abstract:Robert Simpson Silver CBE FRSE (1913-1997) was a Scottish physicist and mechanical engineer, awarded the Unesco Prize for Science in 1968 for his discovery of a process for the demineralisation of sea water. Prior to his work there had been no commercially viable desalination process that involved continuous flow; plants had to be stopped and emptied of accumulated salt from time to time, such as when a passenger liner using desalination was in port.
Best Supporting Actor nominees are: Adam Arkin for Argo, Robert De Niro for Silver Linings Playbook, Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln, Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Master, and Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained.
When they narrowed that list down to the current crop of 20 Oscar nominees, Washington, who is nominated for Flight, and Robert De Niro, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Silver Linings Playbook, rose to the top.
The sentimental favorite is probably Robert De Niro, who's made more heartfelt guest appearances on behalf of "Silver Linings Playbook" than he has for any number of his other recent films.