This dissertation explores the themes of collaboration and creativity in the relationship between arranger Nelson Riddle and vocalists Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. It examines the balance between structure and freedom as well as the specific musical results that emerge from collaboration between an arranger and vocalists who are considered among the greatest in their fields. An examination of their interactions, musical scores, and performances, reveals that the constraints that are present in a collaborative effort can lead the artists to find a shared process to make a creative, unified product.

The field of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) primarily involves the approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations. However, these equations are only valid when the flow is considered continuous such that molecular interactions are abundant and predictable. The Knudsen number, $Kn$, which is defined as the ratio of the flow's mean free path, $\lambda$, to some characteristic length, $L$, quantifies the continuity of any flow, and when this parameter is large enough, alternative methods must be employed to simulate gases. The Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method is one which simulates rarefied gas flows by directly simulating the particles that compose the flow and using probabilistic methods to determine their collisions and properties. This thesis discusses the development of a new DSMC simulation code, named SINATRA, which was written in object-oriented C++ and validated on Cartesian grids. The code demonstrates the ability to perform standard simulation code tasks which include reading-in a user-made input file, performing the specified simulation, and generating visualization files compatible with Tecplot 360\texttrademark, a commercial post-processing software. SINATRA strategically uses an octree data structure as a storage scheme for computational grid data and uses this a backbone for particle interactions. The discussed validation cases include comparisons of initial particle properties to theoretical data, convergence studies for the sampling of macroscopic properties, and validation of transport properties through natural diffusion and Couette flow simulations. The results show successful implementation of simple DSMC procedures, and a path for future development of the code is thoroughly discussed.

With mobile web browsers holding around eight percent of the global browser market share in terms of usage, web development for these platforms is becoming critically important as usage moves from the desktop towards mobile devices. Recent advances in client side browser technology like HTML5 and WebSockets have allowed web browser applications to approach feature parity with thick client desktop applications. This paper explores the possibility of a real-time online multiplayer game playable from just a mobile device's web browser. It does not focus on gameplay or graphics, rather it focuses on the backend infrastructure needed to support such a game. The framework devised to support this sort of interaction, Marionette, is well suited towards addressing sharing of location-specific, short-lived information between people using their smartphones without the use of any external software or proprietary software packages on the client side. / text

The lyrics of Sammy Cahn played a dominant role in shaping the Golden Age of American light music. He remains the most successful lyricist in cinema history, in terms of Academy Awards and Nominations, yet he has received little acclaim for his achievements. This thesis explores the diverse constituents of his creative genius, focusing on his ability to “romance the vernacular”, and write “bespoke” material on request. The argument follows a chronological path, tracing the major influences on Cahn’s life: vaudeville and musical theatre, the growth of the film industry, and the collaborators and performers who helped him achieve a level of mastery that he sustained for nearly fifty years. Particular emphasis is placed on his relationship with Frank Sinatra, on both a personal and professional level. Cahn had an acute awareness of the human condition and his ability to convey a range of emotions to match mood and moment displayed consummate craft and intellect, with a self-confidence that bordered on bravado. His contemporaries in the Golden Age of popular song have received due recognition, yet little has been written about Cahn, whose appreciation of the interaction between spontaneity and creativity remains unsurpassed by fellow lyricists. He had an intuitive understanding of the vernacular and an instinctive ability to write to order. The imagistic texture of the lyrics coupled with the prosodic intonation demonstrate an intimate correlation between personality and composition which is supported by biographical content. The argument, augmented by an audio-documentary, develops systematically through a study of the lyrics, focusing on the cultural and musicological significance of Cahn’s oeuvre. The material for both the written text and the two accompanying CDs are from personal archives and the Margaret Herrick Library in Los Angeles, which is the repository for the Sammy Cahn Collection, bequeathed to that institution after the death of Cahn in 1993. / English Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (English)