposterous. The gold price has been driven down roughly $600 from its peak in August of 2011. But if you really examine what's unfolded in that ensuing period, there isn't anything that would justify the gold price going down to any extent, let alone $600.
This has been a wonderfully orchestrated maneuver by the bullion banks, the Western governments, and their respective central banks. And it's destroyed the psychology of most people that don't understand the gold market extremely well….
The Rest…HERE


text:
The Office of National and International Scholarships and Fellowships (NISF) seeks to prepare Berry College students wishing to apply for prestigious national and international scholarships by providing eligible individuals with the information, resources, and preparation necessary to be competitive for such awards.
Working closely with faculty and staff, the office identifies potential candidates early in their collegiate careers and encourages them to maintain high academic standards, conduct research, participate in enriching cultural activities such as study abroad, and engage in purposeful community service.
Check out an interview with Brin Enterkin, class of 2012 and 2012 winner of the Woodruff, Whitehead, and Evans Foundation Fellowship.
Listen to what Faraj Daoud (class of 2012) has to say about his experience applying for and receiving a National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates award, better known as a REU.
Lara B. Whelan Associate Professor in the Department of English, Rhetoric and Writing
Evans Hall 215


text: RESU has teamed with the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology (CCAT) at HSU to re-install their grid connected PV system. A recent building project at HSU necessitated moving and remodeling the CCAT house. Working with Ben Scurfeild, a local PV installer, RESU has completed the supporting equipment installation (wires and inverters) and has plans to re-install the array in the fall. A short PV workshop will be offered by RESU in conjunction with the completion of the CCAT project.


text:
North Middlesex golfer Andrew Johnston won his first European Challenge Tour title at the Scottish Hydro Challenge hosted by Macdonald Hotels and Resorts on Sunday.
Johnston, 25, won by three shots with a five-under-par final round score of 66 to finish comfortably ahead of German Moritz Lampert in second.
Having assumed the lead in the second round, Johnston never relinquished top spot, shooting rounds of 66, 65, 68 and 66 to win the event and €40,000 in prize money – trumping his previous biggest prize of €19,582 at the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open in 2012.
Reflecting on his maiden Tour victory, Johnston admitted the idea of winning had not crossed his mind until the morning of the fourth round.
"I didn't think about it [winning] really until probably the 18th hole and even then I wasn't thinking about it until the ball was in the hole," said Johnston.
"It was quite funny, when I had my second shot on the green, I looked up at the scoreboard and I was trying to count how many putts I could afford to have from two foot and still win," joked Johnston.
"It feels really good, it feels like a relief to get the first win under my belt. They had open qualifying straight after so I haven't even had time to fully reflect on it or have a drink to celebrate it yet."
Johnston continued: "When they set the schedule I picked weeks off before courses I like and I liked Scotland and I liked this course in particular so I had a week off in advance to prepare for it.
"I knew the course suited my game and I knew I enjoyed Scotland so I felt quite good beforehand."
An eagle on the par four second and back-to-back birdies at the seventh and eighth and 13th and 14th holes set Johnston on the way to a comprehensive victory.
Playing partner Lampert almost staged a superb comeback on the back nine but the German could not overhaul Johnston's lead.
Johnston, who has since flown to Germany for the Aegean Airlines Challenge Tour in Bad Griesbach, climbs to third in the Challenge Tour Rankings as a result of Sunday's win and now has his eyes firmly set on securing his European Tour Card for next year.
Third after victory in Scotland, a top 15 spot will earn Johnston his card for next season and 'Beef', as he is commonly known to friends, is "quietly confident" of returning to the European Tour next year.
Johnston has previously played on the Tour before a serious shoulder injury in 2013.
He said: "The start of last year was tough. I just wanted to play and compete and when you see your friends playing and you can't, you just want to play," explained Johnston.
"It worked out quite well in the end though because I found a really good physio in Southgate, who really helped me out and made me learn a lot more about my body.
"I've learned a lot more about what is required to stay injury free. Everyone else was doing it, so why wasn't I?"
Johnston started at North Middlesex Golf Club in Barnet at the age of eight as a junior and competed at The Open Championship at Royal St Georges in 2011.


text:
With just a week remaining in 2007, time is ticking away on opportunities for actions which reduce tax liability on your income tax return.\
Barclay Rushton, a Gainesville accountant with the firm Rushton & Co., said taxpayers will find some changes regarding charitable donations.
"Basically, you've got to have a receipt for everything," said Rushton, who said receipts would be needed in the event of an audit by the Internal Revenue Service.
If you're thinking of making a last-minute donation to a charity that accepts discarded clothing, those regulations also have changed.
"The law has changed and you have to have a specific receipt, not just 'Five bags of clothes,'" Rushton said. "The clothing has to be in good or better condition."
Another popular donation is giving used vehicles to charity. IRS regulations now limit the amount of that deduction.
"The charity has to notify you of the sales price of the vehicle and you are limited on your deduction to that amount, not the book value of the car," he said.
For persons who have significant stock holdings, a gift of stock may have additional tax benefits. "If an individual has appreciated stock, it's always better to donate appreciated stock, rather than cash. They get the full value of the stock and don't have to report the gains," he said.
But with Dec. 31 falling on a Monday, some entities may take New Year's Eve as a holiday. Rushton said it is important that a check is in the mail before the new year.
"Postmarked is adequate, but some churches, for example, must receive the donation by Dec. 31 in order to have it on their records," Rushton said. "As long as you can show you've mailed it by that date, you're OK."
The same is true for tax payments. "If you owe any state taxes, pay it before Dec. 31, so you can deduct it if you itemize your federal return," Rushton said.
One tax break is running out this year, according to an official at Brenau University. James M. Barco, vice president for institutional advancement at the school, said a portion of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 enables individuals who are at least 70« years old to donate up to $100,000 from individual retirement accounts without accruing any tax liabilities or penalties.
However, since Congress has not extended the provision, a "sunset" clause takes effect at the end of the year and the break disappears.
"This is the time of the year when people are giving thanks and counting their blessings and want to do something to help out their favorite charities or not-for-profit institutions," Barco said. "They also need to make certain that their generosity does not cost them extra money in unforeseen taxes."
Such contributions must be made to an organization or institution that is registered with the IRS as a 501(c)3 charity. Contributions must be an outright gift to the organization or institution and cannot be part of a planned giving program, a trust or a donor-advised fund.
For persons facing a significant tax liability, trying to find help in the final week of the year may be too late.
"You're probably going to have hard time finding a CPA or an attorney that has time to handle a new client," Rushton said.
Rushton, like many CPAs, said his phone is busy with questions from clients during the final week of the year. "Time is running out," he said.


text:
It was added on 13 September 2012.
Live Streams
This weekend sees the second in a four part initiative that sees key Jagex staff face your community questions and answer them live. Each week the community team are trawling through our official forums, Facebook and Twitter to get your questions together. This week, Mod MMG and Mod Mark will be answering your questions about bots and the upcoming Botany Bay update. Be sure to join them live at 9pm BST on Sunday 16 September.
Many of the questions posed at the live sessions come from our official Facebook page, and you may have noticed that we are now very close to reaching the magnificent milestone of 1 million likes! If you haven't already liked us then please do take a look at our page; it's one of the best ways to stay up to date with all things RuneScape, and the page has a thriving and active discussion community!
Introducing Mod Mike
Speaking of communities now would be a great time to introduce you to a new member of the RuneScape community team, Mod Mike joins the team with a background in journalism, as well as being a long-standing player and the founder of a RuneScape fan site. He already has some big plans, so watch this space for more news on that in the weeks to come. As part of his initiation ceremony - and to help you guys get to know him - Mod Mike will be leading our official Hunt the J Mod event this coming weekend. For a chance to chat with him, and maybe earn yourself a reward, head over to the official thread for all the event details.
Fan Site News
To succeed in this week's event you'll need to know your way around the RuneScape map pretty well – which leads us nicely into our weekly feature to highlight something cool we've found on a fan site. This week, the focus is on Rsbandb and their rather lovely interactive world map. We are real fans of how you can overlay transport mechanics on the map or jump quickly to popular locations – good work guys!
Finally, we have a special announcement to make. We will shortly be reviewing the way we support fan sites; we want to have a much clearer support structure and really recognise sites who go out of their way to promote a vibrant community, continually growing their sites through high-quality content and community-driven initiatives. Once we have the final fan site programme, we will - of course - share it with you.
However, in the spirit of supporting and recognising outstanding fan sites with thriving communities who continually work with us to evolve, we wish to announce that RuneZone are now a platinum supported fan site: the highest accolade that can be bestowed upon a fan site, and one which the entire RuneZone community should be proud of. Given the planned changes to our fan site support programme, RuneZone will be the last site to achieve the platinum ranking under the current system. We are entirely confident, though, that they (and hopefully many others) will fare just as well when we announce the new support structure rankings.
For us, RuneZone offer a really strong model of what a fan site should be, and the passion and drive shown by its founders - as well as the entire RuneZone community - has paid off. Congratulations!
The RuneScape Community TeamDiscuss this here.


text:
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Style #: SKP101831
Buy the matching item


text:
Ranbir Kapoor made his debut with Saawariya alongside Sonam Kapoor. He also assisted Sanjay Leela Bhansali while he was shooting for black. But we all know that! Lets dwell on the things that we don't know about Ranbir Kapoor.
1. Like every other man, even Ranbir has a best friend in form of a pug. His adorable pug named Dudley is Ranbir's top priority. Guess what he eats for dinner? Pâté!
2. While we are discussing pets, lets guess Ranbir Kapoor's pet name given to him by his mommy? It's Raymond. Any idea Why? Du-oh! Because he's the complete man.
3. Who is on Ranbir's speed dial? Ex flame Deepika? Na, then Katrina probably? No again! Then who? Neetu Singh!
4. Talking about Neetu Singh, she cuts his nails and also gives him a pocket money of 1500. Every week!
5. His favourite dialogue is Mai Killer Hoon. Conceited much?
6. Would you like to read Ranbir Kapoor's autobiography or even biography? Because he loves to read biographies and autobiographies and may be planning to write one of his own!
7. He buys his flip-flops which he wear at home only from Prada
Blast from the past :
8. He was always a chubby kid ans he still is a foodie. He loves to eat and hates dieting.
9. Ranbir Kapoor once drank his father's aftershave after which he was rushed to the hospital. So I think its safe to assume that he was a very naughty kid!
10. Kapoor has an inch-long cut on his right cheek which he got when he fell in the bathroom. He has a deviated septum due to which he breathes from his mouth and eats and talks very fast!
Celebden and all its readers wishes the Kapoor lad a very Happy Birthday!
3 Comments
It's cute only ,shutup
What! Pet names are supposed to be short, that's the whole idea. Plus, any time i think of the name 'Raymond', i think of the show "Everybody loves Raymond". Anyway, its a stupid nickname to have cause it has no relation to being a 'man'.
It's cute only ,shutup