From “Bibbid-Bobbidi-Boo” to Scrooge: an update and comparative analysis of the portrayal of older characters in recent Disney animated films

Disney animated films continue to be a medium viewed by millions of young audiences across the world. As such, Disney content messages – which are often repeatedly viewed by children – and correlating implications should frequently be assessed. The objective for this investigation was to evaluate the portrayal of older adults in more recent Disney animated films (from 2004 to 2016) to provide both an update and comparative analysis to previous explorations. Results suggest comparable findings: we note a similarity in the overall negative portrayal of older characters in recent Disney animated films compared to previous films. Furthermore, we observed a decrease in “neutral” or general aging qualities, as well as a slight increase in the number of older adults depicted as “the villain.” Implications and observations are offered in efforts to improve ageist representations, particularly in a medium that is exceptionally prevalent in the lives of many young people.     

Demonstration of pharmaceutical tablet coating process by injection molding technology

We demonstrate the coating of tablets using an injection molding (IM) process that has advantage of being solvent free and can provide precision coat features. The selected core tablets comprising 10% w/w griseofulvin were prepared by an integrated hot melt extrusion-injection molding (HME-IM) process. Coating trials were conducted on a vertical injection mold machine. Polyethylene glycol and polyethylene oxide based hot melt extruded coat compositions were used. Tablet coating process feasibility was successfully demonstrated using different coating mold designs (with both overlapping and non-overlapping coatings at the weld) and coat thicknesses of 150 and 300?μm. The resultant coated tablets had acceptable appearance, seal at the weld, and immediate drug release profile (with an acceptable lag time). Since IM is a continuous process, this study opens opportunities to develop HME-IM continuous processes for transforming powder to coated tablets.