Often used when a character is plummeting to his death, the Wilhelm scream is a stock sound effect that has been featured in over a hundred films, television shows, and video games since it was first used in the 1951 film Distant Drums. The tradition of inserting the sound into films began when Star Wars sound designer Ben Burtt tracked down the original recording—a studio reel labeled “man being eaten by alligator”—and named the sound effect after whom? Discuss
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Fashion in 15th-century Europe was characterized by a series of extremes and extravagances. As Europe continued to become more prosperous, the urban middle class, including skilled workers, began to wear more complex clothes that followed the fashions set by the elite, ranging from voluminous gowns—called houppelandes—with sweeping, floor-length sleeves to draped, jeweled, and feathered hats, hoods, and other headdresses. What was the fashion trend known as slashing? Discuss
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Nepenthes rajah is a carnivorous pitcher plant species endemic to Borneo. Its most distinctive features—giant urn-shaped traps, called pitchers, containing water and digestive fluid—allow it to catch and digest insects and even small vertebrates and mammals. These pitchers also host a number of organisms with which it is thought to form symbiotic relationships. Called nepenthebionts, many of these organisms are so specialized that they cannot survive anywhere else. What are some examples? Discuss
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