Anamorphic format

Anamorphic format is the cinematography technique of shooting a widescreen picture on standard 35 mm film or other visual recording media with a non-widescreen native aspect ratio. It also refers to the projection format in which a distorted image is "stretched" by an anamorphic projection lens to recreate the original aspect ratio on the viewing screen. (It should not be confused with anamorphic widescreen, a different video encoding concept that uses similar principles but different means.) The word "anamorphic" and its derivatives stem from the Greek words meaning formed again. As a camera format, anamorphic format is losing popularity in comparison to "flat" (or "spherical") formats such as Super 35 mm film shot using spherical lenses; however, because most movie projectors use anamorphic projection format, spherical format negatives are commonly converted into anamorphic prints for projection.

In the years since digital cinema cameras became commonplace, anamorphic has experienced a considerable resurgence of popularity, due in large part to the higher base ISO sensitivity of digital sensors which allows shooting at deeper stops.

Thai language

Thai, also known as Siamese or Central Thai, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people and the vast majority of Thai Chinese. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Over half of the words in Thai are borrowed from Pali, Sanskrit and Old Khmer. It is a tonal and analytic language. Thai also has a complex orthography and relational markers. Spoken Thai is mutually intelligible with Laotian; the two languages are written with slightly different scripts, but linguistically similar.

Dialects and related languages

Thai is the official language of Thailand, spoken by over 20 million people (2000), Standard Thai is based on the register of the educated classes of Bangkok. In addition to Central Thai, Thailand is home to other related Tai languages. Although linguists usually classify these idioms as related, but distinct languages, native speakers often identify them as regional variants or dialects of the "same" Thai language, or as "different kinds of Thai".

Test drive

A test drive is the driving of an automobile to assess its drivability, or roadworthiness, and general operating state. A person who tests vehicles for a living, either for an automobile company, automotive media for review purposes, or a motorsports team, is called a test driver.

The first test drives of a new production vehicle are made by mainstream automobile magazines and other third parties (not customers) for evaluation for the first time. Test drives are also usually allowed by vehicle traders or manufacturers to enable prospective customers to determine the suitability of the vehicle to their driving style. Test drives can also be taken before vehicle repairs to assist in diagnosis or after repair works to ensure that the vehicle has been fully restored.

In a broader sense, "test drive" can be used to refer to the testing of anything, such as a computer program, an idea or process, a pair of shoes, etc.

See also

References