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WSC'00 |
Doctoral Colloquium Keynote Address: Being a
Professional
Robert G. Sargent (Syracuse University)
Abstract:
Various aspects of being a professional are discussed
in this paper. These include personal qualities, lifetime professional
development, professional responsibilities, job responsibilities, service, and
a balanced life style.
The Changing Face of Entertainment and the Driving
Force Behind It: Computer Simulation
Richard Kidd (Freelance Visual
Effects)
Abstract:
In today's world of entertainment computers are used
more than ever to take the viewer to new "places" in games, television &
feature films. In games, we drive a stock car around the high banks of the
Daytona International Speedway. In television we become part of an alien world
at a scheduled time each week, and in feature films we set sail on the open
seas on an 85-year old ocean liner. Without computer simulation, there are
many reasons why we would not be able to enter these worlds and entertainment
would not be what it is today. This paper will discuss the practical use and
goals of using simulation in entertainment. With these goals as our guide, we
will examine the tools that are used to design our model of the physical
system, execute that system, and analyze the output. We will study both the
traditional tools and the tools of the future. As desktop computers become
supercomputers and multiple CPUs on the desktop become the norm, our
mathematical models will become increasingly complex. This increase will lead
to more accurate simulations, thereby changing the faces of entertainment and
blurring the lines of reality.