Promotional Mixes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Promotional Mixes - Essay Example Being a new product, it will target an audience which will be the small and medium enterprises especially those managed by either women groups or the youths. The advertisement will all be about the potential of both the youth and women and will encourage them to open different accounts with the bank. The opening of accounts will be free of charge thus the bank will be emphasizing on offering clients with great services at no cost. One of the best options for the target market will be the opening of group accounts which will offer the benefit of no operating charges. If groups save a specified amount, groups can ask for loans depending on their savings. The loans come with low interest rates and payable depending on the amount to be borrowed and methods of payment will be better than that of normal loans (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2011). The other method will be personal selling in that the bank representative resort to heading to where the small and medium enterprises are located to try and persuade the audience on the new product. This will involve calling meetings to be chaired by bank agents and try to face the group members in person thus Appling the push strategy thus creating consumer demand for the new product (Banasiewicz, 2009). Also the bank will apply the use of publicity involving the association with the general public regarding the use and benefits of the new banking product. This will be in form of press releases or press conferences, event sponsorship in that the bank may sponsor youth events such as soccer tournaments thus getting the opportunity to capture the attention of the general public .The other mix will be public relation involving the interaction between the bank and the business environment. This will enable the bank to get immediate feedback to questions and inquiries as far as the new product will be concerned. The bank will treat customer responses with utmost seriousness because they reflect

Training Need Analysis and Evaluation of Training Effectiveness Essay Example for Free

Training Need Analysis and Evaluation of Training Effectiveness Essay To assess how the organizational objectives will be realized through the delivery of a staff training programme that will focus on improved and/or changed skills, knowledge and/or attitudes of those directly involved or affected by the ‘change’ †¢To understand the process and importance of measuring training effectiveness in the organization †¢To measure the expressed needs of training effectiveness at work place from the individual †¢To find out the obstacles in the proper utilization and increase the effectiveness of Training programs and try to suggest remedial measures wherever possible. To decide what specific training each employee needs and what will improve their job performance. To differentiate between the need for training and organizational issues. Performing a training gap or needs analysis involves comparing what a person knows with what they need to know in the context of their particular job functions. Performing a gap analysis helps to eliminate over and under training and in so doing increases training effectiveness and efficiency. Measuring Training Effectiveness will help the organization Have a well-structured measuring system in place which can help the organization determine where the problem lies. This will provide the organization with an idea of where it sits in terms of training system effectiveness and in giving it the structure the administration need to construct a roadmap for improvement. This project will help in finding out the obstacles in the proper utilization and increase the effectiveness of Training programs and try to suggest remedial measures wherever possible. BHEL has always been ahead with their innovating HR practices. Thrust to develop and nurture the participative culture in the Company has continued since long. Human Resource Development has always been the focus area in BHEL. Workshops have been conducted from time to time for Supervisors and Executives on Enhancing Organisational Effectiveness. The objective of the workshop was to bring about better understanding and appreciation of the issues being faced both by the Company and the employees. The Training system at BHEL has always been exemplary. During 2002-03, 40466 participants were exposed to different training programs in various training Centers at Units as well as at apex level in NOIDA. Besides, 3700 Act Apprentices and 1300 Technician Apprentices were also provided with training at BHEL’s Units, as part of fulfillment of its social obligation towards the society. Also, towards its ongoing efforts for higher customer satisfaction, around 1100 customers personnel were provided training inputs on its products at Training Centers in the Units. Thus an opportunity to study at BHEL will be both enlightening and enriching. An organization either Business or Industrial Enterprises, needs many factors for its growth, further development and for its very survival. The most important factors are Capital, Materials, Machineries and Human Resources as the success or failure of any organization depends on the effective combination of these factors. Managing all other factors are comparatively easier than managing Human Resources. The Human Resources are most important and need to be handled carefully. Since all the other factors are handled by the human resources, they have to be trained in a effective manner to utilize the resources at optimal level to get the desired output and thereby to reach the organization goals. The effective combination of all these factors results to way for success. Training is defined as learning that is provided in order to improve performance on the present job. A persons performance is improved by showing her how to master a new or established technology. The technology may be a piece of heavy machinery, a computer, a procedure for creating a product, or a method of providing a service. Oliver Sheldon says ‘No industry can rendered efficient so long as the fact remains unrecognized that the in principally human – not a mass of machines and technical process but a body of men. If manpower is properly utilized it causes the industry to run at its maximum optimization getting results and also work for as an climax for industrial and group satisfaction in the relation to the work formed. Competitive advantage is therefore depend on the knowledge and skill possessed by employee more than the finance or market structure by organization. The employee training not only serves the purpose to develop their employers but also safe guard organizational objectives of survival and success through competitive advantages. The training function now popularly called as Human Resource In recent years, the scope of Training and Development has broadened from simply providing training programs to facilitating learning throughout the organization in a wide variety of ways. There is increasing recognition that employees can and should learn continuously, and that they can learn from experience and from each other as well as from formally structured training programs. Nevertheless, formal training is still essential for most organizations or teach them how to perform in their initial assignment, to improve the current performance of employees who may not be working as effectively as desired, to prepare employees for future promotions and increased responsibilities. The Computer Application Training and New Employee Training are most popular training topics. Various Management and supervisory skills such as leadership, performance appraisal, interviewing, and problem solving were also commonly taught. Many organization provide ‘Train-the trainer’ courses for superiors or peers who will in turn provide on-the-job training to others. Besides being one of the most important HRM functions, Training and Development is also one of the most expensive. Meaning and Definition: After an employee is selected, placed and introduced, he or she needs to be provided with training facilities. The training is the act of increasing the knowledge and skill of an employee for doing the particular job. Training is a short term educational process and utilizing systematic and organized procedure by which an employee is learned the technical knowledge. Definition: Staimez: defines ‘Training is a short term process utilizing a systematic and organized procedure by which non-managerial personnel to learn technical knowledge and skill† Mamoria: defines â€Å"Development covers not only the activities which improve job performance, but also those which b ring about growth of personality, helps individual in the process towards maturity and actualization of this potential capacities so that they become not only good employees but also both good men and women. S. P. Robbins: Defines â€Å"Training is a learning process which seeks a relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs as a result of experience. Dale Yoder: Defines â€Å"It is that deals with the effective control and use of manpower as a distinguished from other source of man power† Training is part of Human Resource Development. It is concerned with concerned with training, development, and education. Training has been defined as an organized learning experience, conducted in a definite time period, to increase the possibility of improving job performance and growth. Organized means that it is conducted in a systematic way. Although learning can be incidental, training is concerned with the worker learning clear and concise standards of performance or objectives. Training is the acquisition of technology which permits employees to perform their present job to standards. It improves human performance on the job the employee is presently doing or is being hired to do. Also, it is given when new technology in introduced into the workplace. Principle of Training: 1. Training Plan: This must be well planned, prescribed and ably executed effective implementation depends to great extend on planning. Organizational objectives: T D program must meet objectives of the Organization 3. Equity and fairness: T and D program must enjoy equal opportunity to drive benefit out of such training and must have equal chance to undergo such training. 4. Application specification: Training content is balanced between theory and practical. It must be ‘Application specification’/ 5. Upgrading information: T and D program is continuous reviewed at periodic interval as order to make them updated in terms of knowledge and skill. 6. Top Management support: Top management support is essential to make Training and Development effective. 7. Centralization: For economy of effective uniformity and efficiency, centralization of training department is found more common and useful. 8. Motivation – Training and Development have motivation aspects like better career opportunity, individuals skill development etc. , Importance of training in recent years: Recent changes in the environment of business have made the Training and Development function even more important in helping organization maintain competitiveness and prepare for the future. Technological innovations and the pressure of global competition have changed the ways organizations operate and the skills that their employee need. The tight labor market has increased the importance of training in several ways. First higher employee turnover means that more new employees need training. Second, it has been suggested that frequent and relevant development experiences are an effective way to gain employee loyalty and enhance retention of top-quality staff. Need for Training: Training must be tailored to fit the organization’s strategy and structure. It is seen as pivotal in implementing organization-wide culture-change efforts, such as developing a commitment to customer service, adopting total quality management, or making a transition to self-directed work teams. Pace-setting Human Resource Development departments have moved from simply providing training on demand to solving organizational problems. Trainers see themselves as internal consultants or performance improvement specialists rather than just instructional designers or classroom presenters. Training is only one of the remedies that may be applied by the new breed of Human Resource Development practitioners. In an age of network organizations, alliances, and long-term relationships with just-in-time suppliers, leading companies are finding that they need to train people other than their own employees. Some organization offer quality training to their suppliers to ensure the quality of critical inputs. Organisations with a strong focus on customer service may provide training for purchasers to their product.

Developing Joined Tables for Data

Developing Joined Tables for Data 4. Pre-Joined tables Consider creating tables of pre-joined data when two or three tables should join on a normal format by an application although the disadvantage of the join is not allowed, the pre-joined tables should: Consist no redundant columns (matching join criteria columns) contain only those columns completely essential for the application to provide its processing requirements Be made frequently using SQL to join the normalized tables. When the pre-joined tables are created the disadvantage of the join will raise a problem only once [Dick] [25, 41]. Since every new query does not cause a problem for the overhead of the table join process a pre-joined table is queried very effectively. 5. Report tables Most of the time developing an end-user report using SQ is possible. These sorts of reports need special data manipulation or formatting. Consider creating a table that displays the report when specific highly visible or critical reports of this kind are needed to be seen in an on-line environment. Then by using SQL and/or another report facility this table can be queried. In a batch environment The report should be made by using the suitable mechanism (application program, 4GL, SQL, etc.). then in sequence It can loaded into the report table. The report table must: Consist one column for each column of the report Have a clustering index on the columns which make the reporting sequence Not destroy relational tenets (such as, 1NF and atomic data elements) Page15 In order to carry the results of outer joins or other complex SQL statements Report tables are suitable. a simple SELECT statement can be apply to retrieve the results of the outer join rather than the complex UNION technique If an outer join is executed and then loaded into a table. Some RDBMS products support an explicit outer join function that can be a substitution for the UNION depicted. After all, based on the implementation, the explicit outer join can be simpler or more complicated than the UNION it replaces. [25,41]. 6. Mirror (duplicating) tables   Ã‚  It is necessary to divide processing into two (or more) different components in case of very active application system which needs creating duplicate, or mirror tables. Consider an application system that has very heavy on-line traffic during the morning and early afternoon hours. Both querying and updating of data are involved in such traffic. On the same application tables during the afternoon decision support processing is also performed. It always seems that the production work in the afternoon to destroy the decision support processing causing dead locks and time outs frequently. Creating mirror tables is a solution to remove the problem in this condition. Background set of tables is available for the decision support reporting and a foreground set of tables for the production traffic. In order to keep the application data synchronized a mechanism must be established to periodically migrate the foreground data to background tables. One such this kind of mechanism would b e a batch job executing LOAD and UNLOAD utilities. in order to maintain the effectiveness of the decision support processing This must be done as often as necessary. It is worth noting that since the access needs of decision support are usually significantly different than the access needs of the production environment, various data definition decisions like indexing and clustering may be selected for the mirror tables. Page 16 7. Partitioning tables Fragmentation or partitioning is a mechanism normally used in relational databases to decrease the execution time of queries. The terms Fragmentation, Partitioning, and Clustering in databases domain is inferred to a table split into smaller data sets to support the management of very large volumes of data properly. As mentioned before, two ways of achieving fragmentation are existed: vertical and horizontal [218]. Vertical fragmentation makes the designer able to group attributes of a relation into smaller records. For instance, a dimension may be split in order to have the name and city attributes in one partition and the remaining attributes in another partition. As a sequence, more records can be retrieved into main memory when a query asks name, because they consist fewer attributes and therefore their size are smaller. Contrarily, horizontal fragmentation split a table into smaller tables with the same structure but with fewer records. For instance, if some queries need the lat est data while others access older data, a fact table can be horizontally partitioned based on some time frame such as years [234]. Therefore, since smaller data sets are physically assigned to different partitions, these smaller data sets significantly facilitate administrative tasks, enhance query performance when parallel processing is used, and provide access to a smaller subset of the data (if the user?s selection does not refer to all partitions). During physical data warehouse design Fragmentation techniques should be selected. Oracle [213] provides four kinds of horizontal partitioning methods: range, hash, list, and composite. Each of them has different merits and design considerations. In range partitioning, the rows of a table are partitioned based on a range of values. In hashing partitioning, the rows of a table are partitioned according to a hash function used for an attribute of the table. Lastly,

mafia Essay -- essays research papers

Their guns terrorized the streets of New York. They were murderous, brutal thugs that killed with no feelings of remorse. They were bank-robbers, drug dealers, casino owners, hit men and pimps. They were the Mafia of the 1920's and 1930's. These degenerates played an important role in American history, they were more than just bank-robbers and gunslingers, and they were men that affected all facets of society. They were celebrities, some of the most recognized men in America. Their evil deeds made the front page of every newspaper. They were some of the richest men in America, but most of all; they were the scapegoats for America's problems. They were hated by many, respected by few and feared by all. In times of poverty and despair, they were looked upon as the "problem", which needed to be "fixed". The fear they imposed on America gave Americans something to unite over and fight against together. Sometimes, a person is most courageous when they are most fearful. They made America "roar" in the twenties and they took "the wrath" of thirties. They were some of America's most dangerous men and some of its most famous as well. In order to obtain an objective view towards the Mafia, one must know a little about its history. The Mafia was first started in the ninth century, in Sicily. At this time, Arab forces were occupying Sicily. The natives were being oppressed, so they took refuge in the surrounding hills and formed a secret society to protect against the foreign invaders. This secret society was named Mafia, after the Arabic word for refuge. The society's intentions were to create a sense of family, based on ancestry and Sicilian heritage. During the 1700's, Mafia leaders began to force their way to the head positions in the Sicilian government and used government funds for their own private endeavours. In the early 1900's, when Mussolini and the Fascists came to power, he vowed to rid the country of all the Mafia. Keeping this in mind, and the fact that there was money to be made through extortion, prostitution, gambling and bootlegging in the United States, many Mafioso's decided to come west to America. Charles "Lucky" Luciano, the eventual organizer of the New York Mafia, was born in Sicily in 1897, and came to New York. Luciano climbed the "criminal ladder" and by 1935, he was known ... ...titution was so profitable, because it offered the most easily marketable and vendible product in the world; sex. The Mafia used the prostitutes as tools to make more business. They placed their "girls" throughout their clubs, so they could lure some high roller in the back for a drink or two. They worked the bars, and listened to lonely middle class men who needed a shoulder to cry on. They were on the streets mingling with the crowd, looking for their next perverted customer. The bosses often used prostitutes to "sweeten" deal between rival leaders or crooked politicians. They were as dangerous as the trained killers were, because they possessed something more powerful than guns. They were just as ruthless as the men that put holes in people's heads; they only came in a nicer package. The Mafia men of the 1920's and 1930's were some of the most influential men in American history. They robbed banks, killed people, stole, cheated, lied and corrupted an already corrupt country. They were not role models, and they did not aspire to be. They were businessmen, men who had only two objectives, money and power. They saw a need for something and they produced it.

Beowulf Embodies the Values of Anglo Saxon Society

The Anglo-Saxon people, who ruled England up until the Norman conquest, were composed of warlike Nordic and Germanic peoples. They descended from the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. They valued courage, strength and desire for fame and glory and commitment to obtaining it (similar to the ideals regarding fame and honor espoused by Homers Achilles). They also valued generosity and the protection of others. The first value, courage, is constantly put to the test in the dark and dangerous world of Beowulf. This world was filled with monsters and obstacles to slay or overcome. Beowulf himself is said to be the strongest man on earth at that time, and the way he wrestled Grendel almost effortlessly, while so many others had failed, proved that he had a kind of superhuman physical strength. His desire for fame and his commitment to obtaining it was also very strong, he had an enormous amount of willpower and was determined to win himself a name. Even after he was famous throughout the known world for his deeds, he still was not yet satisfied. After he had fought in many battles and saved the Danes from Grendel and Grendel's mother he was still not content. He battled the dragon, which was his greatest accomplishment, and proof of his courage and sheer heroism. Although it can be interpreted as a proof of courage, one could also look at it as foolishness, a man's selfish desire to gain glory, even after he has been saturated with it. However, the Anglo-Saxon concept of selfishness was far less abstruse than our own. Their idea of generosity was helping friends and allies, especially in form of gifts for chivalric acts. He did slay the dragon and Grendel partially because he wanted to protect the Danes and his own people from these two atrocities, but he was also motivated by a desire for glory. Beowulf himself was apathetic to the notion of death, he stated it many times throughout the poem, a fine example is his speech prior to fighting Grendel. However, he is obsessed with his legacy and his name, which is more important than life itself to him and the other Anglo-Saxons. For example, the slave in Beowulf's expedition to slay the dragon is not even in the headcount due to his lineage and rank. Fame is part of building the noble family name and rank. Social mobility was fairly high among the warrior class in Beowulfs times, much like it was in the Roman legions. A good name and the amount of gold determines a warrior's rank, the world of Beowulf, for the warriors at least, is a meritocracy.

Automation and Artificial Intelligence

Automation is on an increase across all technologies and fields. This increase has led to the transformation, and the future role people play in Global workforce. The rise of artificial intelligence will result in the need for new skills and roles. Some Skills and roles may disappear and others will evolve. Some industries may need more people and others may need less or none. The balance in human workforce will be impacted hard. Non-availability of required skills & re-skilling will disrupt the workforce in all industries. Organizations and people would need to adjust to this change. While machines need to be built and maintained, artificial intelligence leads to job loss due to the skill gap and jobs eliminated by machines.Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the WorkforceAutomation & Artificial intelligence will result in improvement of productivity and economic growth, but millions of people may need to switch occupation or upgrade themselves to stay in the global workforce. Automation will have a far-reaching impact on the global workforce. By 2030 at a 15% midpoint level of automation adoption, 400 Million workers will be displaced by adoption of automation. According, to a 2-year independent study by the McKinsey Global Institute (Dec 2017). It is estimated that in 60% of the occupation almost one-third of the activities could be automated. A SurveyMonkey poll on AI conducted for USA TODAY also had overtones of concern, with 73% of respondents saying that would prefer if AI was limited in the rollout of newer tech so that it doesn't become a threat to humans. USA Today. (Jan. 2, 2018). Unfortunately, with the pace at which automation and artificial intelligence are growing, 3 to 14% (75 to 375 Million) of the workforce will need to change their occupational category.Historical data on the technology shiftâ€Å"Innovation has generally liberated humans to be more productive,† says Rep. John Delaney.â€Å"Similar to the personal computer in the 1980s, AI will reshape our personal and business lives in such a dramatic manner, most companies today cannot comprehend the full impact,' said Anand Rao, PwC US Data & Analytics Innovation leader. Fear of technology advancement had always been there. From the textile revolution in 1811 with the advent of personal computers in 1980 world leaders and the Global workforce are worried about technological advancement. â€Å"The major challenge of the sixties is to maintain full employment at a time when automation is replacing men.† President Kennedy (1961). Although there had been concerns, every time a technology shift has happened more jobs had been created than lost. When a workforce is shifted from the usual mundane jobs, they have focused on more creative and productive areas, resulting in the advent of the human race. The past may not be an exact reflection of present or future. The advance of automation and artificial intelligence could be far reaching. A robot that could just build is different from a robot that could design and build.Artificial intelligence, Skill Gap & Workforce TransitionTo be successful in an automated world, Man & machine need to work together. One cannot replace the other. This would require new and niche skills with exceptional leadership skills. However, However, â€Å"77% of CEOs say they see the availability of key skills as the biggest business threat.† USA Today. (Jan. 2, 2018). According to an EY poll, 80% of the organization recognize the shortage of required talent to drive Artificial Intelligence adoption as the top challenge. Technology and Innovation along with the on demand human capabilities like leadership, creativity, problem solving, and passion will make organizations thrive in the market. Eventually an automated world is a possibility, however in the process will create major ripples in the workforce. The change would go beyond Man versus Machine and require re-learning and retooling.Impact on societyLarge corporations like Apple, Amazon, and Facebook had refused to comment on Artificial Intelligence. However, they do have people tasked with monitoring Artificial Intelligence. Microsoft had announced that they have created a review board called Aether – AI and Ethics in Engineering and Research. USA Today. (Jan. 2, 2018). Trusting and allowing Artificial Intelligence to control, drive cars and aeroplanes, and automated trading may eventually lead to AI taking control of learning and updating themselves resulting in an uncontrolled growth of machines. A study by McKinsey Global Institute (Dec 2017) suggests countries like China, India, USA and Germany will have more percentage of work activities displaced by automation. A 38 % of automation achievement would throw some western democracies to authoritarian policies to control the civil chaos as suggested by Brookings institution. Calum McClelland (2018). Governments and policy makers should handle this situation carefully.ConclusionEven if we successfully transition, we would lose all jobs to artificial intelligence and automation. Being creative and keeping us educated will give a good chance in this changing world.ReferenceArtificial intelligence: Doomsday scenario – or age of wonder? – USA Today. (Jan. 2, 2018)You can't have a machine age without humans – PwC report – ENP Newswire. (Mar. 1, 2017)AI creates jobs, yet talent crisis remains, according to EY poll – ENP Newswire. (May 1, 2018)Jobs lost, Jobs gained: workforce transitions in a time of automation – McKinsey Global Institute (Dec 2017).

Funk Art Movement, From Ceramics to Found Objects

Funk Art Movement, From Ceramics to Found Objects By the middle of the 1950s, abstract expressionism had held sway in the art world for a full decade, and there existed certain artists who felt the adulation had gone on for roughly nine years too long. In an uncoordinated artistic rebellion, a number of new movements began to gain traction. The one characteristic these movements had in common was shunning the abstract in favor of the tangible. From this, the delightfully-named Funk Art movement was born. Origins of the Funk Art  Name The romantic version of Funk Arts etymology says it came from jazz music, where funky was a term of approbation. Jazz is also perceived as unrefined and especially with late 50s free jazz unorthodox. This fits neatly, for Funk Art was nothing if not unrefined and unorthodox. However, it is probably closer to the truth to say that Funk Art came from the original, negative meaning of funk: a powerful stench, or an assault on ones senses. Whichever version you believe, the baptism occurred in 1967, when UC Berkeley Art History professor and Founding Director of the Berkeley Art Museum, Peter Selz, curated the Funk exhibition. Where Funk Art Was Created The movement got its start in the San Francisco Bay area, specifically at the University of California, Davis. In fact, many of the artists who participated in Funk Art were on the studio art faculty. Funk Art never outgrew being a regional movement, which is just as well. The Bay Area, the epicenter of the underground, was probably the one place in which it could have thrived, let alone survived. How Long the Movement Lasted Funk Arts heyday was in the mid- to late-1960s. Naturally, its beginnings were much earlier; the (very) late-1950s seem to be the point of origin. By the end of the 1970s, things were pretty much over as far as artistic movements go. To include all possibilities, it can be said Funk Art was produced for no more than two decades and 15 years would be more realistic. It was fun while it lasted, but Funk did not have a long life. The Key Characteristics of Funk Art Found and everyday objectsAutobiographical subjects(Frequently inappropriate) humorAudience engagementElevation of ceramics Historic Precedent Funk was preceded by another Bay Area art movement known as Beat Era Funk or Funk Assemblage. Its attitude was more surrealistic than funky, but it did add a few notes to Funk. Despite also being regional, Beat Era Funk never garnered much popularity. In terms of humor and subject matter, Funk Arts lineage goes straight back to Dada, while its aspects of collage and assemblage hearken to Pablo Picassos and Georges Braques Synthetic Cubism. Artists Associated with Funk Art Robert ArnesonWallace BermanBruce ConnerRoy De ForestJay DeFeoViola FreyDavid GilhoolyWally HedrickRobert H. HudsonJessEd KienholzManuel NeriGladys NilssonJim NuttPeter SaulRichard ShawWilliam T. Wiley Sources Albright, Thomas. Art in the San Francisco Bay Area: 1945 to 1980, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985.Nelson, A. G. You (exh. cat.),  Davis: University of California Press, 2007.See: The Early Years of the UC Davis Studio Art FacultyOral history interview with Bruce Nauman, 1980 May 27-30,  Archives of American Art, Smithsonian InstitutionOral history interview with Roy De Forest, 2004 Apr. 7-June 30,  Archives of American Art, Smithsonian InstitutionSelz, Peter. Funk (exh. cat.).  Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967.Tinti, Mary M. Funk Art,  Grove Art Online, accessed 25 Apr. 2012.

Water In Barium Chloride Dihydiate Essays - Laboratory Equipment

Water In Barium Chloride Dihydiate Essays - Laboratory Equipment Water in Barium Chloride Dihydiate Introduction In this experiment we are trying to find the percentage of water in Barium Chloride Dihydiate. During the experiment you must pay close attention to everything done. We are going to try to stay below a 8 percent error. When timing, make sure you only have the crucible over the bunson burner for 10 minutes, no more, no less. Be aware of how dangerous this chemical can be, so please be careful. Located below is a list of all the materials you will need to complete this experiment. Please make sure you and you lab partner(s) know how to use this equipment. Equipment / Materials Goggles Bunson Burner Ring Stand Iron Ring Iron Triangle Iron Square Computer Computer Program Scale Chemical (BACL2) Scoop Crucible/Crucible cover Crucible Tongs Matches Safety You must pay close attention to everything at all times. Ladies with their hair not tied back should do so do to the fact that their hair could catch fire while using the bunson burner. Before you start the experiment, take notice to where all the safety equipment is. You must know where the fire extinguisher is, emergency shower/eye wash, and the call for help button. Make sure you are wearing your goggles while doing this lab. When washing out the crucible do not turn the water pressure up all the way because the water could splash back into your face. If an emergency does occur, please remain clam and think rationally. Procedure This experiment can be very exciting if you know what you are doing. Before I started the experiment, I set up my lab. I put together my Ring stand and attached the bunson burner up to the gas valve. Before I light the flame, I asked my partner to turn the two gas valves on while I light the flame with a match. Now that my flame was light, I adjusted the air flowing into the flame. Now I was ready to start with the experiment. When handling the crucible do not touch it with your hands, only use the crucible tongs. My partner cleared the scale and I weighed the crucible with its lid, and it came to 17.09. I removed the crucible and added the BACL2.2H2O. Placed the crucible and lid back on the scale and got the weight of 18.33. Now it was time to place the crucible over the bunson burner. I carefully placed the lid on the crucible and carry the crucible over to the bunson burner and placed it on the iron triangle and. And placed the crucible directly over the flame and set a timer to 10 minutes. While I was waiting for the experiment to finish, my partner decided that she wanted to start another experiment. So we prepared the scale and crucible and re-weighed everything. By the time we had finished, the alarm sounded and we quickly took the crucible off the flame. We left the crucible cool for another 10 minutes and then re-weight it and it came to 18.15. Christy started to put all the weights in the computer and to our big surprise we got a 0.23 experimental error and a 1.59 percent error. We were so glad that the experiment went to well that we let it get to our head. We thought we would do even better on our next experiments, but we were wrong. Our percentages started to raise and we realized that we were not doing something right. We noticed that we were not watching the clock and completely messed up the experiment. Percent of water in Barium Chloride Dihydrate Experiment Mass of Crucible and Cover17.09 Mass of Crucible, Cover and BACL2.2H2O 18.33 Mass of Crystallized BACL2.2H2O 1.24 Mass of Crucible and Cover 17.09 Mass of Crucible, Cover and Anhydrous BACL2 18.15 Mass of Anhydrous BACL2- 1.06 Mass of Crucible, Cover and BACL2.2H2O- 18.33 Mass of Crucible, cover and Anhydrous BACL2- 18.15 Mass of water lost by heating-.18 Percent water in Crystallized BACL2.2H2O-14.52 Theoretical Percent of H2O in BACL2.2H2O14.75 Mass of Crystallized BACL2.2H2O-1.24 Mass of Anhydrous BACL2 1.06 Mass of water lost by heating.18 Experimental Error-.23 Percent Error1.59 Error Most of my error was caused by the fact of the flame not staying still in one spot. The ventilator on the ceiling was blowing air down onto the flame and caused the flame to flicker. Conclusion This experiment was very interesting and informative. We learned the value of paying attention to what we are doing and to not let our mines wonder.

Changing world of work and choice and opportunity structures affecting Essay

Changing world of work and choice and opportunity structures affecting careers. WORK, SOCIETY & ORGANIZATIONS - Essay Example 141). Writers point to medieval guild masters or even earlier nomadic tribal leaders as ancient prototypical managers, but from George’s definition one might be tempted to say that mothers comprised the first managers in human history. A â€Å"manager† is difficult to categorically define. George’s definition centers on managers as motivators, working to achieve goals through people. Managers are also organizers: Daniel A. Wren called management â€Å"the activity which performs certain functions in order to obtain the effective acquisition, allocation, and utilization of human efforts and physical resources in order to establish some goal† (Trent, 1973, p. 141). Militarism and Mechanization was formalized by Frederick the Great in the 17th century. He revolutionized warfare, and he is generally acknowledged as an early efficiency expert. He was credited with redirecting the structures and processes of waging war, and creating the elements of the machine o rganization as it applies to the military establishment. Elements of his management style included the institutionalization of authority by creating a system of ranks, establishing identity by uniforms, the standardization of regulations, task specialization among the troops, and the use of command language to reduce miscommunication and specialized training (MacDonogh, 2001). This management style is of course essentially still used to some extent in military and police organizations, although it is much tempered by contemporary HR practices in its treatment of people. Scientific Management Frederick Winslow Taylor, an engineer and self-styled consultant, conceptualized the link between corporate profitability, industrial productivity, and cost-efficiency. Under scientific management, productivity is increased and unit cost is reduced when workers become more task efficient. In turn, workers become more efficient if they are rewarded for higher volume productivity, and punished for low volume productivity. This management theory is also known as Taylorism. The principle of scientific management espouses the elimination of rule-of-thumb methods, and to instead use measurement techniques to determine the optimum methods that optimizes the use of time, effort, and resources. Jobs are broken down into sequential tasks, and each task is engineered for greater efficiency. Then the workers are trained in the new tasks using scientific methods. There is division of labor and responsibility among managers and workers, where management sets the goals and policies, and workers execute the tasks. Finally, discipline is maintained to coordinate task execution (Taylor, 2008). The world’s largest restaurant chain is an avowed follower of Taylorism. McDonald’s employs the scientific method in its corporate operations, where all tasks are worked out and standardized, and all employees worldwide are rigorously trained in this system. Tasks are broken down and num bered, so that the crews related to their customers according to a prepared script, and those who man the kitchen abide by a numbered set of procedures. Even the cooking machinery are specially designed to operate at pre-determined time settings. The result is a rigid quality level that ensures McDonald’s products are prepared and serve in exactly the same way the world over. Formal bureaucracy was conceived by Max Weber in the early 1900s. This was done in reaction to the prevailing management style then, where organisations were run according to the whims and

Politics of the knowledge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Politics of the knowledge - Essay Example It is important to understand that informed consent is always given, before the commencement of a medical or health care treatment. Normally, informed consent is always followed, for purposes of following ethics that regulate the profession under consideration. It is difficult to understand this concept of informed consent, without the analysis of various theoretical frameworks. Naturalism and constructivism are the best theoretical frameworks that can be used for purposes of analyzing this concept of informed consent. Naturalistic observation is normally used for purposes of studying the behavior of an individual in a natural set up. Under this type of observation, the parties to the research are not always aware that they are being observed or studies. Based on this fact, they cannot give their free and informed consent. Furthermore, this concept of naturalistic observation normally breaches the privacy of individuals, hence it is unethical practice2. Constructivism is a theoretical framework of knowledge. It explains that human beings are able to generate meaning and knowledge because of the interactions between their ideas and experiences. Based on these facts, when an individual seeks to give out an informed consent, then they are giving it, based on rationality, and knowledge. This means that they are well aware on the reasons they are giving out the permission, and the consequences that would arise, by giving out the permission. One of the major characteristic of naturalism is that it is scientific in nature. It emanates from the fact that anything which is real, must come from nature. Nature is viewed as actions, forces and objects which give up their secrets to an objective scientific inquiry3. The naturalistic view of mankind is depicted as that of animals, living in the natural world, and responding to internal stresses, environmental forces, and drives. Human beings cannot understand and control these natural forces. In any research

Analyse how 3 complementary therapies (Acupuncture, Herbal medicine, Essay

Analyse how 3 complementary therapies (Acupuncture, Herbal medicine, Massage) differs from conventional medicine - Essay Example 2003). It is also known as Western medicine or Allopathic Medicine. It follows proven scientific procedures and techniques in treating the symptoms of disease, unlike the former where the root cause of the disease is addressed. Conventional therapy is based on the fact that diseases are caused by Bacteria and Virus. It is very successful in acute conditions, accidents and surgery. Western medicine includes all types of conventional medical treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Nevertheless it is important to know about both possible benefits and potential harms of different system of therapies. †Herbal medicines include herbal materials, herbal preparations and finished herbal products that contain parts of plants as active ingredients† (Traditional Medicine: Definition, 2013). Herbal products are gaining prominence in the recent years due to various developments in analysis and quality control. Herbal products come in the form of capsules, pills, teas, syrups, oils liquid extracts. Simple decoctions can be made at home for common ailments like cough, cold, sore throat, indigestion etc... â€Å"Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80% of people worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some part of their primary health care† (Herbal Medicine, 2011). Acupressure is a procedure involving stimulation of vital nerve points on the body through the penetration of thin metallic needles on the skin. It gives instant relief for pain. It is a traditional Chinese practice. Massage is a technique intended to relax muscles by applying pressure on the f lesh. Generally, medicated oils are used for massage. It increases the flow of oxygen and helps to release toxins. Besides, it also help to relieve the body of any stress. Head massage is very popular to improve blood circulation and gives a general feeling of

Real life research Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Real life research - Coursework Example When a company conducts qualitative research through a focus group, the company is attempting to do research by having the moderator in focus group record everything that is the side in the focus group. The chosen forms of research were the appropriate forms of research for this study. Today focus groups can be conducted on the Internet. If the researchers had done a quantitative study, the researchers would have found out how the customer’s feel about the brand image. A quantitative research study will give researchers a general idea of what a customer thinks about a brand, or a company into. They can’t see the research study on what, how, where, and when. So, into a native research study the researchers could’ve found out what the customer’s like most about the brand, where the customers shop most for the brand and when they shop for it. One can measure the success of the campaign in the sales figures. If the campaign brought in more revenue than prior to the campaign and the campaign is, then determined a success. If the campaign only brought the same amount of revenue as before the campaign would not be so much of a success. However, if the company takes what was and changes the brand, and images the company will undoubtedly become a success

Egyptian revolution of 1952s Impact on Egyptian Films Content Essay

Egyptian revolution of 1952s Impact on Egyptian Films Content - Essay Example The Egyptian Cinema also underwent a significant change as a result. However, this change was not immediate. It was after turning to socialism in 1961 that the Nasser regime took hold of the film industry. Before the revolution, the Egyptians had been going through what is now generally regarded as the golden period of filmmaking. The overall mood and imagination of the audience was brilliantly depicted in the movies of the 1940s and the 1950s. There were many stereotypical characters, and a lot of actors gained prominence by playing such type of characters. Egypt was introduced to cinema at a very early stage as opposed to many other countries. It was because Egypt was under French and British influence and it was mostly introduced early to new innovations in any field. In the 1930s, it was the third largest film industry in the world (Boraie, 2008). It was the most productive film industry in the Arab world. It was probably because Egypt was having the most stable demographic at th at time. The lives of the natives were apparently not disturbed by the colonial powers. Especially after 1919, the Egyptian natives were greatly empowered and almost all the sectors began to be Egyptianized. A similar influence was observed on the movies. The impact of Western culture had been lessened to a great degree. The culture of the movies had become more Arabic and Egyptian. One of the major factors of Egyptian cinema’s pre-revolution eminence was the emergence of Umm Kuthum. Also known as Kawkab al-Sharq (Star of the East), she was a brilliant actress and probably the greatest singer that the Arabic world has ever produced. Her fame garnered a great number of audiences. Especially in the neighboring Arabic countries, the Egyptian culture and traditions had become widely familiar. The influence was so much that the colonial powers of the time saw the independent Egyptian cinema as a threat. According to Salmane et al (1976), â€Å"The French in the Maghreb... formed a "special department" on African problems that was "responsible for setting up a production centre in Morocco whose official mission was to oppose the influence of Egyptian cinema.† Egyptian cinema reached its Golden Age during the late 1930s. The content of the movies of this era mostly was the echo of contemporary events. A notable movie which can also be regarded as the pioneer of the golden era is The Will. This movie shows a group of university graduates who have to suffer economically despite their good education. Disgruntled with Egypt’s High Institute of Commerce, they protest against it (Kholeif, 2011). This movie depicted the unemployment problem of the time which was a harsh reality, and it was greatly appreciated by the audience. One of the hallmarks of the movies of the Golden age was that almost each movie had a happy ending. Sad endings were seldom well-received because they were incompatible with the overall psychology of the audience of Egypt. These mo vies mostly raised the contemporary issues and they were made to reach a solution hence leaving the audience satisfied. However, the pre-revolutionary cinema was still very much regulated. The content of the movies was somewhat confined. The British still had control over the political and economical structure of the country and the press was not free. There was still a struggle to break free from the Western influence. But the moviemakers preferred to play it safe, and make movies of the content that would both pass the censorship test and would be a commercial success (Schochat, 1990). A detestable practice also became active which was almost a form of plagiarism. Western movies or novels were adopted and made into Egyptian movies but the source was never acknowledged. A

Strategic Management Discussion Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Management Discussion Paper - Essay Example supposed to save time since tasks would not have to be passed from one team to another if a cross functional team is used to handle the entire production cycle. The idea is also helped by the emergence of business information systems which allow the sharing of information between departments making cross functional teams more powerful than departmental teams alone. There are some situations where reengineering is not only a good point on the agenda, it becomes a necessity for survival. The emerging e-business environment and the world of online sales means that not only the business models followed by companies but also the methods of doing business have to be changed (Rayport and Jaworski, 2000). The case of Apple is a prime example where the business process as well as the way sales were made by the company were changed and reengineered due to the availability of technology and the presence of a new business process (Smith, 2006). Of course there can be situations where a reengineering of a process may not be viable such as the operations of a hospital where health of the patient may be more important than simple profits or an airport where safety is often more important than efficiency. A high level of turnover at a company can be sign of many different things but given the other situations which are present at the company, it seems that there are quite a few problems at Milinder Recycling which are leading to the present situation of high turnover amongst new employees. While it is heartening to know that most of the older employees have been retained, the lack of new hires sticking it out shows that there is a significant problem with the recruitment and retention process for junior members (Welch, 2005). The company needs to establish an orientation program as well as provide some on the job training for new recruits who can be shown why Milinder is a good company to work for. Since the company has noticed that older employees are easier to retain they can

Real life research Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Real life research - Coursework Example When a company conducts qualitative research through a focus group, the company is attempting to do research by having the moderator in focus group record everything that is the side in the focus group. The chosen forms of research were the appropriate forms of research for this study. Today focus groups can be conducted on the Internet. If the researchers had done a quantitative study, the researchers would have found out how the customer’s feel about the brand image. A quantitative research study will give researchers a general idea of what a customer thinks about a brand, or a company into. They can’t see the research study on what, how, where, and when. So, into a native research study the researchers could’ve found out what the customer’s like most about the brand, where the customers shop most for the brand and when they shop for it. One can measure the success of the campaign in the sales figures. If the campaign brought in more revenue than prior to the campaign and the campaign is, then determined a success. If the campaign only brought the same amount of revenue as before the campaign would not be so much of a success. However, if the company takes what was and changes the brand, and images the company will undoubtedly become a success

Strategic Management Discussion Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Management Discussion Paper - Essay Example supposed to save time since tasks would not have to be passed from one team to another if a cross functional team is used to handle the entire production cycle. The idea is also helped by the emergence of business information systems which allow the sharing of information between departments making cross functional teams more powerful than departmental teams alone. There are some situations where reengineering is not only a good point on the agenda, it becomes a necessity for survival. The emerging e-business environment and the world of online sales means that not only the business models followed by companies but also the methods of doing business have to be changed (Rayport and Jaworski, 2000). The case of Apple is a prime example where the business process as well as the way sales were made by the company were changed and reengineered due to the availability of technology and the presence of a new business process (Smith, 2006). Of course there can be situations where a reengineering of a process may not be viable such as the operations of a hospital where health of the patient may be more important than simple profits or an airport where safety is often more important than efficiency. A high level of turnover at a company can be sign of many different things but given the other situations which are present at the company, it seems that there are quite a few problems at Milinder Recycling which are leading to the present situation of high turnover amongst new employees. While it is heartening to know that most of the older employees have been retained, the lack of new hires sticking it out shows that there is a significant problem with the recruitment and retention process for junior members (Welch, 2005). The company needs to establish an orientation program as well as provide some on the job training for new recruits who can be shown why Milinder is a good company to work for. Since the company has noticed that older employees are easier to retain they can

Pride and Prejudice Plot Essay Example for Free

Pride and Prejudice Plot Essay Elizabeth Bennet receives two proposals; one from Mr Collins and one from Mr Darcy. Mr Collins was a tall and heavy looking man of twenty-five years. Although he was polite and well mannered he was also pompous and had a self-inflated ego. He always made never ending speeches about nothing and bored everyone to death. Mr Collins flattered everyone constantly but sometimes inappropriately. He begged to know which of his fair cousins the excellence of its cooking was owed. -By this, Mrs Bennet was offended and assured him they were in fact able to keep a good cook. This showed his lack of judgement in when to compliment. He was also quite absurd and Mr Bennets sarcasm often went completely unnoticed. For example, on page 54, Mr Bennet asked if his flatteries were prepared and Mr Collins admitted that sometimes he would think of them for his amusement! Lady Catherine de Bourgh who was his patroness employed him. He grovelled to her constantly as she paid his way; because of her, he was middle/upper class. He was a clergyman at Hunsford near Rosings, Lady Catherine de Bourghs home. When Mr Bennet dies, Mr Collins will inherit Longburn, as Mr Bennet cannot leave the house to his wife; women couldnt inherit. In Mr Collins letter, he proposes to make peace with the family. Mr Darcy on the other hand was very good looking. He soon drew the attention of the room by his fine tall person, handsome features, noble mien He is also described as a fine figure of a man. But he was soon to be discovered to be proud above his company. He was clever, but at the same time he was haughty, reserved and fastidious. He owned Pemberly Estate and got one thousand a year. -He was upper class and he knew it; He had seen a collection of people in whom there was little beauty and no fashion for none of whom he had felt the smallest interest. Darcy and Bingley had a good friendship despite many differences. Bingley was sure of being liked wherever he appeared; Darcy was continually giving offence. Darcy had no sense of humour and admitted it. He couldnt see the funny side of life whereas Bingley was light hearted and liked to enjoy everything he did. In the past Wickam and Darcy had a disagreement. Mr Darcys father had promised Wickam a place in the church but when he died Darcy refused to help him. Mr Collins first hints on his future plans in his letter to the Bennets when he writes; I cannot be otherwise than concerned at the means of injuring your amiable daughters, and beg leave to apologise for it, as well as to assure you of my readiness to make them every possible amends. On the first day of staying at Longburn, he, in a conversation to Mrs Bennet said; I can assure the young ladies that I come prepared to admire them. -Here he gave Mrs Bennet a small glimpse of his intentions. Jane Austin then gave it away saying that now having a good house and income; Mr Collins was in want of a wife. He was also pleasing Catherine de Bourgh who thought he should marry. So for the first evening Jane was the settled choice being not only the eldest, but the prettiest -this was, until he was informed by Mrs Bennet that she was soon to be engaged to Bingley (exaggeration). Then at the Netherfield Ball he asked Lizzy to dance several times and she realised she was the chosen one out of the five sisters. Mr Darcy on the other hand was far from admiring Lizzy at first and when Mr Bingley suggested he dance with her at the Meryton Ball he replied that he had not the least intention of dancing. -Bingley was dancing with the only good looking girl in the room. Here he was referring to Jane. He said Lizzy was tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me. Then at Sir William Lucass party, William tried to pair up the two of them and Darcy did not resist, but Lizzy brushed him off with; I have not the least intention of dancing. -this was pay back. It was at this party that Darcy realised his true feelings for her. At Netherfield when Jane went to stay, she fell ill and Lizzy being worried came to visit. Here, she noticed that Darcy was constantly watching her. Miss Bingley who secretly liked Darcy, in seeing that he was drawn to Lizzy tried to turn him against her. But all in vain, for whatever she said, he just stuck up for Elizabeth. Miss Bingley, in Mr Darcys defending her said; I am afraid Mr Darcy that this adventure has rather affected your admiration for her fine eyes. I think when she says this shes half-teasing and half jealous of him liking her. Before proposing, Mr Collins said to Mrs Bennet, May I hope madam, for your interest with your fair daughter Elizabeth, when I solicit for the honour of a private audience with her in the course of this morning? -Here, he was basically asking Mrs Bennets permission to propose. He then launched straight into his speech. Mr Darcy came to visit Lizzy and at first made light conversation, asking about her health. Then there was an awkward silence where he must have been trying to think of how to start before proceeding. -Differences are already showing through. Mr Collins first said hed chosen Lizzy almost as soon as hed met her (which was a lie) and went on to specify his reasons for marrying her. He, as a clergyman wanted to set an example to the rest of the parish, he thought it would make his happy and he was following Lady Catherine de Bourghs advice. Hed obviously planed out his speech carefully but in his reasons, he had not mentioned that he was in love with her! Darcy on the other hand offered his hand in marriage because he did love her and his opening sentence expressed this clearly; In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how I admire and love you. Mr Collins also made several insults to Lizzy when proposing to her without even realising it! For instance, he said that if she refuses, she my never get another offer. He also reminds her that if she stays single, all she may ever be entitled to is twenty-five pounds when her mother dies. Darcy put his foot in it too. After saying how much he loved her, he went on to say that it was not his wish to do so with her connections and status; His sense of inferiority -of the family obstacles which judgement had always opposed to inclination. When he was turned down he thought she was just offended; Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your connections? -To congratulate myself on the hope of relations, your connections? He also admitted to trying to split up Jane and Darcy and even rejoiced in his success of doing so. In response to rejection, Mr Collins thinks Lizzy is playing hard to get and says this is to be expected of a lady. He goes on to say all the good materialistic reasons to marry him forgetting to mention things like love. He acts as if marrying would be a good investment for Lizzy or something. He then assured her that both of her parents approved of the marriage. Mr Darcy in response to rejection is shocked and angry but manages to control himself. He asked why he had been refused and thought she must be offended by what he had said earlier; Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your connections? But after saying these words he accepted her answer. Both proposals were made for very different reasons; Mr Collins obviously proposed for convenience, whereas Mr Darcy was in love. Both men also reacted in different ways when turned down; although Mr Collins couldnt take the rejection, he was not actually bothered about anything other than having his male pride hurt. -Darcy must have been extremely upset, to him Lizzy was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with but he tried not to show his emotions. They both involved a lot of snobbery in their proposal speeches. They thought that Lizzy would not reject someone of the higher class and she should be grateful that she was chosen out of all the other girls; both reminded her constantly about her status. Mr Collins was more personal mentioning both what would happen when her mother and father died but Lizzy got more angry at Darcy because of things he has said and done in the past. Mr Collins and Mr Darcy both said in much detail all the pros and cons of the marriage. In conclusion, both proposals have some similarities but they differ in the essential requirement of love.

Definitions and Overviews of Intellectual Disabilities

Definitions and Overviews of Intellectual Disabilities Outcome 1: Define Intellectual Disability TASK 1 1.1 Give 2 definitions of intellectual disability in accordance with a recognized source. Follow prescribed APA format when citing sources. Definition 1: Intellectual disability causes limitations in intellectual functioning as well as in adaptive behaviors that include many skills which is needed every day. The onset age is under 18. Source: FAQ on Intellectual Disability, American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, retrieved from: http://aaidd.org/intellectual-disability/definition/faqs-on-intellectual-disability Definition 2: Intellectual disability is a term used for when people has certain limitations in functioning mentally and in skills such as communicating, performing activities of daily living, and in his or her social behavior. Children with this ability may develop their skills (walking, talking, etc) at a delayed time as compared to normal. They may also have trouble with learning- it usually takes them a longer time to learn new skills. Source: National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.(2005) Intellectual disability, retrieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/pdf/parents_pdfs/IntellectualDisability.pdf 1.2 Using a definition of intellectual disability give 2 explanations of how this impacts on the persons adaptive skills: People with intellectual disability experience impairment in their ability to comprehend information. As a result, they have a hard time with reading comprehension, handling money, dealing with numbers and time. Due to their impaired social functioning, they also find it hard to socially deal with others. They don’t recognize the laws of society and they have a limited ability to follow rules. Using a definition of intellectual disability give 2 explanations of how this impacts on the cognitive abilities: Reasoning People with an intellectual disability cannot reason like normal people. They lack the ability to explain why they do certain things or why certain things happen. This is due to their impaired intelligence. Learn and apply what is learnt- Intellectually disabled people have a hard time to gain new knowledge. It is difficult for them to process new information and understand new skills. Outcome 2: Describe the causes of intellectual disability TASK 2 2.1 Give 2 examples of causes of intellectual disability that occur before birth and describe two (2) main characteristics of the effects. Example 1: Fragile X syndrome Source: National Fragile X Foundation. (1998-2014). Fragile X Syndrome, retrieved from: http://www.fragilex.org/fragile-x-associated-disorders/fragile-x-syndrome/ Main characteristics: Physical features of FXS patients include: large ears, long face, macroorchidism, infections in the ears, flat feet, high arched palate, fingers with double joints and hyper-flexible joints Behavioral characteristics for FXS patients may include the following: Attention Deficit Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism and Autistic behaviors, social anxiety, hand-biting and or flapping, poor eye contact, sensory disorders and high risks for aggression. Example 2: Prader-Willi Syndrome Source: Suzanne B. Cassidy, MD. (2012). Parder-Willi Syndrome, Genetics in medicine, 14, p10 Main characteristics: People who have Prader-Willi Syndrome have severe hypotonia. Therefore their sucking is poor in their early infancy. They are characterized by excessive eating and not able to control eating. 2.2 Give 2 examples of causes of intellectual disability that occur during or immediately following birth and describe 2 main characteristics of the effects. Example 1: Trauma Source: Merck Sharp and Dohme Corp. (2010-2013). The Merck Manual, Home Health Handbook, retrieved from: http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/childrens_health_issues/problems_in_newborns/birth_injury.html Main Characteristics: Head and brain injury. Swelling of the scalp and bruising may occur due to birth trauma. Bleeding between the periosteum and skull causes a haematoma, usually in the parietal region and sometimes the occipital region. Nerve Injury. Sometimes, when forceps used to assist delivery puts much pressure on the facial nerve, weakness on one side of the face results. This injury becomes evident when the newborn baby cries and the face appears to be asymmetric. Example2: Cerebral Palsy Source: Karen W. Krigger, M.D., M.ED., University of Louisville school of Medicine, Cerebral Palsy: An Overview, Kentucky Am Fam Physician. 2006 Jan 1; 73(1): 91-100, retrieved from: http://www.aafp.org/afp/2006/0101/p91.html Main Characteristics: Cerebral palsy is characterized by motor function impairment. It causes activity limitation. People with cerebral palsy exhibit cognitive and sensory impairments. 2.3 Give 2 examples of causes of intellectual disability that occur during childhood years and describe the impact on the day-to-day support needs of the person. Example 1: Brain Tumor Source: PMC: US National Library of Medicine, National Institute of Health. January 2008. â€Å"Caring for the Brain Tumor Patient: Family caregiver burden and unmet needs.†, retrieved from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2600839/ Impact: Patients with brain tumor need various supports in their day to day lives. Psychosocial support is one of them. It is important for them to learn how to handle the stress of a chronic illness, as family members realize that their lives will be forever changed by the uncertainty that surrounds this diagnosis. It is therefore important for the support provider to make sure the patient and family understands the impact of this illness to them and provide them of ways on how to cope and possibly live a close to normal life. Also, for the caregivers, it is important that they are always prepared for the possibility of disease progression. Even though a patient is stable for a certain period of time, the caregiver will always feel the wear and tear of caring for this patient. Thus, it is important to make sure that caregivers are also taken cared of to ensure quality care. Example 2: Meningitis Source: Kelli de la Rocha (2014). Intellectual disability. NYU Langone medical center. retrieved from: http://pediatrics.med.nyu.edu/conditions-we-treat/conditions/intellectual-disability# Impact: Children with intellectual disability caused by meningitis can’t learn skills and any knowledge as fast as other children with same age. So supporters need to wait for their achievement with patient. And also they need to be aware of the risk that the children experience seizure, and then they should be trained for coping with them suffering seizure. Outcome 3: Describe conditions frequently associated with intellectual disability. TASK 3 Condition 1: Cerebral Palsy Causes/s: Cerebral Palsy can be caused by having injury of brain before brain development is completed. Usually brain develops within 2 years after birth, so Cerebral Palsy can be occurred during prenatal or infant period. And birth complication can also cause this condition. But many cases get this condition from unknown causes before birth. Main characteristic 1: Cerebral Palsy is characterized by motor function impairment. It causes activity limitation. Main characteristic 2: People with Cerebral Palsy exhibit cognitive and sensory impairments. Physical support: People with Cerebral Palsy suffer from hypotonic and rigidity. So physical therapy is useful to support them physically. Effective physical therapy can help them to improve their muscle. Recent studies report that intensive exercise is effective. So support worker can make a schedule for resistive exercise four times per week. Social support: People with Cerebral Palsy can be easily isolated because of their handicaps. So support workers need to reduce barriers to participation in activities of school, work and society. To participate in activities, many devices are necessary. If the client can’t walk, using wheelchair could be helpful to go watching football games and cheer a team. Cognitive support: People with Cerebral Palsy can be normal intellectually, but they have difficulty in learning because of limitation of hearing, seeing, and movement. So for supporting them cognitively, support worker needs to help their study by give them enough time to understand and express or adjust knowledge. And support worker can provide some aids to improve their speech. Source/s: Karen W. Krigger, M.D., M.ED., University of Louisville school of Medicine, Cerebral Palsy: An Overview, Kentucky Am Fam Physician. 2006 Jan 1; 73(1): 91-100, retrieved from http://www.aafp.org/afp/2006/0101/p91.html Condition 2: Prader-Willi Syndrome Causes/s: Prader-Willi Syndrome is caused by genetic abnormality. They have the chromosome number 15 without genetic information that normally people have from the father. It is thought to occur entirely by chance. Main characteristic 1: People with Prader-Willi Syndrome have severe hypotonia. So their sucking is poor in their early infancy. Main characteristic 2: Obesity is commonly caused. This is a result of an excessive appetite, a permanent feeling of hunger, and hyperphagia or overeating, and a low calorific requirement which is due to low energy expenditure levels. Physical support: People with Prader-Willi Syndrome can’t control their eating because they always feel hunger. Furthermore, they can easily become obesity that causes many complications. To prevent them from being obesity, support workers need to give exercise outside where they can’t find food easily. They need regular and continual exercise, so it is important to make a schedule with various and interesting exercise to them. Social support: They should strict supervision of daily food intake. Once overeating starts between ages 2 and 4 years, supervision will help to minimize food hoarding and stealing and prevent rapid weight gain and severe obesity. Parents should lock refrigerators and all cabinets containing food. No medications have proven beneficial in reducing food-seeking behavior. A well-balanced, low-calorie diet and regular exercise are essential and must be maintained for the rest of the individuals life. People with PWS rarely need more than 1,000 to 1,200 calories per day. Cognitive support: People with PWS have difficulty controlling their emotions. Using behavioral therapy can help. Stubbornness, anger, and obsessive-compulsive behavior, including obsession with food, should be handled with behavioral management programs using firm limit-setting strategies. Structure and routines also are advised Source: Andres Martin, M.D, 1998, Prader-Willi Syndrome, Am J Psychiatry 1998; 155:1265-1273, retrieved from http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=173004 Condition 3: Autism Cause/s: The condition is the result of a neurological disorder that has an effect on normal brain function, affecting development of the persons communication and social interaction skills. Main Characteristic 1: Seizure disorders, including epilepsy, occur in as many as 39 percent of those with autism. It is more common in people with autism who also have intellectual disability than those without. Someone with autism may experience more than one type of seizure. Main Characteristic 2: Almost People with autism have unusual responses to sensory input. They have difficulty processing and integrating sensory information, or stimuli, such as sights, sounds smells, tastes and/or movement. They may experience seemingly ordinary stimuli as painful, unpleasant or confusing. Physical Support: Physical Therapy (PT) is focused on any problems with movement that cause functional limitations. Children with autism frequently have challenges with motor skills such as sitting, walking, running or jumping. PT can address poor muscle tone, balance and coordination. Social Support: Individuals with autism have a great deal of difficulty with social interactions. In recent years, social skills training, in both one-on-one and peer group settings, has become a very common treatment for facing this particular challenge. Social skills taught during training sessions range from simple skills like eye contact, to more difficult skills like inviting a peer for a play date. Studies have shown that this type of intervention program can significantly improve social competence and social skill development. Cognitive Support: Sensory Integration (SI) therapy is designed to identify disruptions in the way the individual’s brain processes movement, touch, smell, sight and sound, and help he or she process these senses in a more productive way. It is believed that SI does not teach higher-level skills, but rather enhances sensory processing abilities, allowing the child to be more available to acquire higher-level skills. Source: Autism Speaks Inc. 2014. â€Å"Autism Speaks†. Retrieved from: http://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism

Feminist and Dialogic Approaches in The Fatal Sisters :: The Fatal Sisters

Feminist and Dialogic Approaches in The Fatal Sisters  Ã‚     Ã‚   Thomas Gray's method of transforming monological poems into intense psyche films is fascinating. While reading The Fatal Sisters, readers can actually engage in a mind performance because of the choices of words, vivid actions, social aspects, and mythology that Gray displays here. The feminist and dialogic approaches, applied together, help shape the realm of this poem into a complex event in history that still takes place today. The feminist approach reveals many things about this poem that would otherwise be overlooked. To start, Gray presents us with Norse mythology. The twelve women in this poem are acknowledging the maidens of Oden who conduct the souls of heroes slain in the battle of Vahalla. This poem is their song. It sounds as a prayer that they are reciting to the war maidens Mista, Sangrida, and Hilda. "It is well-documented that in many cultures, when matriarchal societies were replaced with patriarchal ones, the previously venerated goddesses were turned by the new culture into witches, seductresses, or fools."(Guerin 207) These women's matriarch society was turned into a patriarch society. This is why the battle is going on. Supreme classes of men are combating for more power. The power that men took away from old matriarchal archetypes. Another approach helpful in analyzing this poem is Marxist feminism. Marxist feminism points out the social class that these women are in and leads us further to determine their fate. The women in The Fatal Sisters belong to the working class. They constitute a union and are bonded by sisterhood. The writers of the 1970's movie, Norma Rae, had this poem in mind when making this film. The Fatal sisters know their job. The fate of the men's lives are in the sisters hands. "Glitt'ring lances are the loom, where the dusky warp we strain, weaving many a soldier's doom, Orkney's woe, and Randver's bane."(5-8) The sisters are not affected by the war that is taking place. Their only focus is their duties, which are to finish making war flags and aid in killing. The biological and liguistical models also shape the feminine approach. The preface draws a detailed abstract to what these women look like. "Till looking through an opening in the rocks he saw twelve gigantic figures resembling women."(Gray 38) This is very offensive. He could have called them sturdy women, or large women.

The Six Day War Essay -- Military History

The Six Day War Introduction History records the 1967 Arab-Israeli War (Six-Day War) as one of the most memorable on record. Israeli forces delivered a stunning defeat to a coalition of Arab forces that greatly outnumbered the much smaller Israeli force. Victory was made possible by the initial aerial attack launched by Israeli Air Forces. The elements of surprise, stealth, Operational Security (OPSEC), precision planning and flawless execution were essential to victory. The opening aerial offensive has been called â€Å"one of the most stunning successes in modern warfare† . This case study will review the history, preparation, execution, and lessons learned of this conflict. There is much profit for those who will study this war and consider the essential elements that made the impossible- possible. History The United Nations General Assembly voted for the establishment of an Israeli independent state on 29 November 1947. Independence was claimed on May 14th, 1948. Immediately, Arab nations were hostile towards the presence of a Jewish state. No peace was to be enjoyed. Arab legions surrounded Israeli camps and brutally attacked and slaughtered, even civilians. Uneasy relations continued and sporadic wars were to be required in order to preserve the Jewish state. In 1967, tensions were boiling; as another war was on the horizon. While the Jewish state was far out-numbered and surrounded by foes, the Jewish people were inspired to fight for their very survival. President Gamal Abdel Nasser, of Egypt, delivered unsettling, warmongering speeches that only served to further inspire the Israelis to fight with passion. â€Å"The Israelis had a courage and patriotism that made them try harder and more unselfishly† . The... ...ng design, which proved to be a detriment as they could easily be made unusable by a single bomb strike at the intersecting runways . In addition, nations invested in advanced technology, seeking better early warning radar systems. References Tucker, Spencer C., Battles that Changed History: An Encyclopedia of World Conflict, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2011 Weller, Jae, Israeli Armor: Lessons From the Six-Day War, Military Review Vol.51, No.11, Nov 1971 Rabinovich, Abraham, First Strike, The Quarterly Journal of Military History, Vol.2, No.3, Spring 1990 In Search of Peace: Part One 1948-1967. DVD. Moriah Films, 1997 Against All Odds: Six-Day War & Raid on Entebbe. DVD. A&E Television Networks, 1996 Dogfights: No Room for Error. DVD. A&E Television Networks, 2007 Dogfights: The Complete Season One, Volume Four. DVD. A&E Television Networks, 2006

Overview of Information Systems and Technology Essay

Corporations rely heavily on their internal business systems. These business systems consist of departments such as finance and accounting, human resource, legal, sales/marketing, and operations. Riordan Manufacturing, Inc. contains all the necessary business systems to operate for day to day activities. Riordan, a manufacturing company HRIS system is dated back in 1992 and as part of the financial system, it tracks the employee information such as pay rate, hire date, personal tax exemption purposes, seniority date, vacation hours for none exempted employees, organizational information such as manager’s name and department for budget purposes, and personal information with inclusion of addresses, birth dates and names. The company’s HRIS system was installed in 1992. It is a part of the financial systems package and keeps track of the following employee information: †¢Personal information (such as name, address, marital status, birth date, etc.) †¢Pay rate †¢Personal exemptions for tax purposes †¢Hire date †¢Seniority date (which is sometimes different than the hire date) †¢Organizational information (department for budget purposes, manager’s name, etc.) †¢Vacation hours (for non-exempt employees) Changes to this information are submitted in writing (on special forms) by the employee’s manager and are entered into the system by the payroll clerk. Training and development records are kept in an Excel worksheet by the training and development specialist. Each recruiter maintains applicant information for open positions. Rà ©sumà ©s are filed in a central storage area, and an Excel spreadsheet is used to track the status of applicants. Workers’ compensation is managed by a third-party provider, which keeps its own records. Employee files are kept by individual managers; there is no central employee file area. Managers are also responsible for tracking FMLA absences and any requests for accommodation under the ADA. The compensation manager keeps an Excel spreadsheet with the results of job analyses, salary surveys and individual compensation decisions. Employee relations specialists track information about complaints, grievances, harassment complaints, etc. in  locked files in their offices.

The Lost Symbol Chapter 117-118

CHAPTER 117 Langdon felt his stomach drop as the CIA helicopter leaped off the lawn, banked hard, and accelerated faster than he ever imagined a helicopter could move. Katherine had stayed behind to recuperate with Bellamy while one of the CIA agents searched the mansion and waited for a backup team. Before Langdon left, she had kissed him on the cheek and whispered, â€Å"Be safe, Robert.† Now Langdon was holding on for dear life as the military helicopter finally leveled out and raced toward the House of the Temple. Seated beside him, Sato was yelling up to the pilot. â€Å"Head for Dupont Circle!† she shouted over the deafening noise. â€Å"We'll set down there!† Startled, Langdon turned to her. â€Å"Dupont?! That's blocks from the House of the Temple! We can land in the Temple parking lot!† Sato shook her head. â€Å"We need to enter the building quietly. If our target hears us coming–â€Å" â€Å"We don't have time!† Langdon argued. â€Å"This lunatic is about to murder Peter! Maybe the sound of the helicopter will scare him and make him stop!† Sato stared at him with ice-cold eyes. â€Å"As I have told you, Peter Solomon's safety is not my primary objective. I believe I've made that clear.† Langdon was in no mood for another national-security lecture. â€Å"Look, I'm the only one on board who knows his way through that building–â€Å" â€Å"Careful, Professor,† the director warned. â€Å"You are here as a member of my team, and I will have your complete cooperation.† She paused a moment and then added, â€Å"In fact, it might be wise if I now apprised you fully of the severity of our crisis tonight.† Sato reached under her seat and pulled out a sleek titanium briefcase, which she opened to reveal an unusually complicated-looking computer. When she turned it on, a CIA logo materialized along with a log-in prompt. As Sato logged in, she asked, â€Å"Professor, do you remember the blond hairpiece we found in the man's home?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Well, hidden within that wig was a tiny fiber-optic camera . . . concealed in the bangs.† â€Å"A hidden camera? I don't understand.† Sato looked grim. â€Å"You will.† She launched a file on the laptop. ONE MOMENT PLEASE . . . DECRYPTING FILE . . . A video window popped up, filling the entire screen. Sato lifted the briefcase and set it on Langdon's thighs, giving him a front-row seat. An unusual image materialized on the screen. Langdon recoiled in surprise. What the hell?! Murky and dark, the video was of a blindfolded man. He was dressed in the garb of a medieval heretic being led to the gallows–noose around his neck, left pant leg rolled up to the knee, right sleeve rolled up to the elbow, and his shirt gaping open to reveal his bare chest. Langdon stared in disbelief. He had read enough about Masonic rituals to recognize exactly what he was looking at. A Masonic initiate . . . preparing to enter the first degree. The man was very muscular and tall, with a familiar blond hairpiece and deeply tanned skin. Langdon recognized his features at once. The man's tattoos had obviously been concealed beneath bronzing makeup. He was standing before a full-length mirror videotaping his reflection through the camera concealed in his wig. But . . . why? The screen faded to black. New footage appeared. A small, dimly lit, rectangular chamber. A dramatic chessboard floor of black-and-white tile. A low wooden altar, flanked on three sides by pillars, atop which burned flickering candles. Langdon felt a sudden apprehension. Oh my God. Filming in the erratic style of an amateur home video, the camera now panned up to the periphery of the room to reveal a small group of men observing the initiate. The men were dressed in ritual Masonic regalia. In the darkness, Langdon could not make out their faces, but he had no doubt where this ritual was taking place. The traditional layout of this Lodge Room could have been anywhere in the world, but the powder-blue triangular pediment above the master's chair revealed it as the oldest Masonic lodge in D.C.–Potomac Lodge No. 5–home of George Washington and the Masonic forefathers who laid the cornerstone for the White House and the Capitol Building. The lodge was still active today. Peter Solomon, in addition to overseeing the House of the Temple, was the master of his local lodge. And it was at lodges like this one that a Masonic initiate's journey always began . . . where he underwent the first three degrees of Freemasonry. â€Å"Brethren,† Peter's familiar voice declared, â€Å"in the name of the Great Architect of the Universe, I open this lodge for the practice of Masonry in the first degree!† A gavel rapped loudly. Langdon watched in utter disbelief as the video progressed through a quick series of dissolves featuring Peter Solomon performing some of the ritual's starker moments. Pressing a shining dagger to the initiate's bare chest . . . threatening impalement should the initiate â€Å"inappropriately reveal the Mysteries of Masonry† . . . describing the black-and-white floor as representing â€Å"the living and the dead† . . . outlining punishments that included â€Å"having one's throat cut across, one's tongue torn out by its roots, and one's body buried in the rough sands of the sea . . .† Langdon stared. Am I really witnessing this? Masonic initiation rites had remained shrouded in secrecy for centuries. The only descriptions that had ever been leaked were written by a handful of estranged brothers. Langdon had read those accounts, of course, and yet to see an initiation with his own eyes . . . this was a much different story. Especially edited this way. Langdon could already tell that the video was an unfair piece of propaganda, omitting all the noblest aspects of the initiation and highlighting only the most disconcerting. If this video were released, Langdon knew it would become an Internet sensation over night. The anti-Masonic conspiracy theorists would feed on this like sharks. The Masonic organization, and especially Peter Solomon, would find themselves embroiled in a firestorm of controversy and a desperate effort at damage control . . . even though the ritual was innocuous and purely symbolic. Eerily, the video included a biblical reference to human sacrifice . . . â€Å"the submission of Abraham to the Supreme Being by proffering Isaac, his firstborn son.† Langdon thought of Peter and willed the helicopter to fly faster. The video footage shifted now. Same room. Different night. A larger group of Masons looking on. Peter Solomon was observing from the master's chair. This was the second degree. More intense now. Kneeling at the altar . . . vowing to â€Å"forever conceal the enigmas existing within Freemasonry† . . . consenting to the penalty of â€Å"having one's chest cavity ripped open and pulsing heart cast upon the surface of the earth as offal for the ravenous beasts† . . . Langdon's own heart was pulsing wildly now as the video shifted yet again. Another night. A much larger crowd. A coffin-shaped â€Å"tracing board† on the floor. The third degree. This was the death ritual–the most rigorous of all the degrees–the moment in which the initiate was forced â€Å"to face the final challenge of personal extinction.† This grueling interrogation was in fact the source of the common phrase to give someone the third degree. And although Langdon was very familiar with academic accounts of it, he was in no way prepared for what he now saw. The murder. In violent, rapid intercuts, the video displayed a chilling, victim's point-of-view account of the initiate's brutal murder. There were simulated blows to his head, including one with a Mason's stone maul. All the while, a deacon mournfully told the story of â€Å"the widow's son†Ã¢â‚¬â€œHiram Abiff–the master Architect of King Solomon's temple, who chose to die rather than reveal the secret wisdom he possessed. The attack was mimed, of course, and yet its effect on camera was bloodcurdling. After the deathblow, the initiate–now â€Å"dead to his former self†Ã¢â‚¬â€œwas lowered into his symbolic coffin, where his eyes were shut and his arms were crossed like those of a corpse. The Masonic brothers rose and mournfully circled his dead body while a pipe organ played a march of the dead. The macabre scene was deeply disturbing. And it only got worse. As the men gathered around their slain brother, the hidden camera clearly displayed their faces. Langdon now realized that Solomon was not the only famous man in the room. One of the men peering down at the initiate in his coffin was on television almost daily. A prominent U.S. senator. Oh God . . . The scene changed yet again. Outside now . . . nighttime . . . the same jumpy video footage . . . the man was walking down a city street . . . strands of blond hair blowing in front of the camera . . . turning a corner . . .the camera angle lowering to something in the man's hand . . . a dollar bill . . . a close-up focusing on the Great Seal . . . the all-seeing eye . . . the unfinished pyramid . . . and then, abruptly, pulling away to reveal a similar shape in the distance . . . a massive pyramidical building . . . with sloping sides rising to a truncated top. The House of the Temple. A soul-deep dread swelled within him. The video kept moving . . . the man hurrying toward the building now . . . up the multitiered staircase . . . toward the giant bronze doors . . . between the two seventeen-ton sphinx guardians. A neophyte entering the pyramid of initiation. Darkness now. A powerful pipe organ played in the distance . . . and a new image materialized. The Temple Room. Langdon swallowed hard. On-screen, the cavernous space was alive with electricity. Beneath the oculus, the black marble altar shone in the moonlight. Assembled around it, seated on hand-tooled pigskin chairs, awaited a somber council of distinguished thirty-third-degree Masons, present to bear witness. The video now panned across their faces with slow and deliberate intention. Langdon stared in horror. Although he had not seen this coming, what he was looking at made perfect sense. A gathering of the most decorated and accomplished Masons in the most powerful city on earth would logically include many influential and well-known individuals. Sure enough, seated around the altar, adorned in their long silk gloves, Masonic aprons, and glistening jewels, were some of the country's most powerful men. Two Supreme Court justices . . . The secretary of defense . . . The speaker of the House . . . Langdon felt ill as the video continued panning across the faces of those in attendance. Three prominent senators . . . including the majority leader . . . The secretary of homeland security . . . And . . . The director of the CIA . . . Langdon wanted only to look away, but he could not. The scene was utterly mesmerizing, alarming even to him. In an instant, he had come to understand the source of Sato's anxiety and concern. Now, on-screen, the shot dissolved into a single shocking image. A human skull . . . filled with dark crimson liquid. The famed caput mortuum was being offered forth to the initiate by the slender hands of Peter Solomon, whose gold Masonic ring glinted in the candlelight. The red liquid was wine . . . and yet it shimmered like blood. The visual effect was frightful. The Fifth Libation, Langdon realized, having read firsthand accounts of this sacrament in John Quincy Adams's Letters on the Masonic Institution. Even so, to see it happen . . . to see it calmly witnessed by America's most powerful men . . . this was as arresting an image as any Langdon had ever seen. The initiate took the skull in his hands . . . his face reflected in the calm surface of the wine. â€Å"May this wine I now drink become a deadly poison to me,† he declared, â€Å"should I ever knowingly or willfully violate my oath.† Obviously, this initiate had intended to violate his oath beyond all imagination. Langdon could barely get his mind around what would happen if this video were made public. No one would understand. The government would be thrown into upheaval. The airwaves would be filled with the voices of anti-Masonic groups, fundamentalists, and conspiracy theorists spewing hatred and fear, launching a Puritan witch hunt all over again. The truth will be twisted, Langdon knew. As it always is with the Masons. The truth was that the brotherhood's focus on death was in fact a bold celebration of life. Masonic ritual was designed to awaken the slumbering man inside, lifting him from his dark coffin of ignorance, raising him into the light, and giving him eyes to see. Only through the death experience could man fully understand his life experience. Only through the realization that his days on earth were finite could he grasp the importance of living those days with honor, integrity, and service to his fellow man. Masonic initiations were startling because they were meant to be transformative. Masonic vows were unforgiving because they were meant to be reminders that man's honor and his â€Å"word† were all he could take from this world. Masonic teachings were arcane because they were meant to be universal . . . taught through a common language of symbols and metaphors that transcended religions, cultures, and races . . . creating a unified â€Å"worldwide consciousness† of brotherly love. For a brief instant, Langdon felt a glimmer of hope. He tried to assure himself that if this video were to leak out, the public would be open-minded and tolerant, realizing that all spiritual rituals included aspects that would seem frightening if taken out of context–crucifixion reenactments, Jewish circumcision rites, Mormon baptisms of the dead, Catholic exorcisms, Islamic niqab, shamanic trance healing, the Jewish Kaparot ceremony, even the eating of the figurative body and blood of Christ. I'm dreaming, Langdon knew. This video will create chaos. He could imagine what would happen if the prominent leaders of Russia or the Islamic world were seen in a video, pressing knives to bare chests, swearing violent oaths, performing mock murders, lying in symbolic coffins, and drinking wine from a human skull. The global outcry would be instantaneous and overwhelming. God help us . . . On-screen now, the initiate was raising the skull to his lips. He tipped it backward . . . draining the blood-red wine . . . sealing his oath. Then he lowered the skull and gazed out at the assembly around him. America's most powerful and trusted men gave contented nods of acceptance. â€Å"Welcome, brother,† Peter Solomon said. As the image faded to black, Langdon realized he had stopped breathing. Without a word, Sato reached over, closed the briefcase, and lifted it off his lap. Langdon turned to her trying to speak, but he could find no words. It didn't matter. Understanding was written all over his face. Sato was right. Tonight was a national-security crisis . . . of unimaginable proportions. CHAPTER 118 Dressed in his loincloth, Mal'akh padded back and forth in front of Peter Solomon's wheelchair. â€Å"Peter,† he whispered, enjoying every moment of his captive's horror, â€Å"you forgot you have a second family . . . your Masonic brothers. And I will destroy them, too . . . unless you help me.† Solomon looked almost catatonic in the glow of the laptop sitting atop his thighs. â€Å"Please,† he finally stammered, glancing up. â€Å"If this video gets out . . .† â€Å"If?† Mal'akh laughed. â€Å"If it gets out?† He motioned to the small cellular modem plugged into the side of his laptop. â€Å"I'm connected to the world.† â€Å"You wouldn't . . .† I will, Mal'akh thought, enjoying Solomon's horror. â€Å"You have the power to stop me,† he said. â€Å"And to save your sister. But you have to tell me what I want to know. The Lost Word is hidden somewhere, Peter, and I know this grid reveals exactly where to find it.† Peter glanced at the grid of symbols again, his eyes revealing nothing. â€Å"Perhaps this will help to inspire you.† Mal'akh reached over Peter's shoulders and hit a few keys on the laptop. An e-mail program launched on the screen, and Peter stiffened visibly. The screen now displayed an e-mail that Mal'akh had cued earlier tonight–a video file addressed to a long list of major media networks. Mal'akh smiled. â€Å"I think it's time we share, don't you?† â€Å"Don't!† Mal'akh reached down and clicked the send button on the program. Peter jerked against his bonds, trying unsuccessfully to knock the laptop to the floor. â€Å"Relax, Peter,† Mal'akh whispered. â€Å"It's a massive file. It will take a few minutes to go out.† He pointed to the progress bar: SENDING MESSAGE: 2% COMPLETE â€Å"If you tell me what I want to know, I'll stop the e-mail, and nobody will ever see this.† Peter was ashen as the task bar inched forward. SENDING MESSAGE: 4% COMPLETE Mal'akh now lifted the computer from Peter's lap and set it on one of the nearby pigskin chairs, turning the screen so the other man could watch the progress. Then he returned to Peter's side and laid the page of symbols in his lap. â€Å"The legends say the Masonic Pyramid will unveil the Lost Word. This is the pyramid's final code. I believe you know how to read it.† Mal'akh glanced over at the laptop. SENDING MESSAGE: 8% COMPLETE Mal'akh returned his eyes to Peter. Solomon was staring at him, his gray eyes blazing now with hatred. Hate me, Mal'akh thought. The greater the emotion, the more potent the energy that will be released when the ritual is completed. At Langley, Nola Kaye pressed the phone to her ear, barely able to hear Sato over the noise of the helicopter. â€Å"They said it's impossible to stop the file transfer!† Nola shouted. â€Å"To shut down local ISPs would take at least an hour, and if he's got access to a wireless provider, killing the ground-based Internet won't stop him from sending it anyway.† Nowadays, stopping the flow of digital information had become nearly impossible. There were too many access routes to the Internet. Between hard lines, Wi-Fi hot spots, cellular modems, SAT phones, superphones, and e-mail-equipped PDAs, the only way to isolate a potential data leak was by destroying the source machine. â€Å"I pulled the spec sheet on the UH-60 you're flying,† Nola said, â€Å"and it looks like you're equipped with EMP.† Electromagnetic-pulse or EMP guns were now commonplace among law enforcement agencies, which used them primarily to stop car chases from a safe distance. By firing a highly concentrated pulse of electromagnetic radiation, an EMP gun could effectively fry the electronics of any device it targeted–cars, cell phones, computers. According to Nola's spec sheet, the UH- 60 had a chassis-mounted, laser-sighted, six-gigahertz magnetron with a fifty-dB-gain horn that yielded a ten-gigawatt pulse. Discharged directly at a laptop, the pulse would fry the computer's motherboard and instantly erase the hard drive. â€Å"EMP will be useless,† Sato yelled back. â€Å"Target is inside a stone building. No sight lines and thick EM shielding. Do you have any indication yet if the video has gone out?† Nola glanced at a second monitor, which was running a continuous search for breaking news stories about the Masons. â€Å"Not yet, ma'am. But if it goes public, we'll know within seconds.† â€Å"Keep me posted.† Sato signed off. Langdon held his breath as the helicopter dropped from the sky toward Dupont Circle. A handful of pedestrians scattered as the aircraft descended through an opening in the trees and landed hard on the lawn just south of the famous two-tiered fountain designed by the same two men who created the Lincoln Memorial. Thirty seconds later, Langdon was riding shotgun in a commandeered Lexus SUV, tearing up New Hampshire Avenue toward the House of the Temple. Peter Solomon was desperately trying to figure out what to do. All he could see in his mind were the images of Katherine bleeding in the basement . . . and of the video he had just witnessed. He turned his head slowly toward the laptop on the pigskin chair several yards away. The progress bar was almost a third of the way filled. SENDING MESSAGE: 29% COMPLETE The tattooed man was now walking slow circles around the square altar, swinging a lit censer and chanting to himself. Thick puffs of white smoke swirled up toward the skylight. The man's eyes were wide now, and he seemed to be in a demonic trance. Peter turned his gaze to the ancient knife that sat waiting on the white silk cloth spread across the altar. Peter Solomon had no doubt that he would die in this temple tonight. The question was how to die. Would he find a way to save his sister and his brotherhood . . . or would his death be entirely in vain? He glanced down at the grid of symbols. When he had first laid eyes on the grid, the shock of the moment had blinded him . . . preventing his vision from piercing the veil of chaos . . . to glimpse the startling truth. Now, however, the real significance of these symbols had become crystal clear to him. He had seen the grid in an entirely new light. Peter Solomon knew exactly what he needed to do. Taking a deep breath, he gazed up at the moon through the oculus above. Then he began to speak. All great truths are simple. Mal'akh had learned that long ago. The solution that Peter Solomon was now explaining was so graceful and pure that Mal'akh was sure that it could only be true. Incredibly, the solution to the pyramid's final code was far simpler than he had ever imagined. The Lost Word was right before my eyes. In an instant, a bright ray of light pierced the murkiness of the history and myth surrounding the Lost Word. As promised, the Lost Word was indeed written in an ancient language and bore mystical power in every philosophy, religion, and science ever known to man. Alchemy, astrology, Kabbalah, Christianity, Buddhism, Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry, astronomy, physics, Noetics . . . Standing now in this initiation chamber atop the great pyramid of Heredom, Mal'akh gazed upon the treasure he had sought all these years, and he knew he could not have prepared himself more perfectly. Soon I am complete. The Lost Word is found. In Kalorama Heights, a lone CIA agent stood amid a sea of garbage that he had dumped out of the trash bins that had been found in the garage. â€Å"Ms. Kaye?† he said, speaking to Sato's analyst on the phone. â€Å"Good thinking to search his garbage. I think I just found something.† Inside the house, Katherine Solomon was feeling stronger with every passing moment. The infusion of lactated Ringer's solution had successfully raised her blood pressure and quelled her throbbing headache. She was resting now, seated in the dining room, with explicit instructions to remain still. Her nerves felt frayed, and she was increasingly anxious for news about her brother. Where is everybody? The CIA's forensics team had not yet arrived, and the agent who had stayed behind was still off searching the premises. Bellamy had been sitting with her in the dining room, still wrapped in a foil blanket, but he, too, had wandered off to look for any information that might help the CIA save Peter. Unable to sit idly, Katherine pulled herself to her feet, teetered, and then inched slowly toward the living room. She found Bellamy in the study. The Architect was standing at an open drawer, his back to her, apparently too engrossed in its contents to hear her enter. She walked up behind him. â€Å"Warren?† The old man lurched and turned, quickly shutting the drawer with his hip. His face was lined with shock and grief, his cheeks streaked with tears. â€Å"What's wrong?!† She glanced down at the drawer. â€Å"What is it?† Bellamy seemed unable to speak. He had the look of a man who had just seen something he deeply wished he had not. â€Å"What's in the drawer?† she demanded. Bellamy's tear-filled eyes held hers for a long, sorrowful moment. Finally he spoke. â€Å"You and I wondered why . . . why this man seemed to hate your family.† Katherine's brow furrowed. â€Å"Yes?† â€Å"Well . . .† Bellamy's voice caught. â€Å"I just found the answer.†