A dense film of a conventional surfactant is quite impermeable. On the other hand, a dense film of Janus grains always has some interstices between the grains, and allows for chemical exchange between the two sides; "the skin can breathe". This may possibly be of some practical interest.
--
"Soft Matter" Nobel lecture (9 December 1991)Pierre-Gilles de Gennes
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Benjamin Franklin performed a beautiful experiment using surfactants; on a pond at Clapham Common, he poured a small amount of oleic acid, a natural surfactant which tends to form a dense film at the water-air interface. He measured the volume required to cover all the pond. Knowing the area, he then knew the height of the film, something like three nanometers in our current units. This was to my knowledge the first measurement of the size of molecules. In our days, when we are spoilt with exceedingly complex toys, such as nuclear reactors or synchrotron sources, I particularly like to describe experiments of this Franklin style to my students.
Surfactants allow us to protect a water surface, and to generate these beautiful soap bubbles, which are the delight of our children.Pierre-Gilles de Gennes
It would be very unfair to compare "Black" with any other film. I can't do a role of a handicapped person. It'd look like a carryover of "Black". Every film is a new experience for me. I respect my work too much to act superior about other films. "Black" is a kind of film that comes once in a lifetime. Even Sanjay [Leela Bhansali] can't make it again.
Rani Mukerji
"I'm appearing in a new Working Title film. It's going to be my first big film and I'm really excited. The film itself will feature Simon Pegg, Jim Broadbent, Timothy Dalton and myself. Filming has just started."
Joseph McManners
Danny Boyle: "When I use somebody's song in a film, I like them to see the movie, if possible, so they know how it's used. She came into the cutting room and watched it. You get a lot of people giving you notes on films when you're making them, and most of them are rubbish, to be honest. People might think they're good. Well, she came in told me the film was very good, but said, "Do you want some notes?" She gave me two specific notes, both of which we included in the film, essentially saying, "If you do that there, you'll understand why he gets on the show." She's very smart."
M.I.A.
On Martin Scorsese: "Martin has brought so much to the art form of film, and he is not the type of person who would be upset by not receiving an Oscar, although it is a practical joke that he has not won an Academy Award after all these years. Whatever opinions critics will have of The Aviator (2004), I really think that this is a great piece of art: once again, he has made a great classic film."
Leonardo DiCaprio
Gennes, Pierre-Gilles de
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