Decision Making in DHL

Introduction: DHL commits its expertise in international express, air and ocean freight, road and rail transportation, contract logistics and international mail services to its customers. A global network composed of more than 220 countries and territories and about 275,000 employees worldwide offers customers superior service quality and local knowledge to satisfy their supply chain requirements. DHL accepts its social responsibility by supporting climate protection, disaster management and education. DHL is part of  Deutsche Post  DHL.The Group generated revenue of more than 53 billion euros in 2011. I will be discussing DHL from many aspects such as decision making and its effect on the organizational performance from the perspective of Cyert & March and compare it to Bursson theory. Also I will cover Zimmermen theory about rules and apply it to DHL case study. Finally I will examine the macro environment of DHL organization. Body: DHL was the global market leader in internati onal express shipping, overland transport, and air freight, as well as ocean freight and contract logistics.As of April 2011, its network covered more than 220 countries and territories worldwide in 120,000 destinations. It had many awards to its credit (Refer to Exhibit I for the details of awards won by DHL). According to Ken Allen, CEO, Express Division, DHL, â€Å"The express sector is one of the major drivers of global trade and we are excellently positioned to capitalize on this through our services which meet our customers’ domestic and international transport requirements, anywhere around the world. † Formal organization has its own specific function or functions.A university for example has the main function of promoting education. But it also promotes artistic, literary, athletic and other interests of the members. The principal function of the church is religion but it also promotes charitable, ethical, athelitic, recreational, educational and other activiti es. Thus the formal organization may have its latent as well as manifest functions. The formal organization has its own norms or rules of social behavior. Certain conducts are appropriate in certain organization. Formal organization lays down procedure to be followed by the members.Members of an organization have different statuses. Statuses imply division of labor. The division of labor is characterized of all organizations and in a sense; organization is synonymous with the division of labor. Organized actions in a formal organization are possible because of division of labor. Bureaucracy refers to the administrative aspect of the formal organization. It refers to the arrangement of the organization designed to carry out its day to day business. It is represented by a hierarchy of officials who are assigned different responsibilities and provided with different statuses and roles.The formal organization is based on rationality. The rationality of formal organizations has two sourc es- the predominance of rules that have been devised to help achieve definite results and the systematic reliance on knowledge in the operation of the organization. The formal organizations are relatively permanent. Some organizations last for longer time while others perish within a short period of time. According to Zimmerman he illustrates the inadequacy of the rational decision making approach.He shows that members of an organization are far from adhering to the rules and procedures that should inform their decision making; they instead use & understand these rules in everyday work in creative & adaptive ways. He wants to understand how organizational members actually make sense of & understand what these rules mean in practice. Studies assumes and accept the existence of clear rational , objective rules of decision making but are contrasted with actual practice. Zimmerman objects this view; he offers how these rules become alive: how formal plans are used by members to deal wit h every day work activities.He analyses how employees’ use of formal rules is determined by their attempts to achieve their view of their priorities. Activities of bureaucratic actors in a public assistance organization will be examined. To Zimmerman, following rigid or complex procedures impedes effective action. The analysis is concerned with the judgmental work of receptionists in assigning applicants to intake case-workers. This study investigates the variety of practices, operational meaning and situational relevance of policies and procedures for everyday organizational activities.Rules, policies, formal planning Researchers argue that rules and policies are to some degree abstract and general, and should not be treated as idealizations. Rules cannot completely reflect the changing organizational situations. Informal rules and policies usually develop, where personnel modify and redefine the rules in light of operating conditions. The formal plan of the organization is used and interpreted by personnel in a way that best suits their everyday work activities. Usually, procedures and rules are designed to ensure efficient achievement of formally defined goals.However, it is not always practical to strictly follow the rules, because of the ever-changing output of the many interactions of individuals. People use and understand the rules in everyday work in creative and adaptive ways. The chapter wanted to understand how organizational members actually make sense of and understand what the rules mean in practice. Receptionists made sense of the rules in subtle ways, and made decisions about when and how to use them in light of their experience and knowledge of applicants and situations.The problem is then how the formal plan of an organization could be used by its members to deal with everyday work activities and of what are the features that members use to recognize and interpret. Instruct others, about the operational intent & behavioral implications of such a plan. The sense of routine provides employees with: * A way to recognize the exceptional character of a given event. * The good grounds for suspending or otherwise modifying the rule as normally applied Suspension or bending a rule is considered a reasonable solution to minor dilemma.The use of formally prescribed procedure, viewed from the notion of their competent use becomes. * Not a matter of compliance or deviance (behavior) * But a judgmental work providing for the reasonableness of viewing particular action as essentially satisfying the provision of the rule Rules are not hard and fast social facts but are the result of continual interpretation and negotiation which produces an – ever shifting framework to be taken. Rules may be negotiated and changed and new rules also stand over and above organizational actors informing and shaping the emotional life of an organization.Rules are resources for action, but because contexts vary, they do not determine perform ance of individuals or their organization. Industry observers felt that like any other successful company, DHL’s success could be attributed to some of the basic strategies it had adopted: knowing the customers and solving their problems, expanding the business, and creating a win-win situation for all stakeholders. According to company officials, the opening of the new European hub at Leipzig/Halle in 2008 was an example of adhering to that old formula.While deciding on the location of this hub, not only did the DHL authorities focus on optimally locating its facilities, but they also planned for the company’s long-term future. DHL was also faced with having to train large numbers of new personnel. In three years’ time, 2,000 employees were qualified for their respective tasks at the hub. DHL estimated 2,000 employees were working at the hub in September 2008. Their number is expected to rise to approximately 3,500 by 2012. Nearly 90% of the newly employed work ers come from the region around the airport.Two-thirds of them were previously unemployed. Some 7,000 more jobs will likely be created in the surrounding area, bringing the total number of direct and indirect new jobs around the Leipzig/Halle hub to approximately 10,000. In addition, DHL is training young people in the various logistics and IT professions at the airfreight hub. With all the mentioned above DHL is a company who follows and respect the rules and that to succeeds and maintain success. With all the complexity in DHL as a formal organization, decision making can't be that easy as well.The political perspective is clearly identified by Cyert, March ; Miller , where they identified theories of decision making that are concerned with politics (Coalition aspect) ; processes (Problemistic search) where an activity is only initiated by an immediate problem rather than an orderly systematic process of search and analysis. ( as for Pettigrew). Here, Pettigrew view organizations and decision making as a political arena in which:; Political behavior follows the unequal distribution of resources ; the creation of specialized loyalties and perspectives thru organizational differentiation.Organizational units with different or conflicting interest, loyalties and mindsets struggle for advantage with obvious implications for the nature and outcome of decision making. Political activity is central to organizational structures and processes: divisions of interest result from the hierarchical nature of power. Power relations ; politics originate in the structure ; processes of the organization. Structures create specialism's which develop loyalties which in turn breeds politics. The heart of conflict, politics & co-operation is Power.Cyert and March propose two major organizing devices: a set of variable concepts and a set of relational concepts. They claim that Theory performs two major functions: * it is an exhaustive set of general concepts. * it has a set of rel ational concepts The exhaustive set of general concepts, the process of decision making can be analyzing in term of variables that effect organization goals, expectations and the variables that effect organizational choice. Organization goals: A theory of organizational goals considers how goals arise in an organization, how goals change over time, and how the organization attends to these goals.There are two sets of variables affecting the goals of an organization. As the international express business had been growing steadily over the previous few years and assuming that it would continue to expand in the future as well, the Leipzig/Halle site had developed the potential to become a crucial junction for the express and logistics specialists. At the same time, DHL considered an additional starting and landing capacity in Central Europe to be necessary, as the company’s existing European hub in Brussels had reached its threshold limit.The organization visions of labor becaus e individuals have limited capacities, and limited time, to devote to any particular aspect of the organizational system, such limitations constrain the bargaining process. As an adaptive response, coalition members are motivated to develop mutual control systems, such as the budget and the allocation of tasks by the division of labor and specialization. Set variables influence the aspiration-level on any particular goal dimension. There are three variables; the organization past goal, the organizations past performance, the past performance of other ‘comparable’ organization.Organization expectations: Expectations are seen as the result of drawing inferences from available information. Expectations are by no means independent of hopes, wishes, and the internal bargaining needs of subunits in the organization. Therefore a good theory for the organizational expectations should consider variables that affect either the process of drawing inferences or the process by which information is made available to the organization. Organization choice: A theory of organizational choice needs to characterize the process by which the alternatives available to the organization are ordered and selected.Organizational decisions depend on information estimates and expectations that ordinarily differ appreciably from reality. Choice takes place in response or influence. DHL considered an additional starting and landing capacity in Central Europe to be necessary, as the company’s existing European hub in Brussels had reached its threshold limit. Theory as set relational concepts, there are four fundamental concept to understanding of the decision-making process in a modern, large-scale business organization.The quasi resolution of conflict; uncertainty avoidance; problematic search and organizational learning. After we went through decision making, I'll analyze DHL with PEST analysis to understand its macro environment. PEST analysis  stands for â€Å"Polit ical,  Economic,  Social, and  Technological analysis† and describes a framework of macro-environmental factors used in the  environmental scanning component of  strategic management. Political  factors are how and to what degree a  government  intervenes in the economy.Specifically, political factors include areas such as  tax policy,  labor law,  environmental law,  trade restrictions,  tariffs, and political stability. Political factors may also include goods and services which the government wants to provide or be provided (merit goods) and those that the government does not want to be provided (demerit goods  or merit bads). Furthermore, governments have great influence on the  health,  education, and infrastructure  of a nation. In Leipzig/Halle, courier and express services are of vital importance to the efficiency and growth of the Leipzig/Halle economy.With Leipzig/Halle geographical position which is away from the centre of continent al Europe, fast and effective delivery services are essential for Leipzig/Halle businesses involved in international trade. Economic  factors include  economic growth,  interest rates,  exchange rates  and the  inflation rate. These factors have major impacts on how businesses operate and make decisions. For example, interest rates affect a firm's  cost of capital  and therefore to what extent a business grows and expands. Exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy.Advances in technology and the increasing use of e-commerce, combined with the courier and express sector's commitment to investing in IT, and have cushioned the industry from the worst effects of the recent global slowdown. Social  factors include the cultural aspects and include health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Trends in social factors affect the demand for a company' s products and how that company operates. For example, an aging population may imply a smaller and less-willing workforce (thus increasing the cost of labor).Furthermore, companies may change various management strategies to adapt to these social trends. In DHL a raft of government measures to tackle environmental pollution and congestion have increased costs for the, largely road-based, express logistics sector. Technological  factors include technological aspects such as  R&D  activity,  automation, technology incentives and the rate of  technological change. They can determine barriers to entry, minimum efficient production level and influence  outsourcing  decisions. Furthermore, technological shifts can affect costs, quality, and lead to  innovation.DHL used satellite-based navigation systems. The company planned to improve the system by including and analyzing more information concerning terms of traffic, traffic lights, and construction sites. Conclusion We co nclude that DHL can't operate without rules, it should consider and fear competition as it should take its decisions rationally without complexity. That by applying the above theories and understand them very well as an organization. I will be summering chapter 6 The Irrationality of Action and Action Rationality of: Decisions, Ideologies and Organizations.A decision is a choice between at least 2 alternatives. Decision making was explained by economists, political researchers as well as, psychologists and sociologists. Some individuals decide and others carry out the decisions. Researchers elaborated in the direction of rationality while other evidence shows that the process does not comply with rationality specially in strategic major issues. People are not clever enough to behave rationally. Therefore decision makers should be carefully selected. Irrationality is inherited in human beings which cannot be changed by training.Decision makers don’t have enough information on the many variables involved. Therefore, information systems may help to improve the process beside caring about objectives and alternative comparison. An action perspective to explain the process is more acceptable. Since leaders don’t only take decisions but also act and induce others to act on them. Since managers act while making decisions rationality of decisions take in consideration practical internal and external norms. Irrationality as a base of organizational actions 1. Searching for alternatives. 2. Estimating Consequences 3. Evaluating Alternatives . Choosing 5. Making Rational Use of Irrationality Rational decisions create irrational procedures from an action point of view. They should be avoided in order for an action to be taken. References: * Salaman, G. (2002) Decision Making for Business, London, The Open University/The Alden Press, Oxford. * Salaman, G. (2001) Business Behaviour in a Changing World: Module One Study Guide, London, The Open University. * http ://www. dhl. com. kw/en/about_us. html * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/PEST_analysis * http://www. sociologyguide. com/organization-and-individual/formal-organizations. php

African American Struggle Essay

The story of African immigration is unique among immigrant groups, just as the African experience in America has been exclusively essential to the course of American life. Unlike other immigrants, most Africans came to North America against their will, caught up in a cruel system of human exploitation. The treatment we endured in the United States was of a harshness hardly ever surpassed in recent history, and their role in U. S. society was contested with a rage that nearly tore the nation apart. The centuries-long battle African Americans waged for freedom, for dignity, and for full participation in American society completely transformed the nation, and shaped the world we live in today. Today, there is no aspect of life in the United States that has not been touched by the African American experience; there is no institution, custom, or daily practice that has not been influenced or remade by the efforts of African American thinkers, workers, artists, activists, and organizers. African Americans faced every form of racism, prejudice, and segregation possible. We were not allowed to eat, drink, or even sleep in the same places with white people. They had everything marked whites or colors, and that was considered segregation. If an African American were to break one of those â€Å"rules† they would suffer great pain whether mentally or physically. When segregation came to an end, blacks were still not welcome to partake in the world comfortably. We were constantly going through life feeling like a slave although freedom was granted. Affirmative Action, in the United States, was to overcome the effects of past discrimination by allocating jobs and resources to members of specific groups, such as minorities and women. The policy was implemented by federal agencies enforcing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and two executive orders, which provided that government contractors and educational institutions receiving federal funds develop such programs. The Equal Employment Opportunities Act (1972) set up a commission to enforce plans. The establishment of racial quotas in the name of affirmative action brought charges of so-called reverse discrimination in the late 1970s. By the late ’70s, however, flaws in the policy began to show up good intentions. Reverse discrimination became an issue, epitomized by the famous Bakke case in 1978. Allan Bakke, a white male, had been rejected two years in a row by a medical school that had accepted less qualified minority applicants-the school had a separate admissions policy for minorities and reserved 16 out of 100 places for minority students. The Supreme Court outlawed inflexible quota systems in affirmative action programs, which in this case had unfairly discriminated against a white applicant. In the same ruling, however, the Court upheld the legality of affirmative action.

A Definition of Cinematic Design

An open frame is generally employed in films, while a closed frame is generally employed in films. Realistic; materialistic Which of the following statements about miss-en-SCen is NOT true? Miss;en-SCen has two visual components: lighting and movement. Composition is part of the process of planning the design of a movie. When visualizing and planning shots, filmmakers must make decisions about two elements f composition: what we see on screen and what moves on screen.What are these two elements commonly called? Framing and kinesics Which of the following statements about the production designer is NOT true? The production designer is hired relatively late in the production process. An Important movement In art direction that sought to articulate human feeling and emotion through design elements such as structure, color, and texture with grossly exaggerated film sets is known as expressionism. Which of the following stills represents expressionism: The Cabinet of Dry. Calamari Some of the departments the production designer supervises include carpentry, properties, and transportation. True What Is figure movement? The movement of something concrete wealth the frame Consider carefully the details of the miss-en-SCen in the following clips. Based on the miss-en-SCen, which do you think belongs to a dissipation futuristic narrative inhabited by mostly one-dimensional characters? Bartholomew Song unlike a static painting or picture. Motion picture move and thus shift Its point of view. Point of view is implied by the framing of a shot. What are three elements that describe unrealism? Nonprofessional actors; location sets; handheld camera The planning of the positions and movements of the actors and camera Is called blocking. The two fundamental styles of design established in early motion pictures are the associated with the Lumpier brothers and the Georges Mals. Elastic; fantastic associated with then suddenly a puff of smoke enters the left side of the frame. This is an example of filmmakers using both on-screen and officered space. Which of the following clips also uses on-screen and officered space? Giggled What are the major elements of cinematic design? Setting; decor; properties; lighting; costume; makeup; hairstyle The organization, distribution, balance, movement, and general relationship of actors and objects within the space of a shot is called composition.

Google Inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 8000 words

Google Inc - Essay Example From this discussion it is clear that  in 1998, the collaboration built a computer housing of their own and was located at Larry’s dorm room. In the same year, they built a business office in Sergey’s room where they transferred their project of BackRub.   This technology worked better than others that were available at the time. During the time of their inventions, Rankdex was been used to analyze the back links but it was not effective.   They later tested their project as part of their studies and they realized that their project could function quite effectively.  This paper outlines that the company gets a lot of revenue from advertising services. Proceeds from advertisement represent 99% of whole company’s revenue. This substantial revenue from advertisements is realized because of DoubleClick technology adopted by the company. This tracks user’s interests in many related sites. Google AdWords enable the Web advertisers to display their produc ts in Google’s search results through cost-per-view scheme.   In the book by Ledford, the establishment of the Google Adsense has attracted many internet advertisers since they can display Ads on their own sites and earn money every time they are viewed by internet users. The launching of behavioral targeting based on user’s interests also generated a lot of revenues for the company.  Google is the most used search engine and it has gained a lot of popularity since its conception. Google search engine has a market share of about 54% which is followed by Yahoo (20%).

Google's Mission, Ethical Principles and Involvement in China Case Study

Google's Mission, Ethical Principles and Involvement in China - Case Study Example all, referring to the censorship imposed by the Chinese authorities on Google search engine that were deemed subversive and politically sensitive particularly crackdown of demonstrators in Tiananmen Square (Levin, 2014). This mission has also influenced Google’s strategy to work against censorship and to obey the laws and regulations of the country they are operating in. Such that in 2010, Google became exasperated with China’s censorship policies that it pulled out its operation out of China (Goldman, 2015). Google’s co-founder Sergei Brin even announced that "our own websites and for the Internet as a whole we have worked tirelessly to combat internet censorship around the world"(Goldman, 2015). The Chinese market however just proved to be too important for Google to ignore that in May of 2012, the company announced â€Å"an anti-censorship feature – under the pretext of improving search quality† (Wright, 2013) which is an indication that the company is yielding to the censorship demands of the Chinese authority. During those times of censorship of the Chinese government against Google, the service of Google deteriorated that it preferred self-censorship over bad and no business and be able to provide more information than no information at all. Self-censorship is Google’s compromise to be able to operate in China that it would be â€Å"better to give Chinese users access to a limited amount of information, than to none at all†. This may not be the ideal way for Google to operate in China but it also has to follow the laws and regulation of the country that it is operating in. Self-censorship to follow the laws and regulations of the host country does not mean that Google is already being evil. It may be a compromise but it is still consistent with Google’s mission. The censorship in the Chinese market is no longer new to Google also. Google also had practiced self-censorship in France, Germany and Poland to ban pro-Nazi information as it is

Under what circumstances are protest movements against authoritarian Essay

Under what circumstances are protest movements against authoritarian rule most likely to succeed in changing the regime - Essay Example While a protest movement is a collective endeavour and is generally expressive of the political views of large numbers of people, the failed uprisings mentioned above indicate that they may not necessarily be successful in every case. This study examines why these movements were unsuccessful in achieving their objectives. According to Thompson, democratic revolutions can be understood as â€Å"spontaneous popular uprisings – peaceful, urban-based and cross class in composition – which topple unyielding dictators and begin a transition process that leads to the consolidation of democracy.†1 Including fraternity organizations, guerrilla organizations or other sects under the umbrella of social movements would possibly be stretching the definition of social movements too far2, but such organizations have also managed to attract a sizeable number of followers. According to Zirakzadeh, a social movement comprises a group of people who (a) consciously attempt to build a radically new social order (b) includes people from a broad range of social backgrounds and (c) makes use of socially disruptive, politically confrontational tactics.3 In general, where the question of overthrow of a regime is concerned, dictatorial, authoritarian regimes are vulnerable to violent, radical revolutions, including coups, that may successfully achieve this objective4. According to Tilly, earlier trends in the growth of social movements are linked to economic and political changes, such as the emergence of Parliaments, proletariats and market capitalization5. Tilly also points out that social movements can also be a prime factor functioning as a propellant towards democracy, such as the ones which occurred in the USSR in 1990-91, Serbia in 1996/7 and 2000 as well as Ukraine in 2004. But more often, social protest movements have flourished after the country in question has become a democracy, because political rights as well as individual rights such

Does Science Aim at the Truth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Does Science Aim at the Truth - Essay Example Other philosophers have also extended Plato’s ideas on knowledge, especially by focusing on how beliefs can be separated from truths. In Discourse, Descartes (1985, p. 131) says that something can only be known if you believe it, if it is truth, and if you have evidence supporting the belief. This is similar to Plato’s approach. The only difference is that Descartes takes a slightly more practical approach and consider how people can justify their belief in something. The answer is that people justify their belief via evidence. If they have evidence that supports their belief, they have a reason to say that their belief is true. This suggests that the scientific approach is based on finding the truth, since it also uses evidence to support beliefs. Another philosopher that provides information on the topic is Lonergan. The focus of Lonergan’s philosophy is how ideas are created and used to create knowledge. In Insight: A Study of Human Understanding (1957, p. 32) Lonergan argues that individuals gain knowledge by questioning the data that is attained from experience. According to Lonergan, facts and knowledge are based in reality. However, people do not automatically have an understanding of facts and knowledge. Instead, people have to gain an understanding by questioning and considering their experience. In some cases, people will make assumptions about the world based on experience. They will then test these assumptions to see if they are correct. In proposing this view, Lonergan is not talking about a scientific approach, but is simply talking about how people learn about the world and acquire knowledge. The interesting thing is that his approach mirrors the scientific method. The scientific metho

Solar cooling technology in football stadiums Dissertation

Solar cooling technology in football stadiums - Dissertation Example It is this hint that brought about the cooling technology utilizing solar energy which could be applied in large capacity buildings i. e football stadiums. According to Solar power energy generation, (2010) solar energy will be the main source of power generation in the turn of the century. Aside the fact that the use of solar energy could be by far cheaper than the use of fuels or biofuels in certain technological operations, for the very fact that sunlight is not paid for, we must also take note that strength of the source is strong as the sun emanates over 15 million degrees Kelvin or about 27 million degrees Fahrenheit degrees of heat per minute ( NASA Cosmicopia,2009 ). But it is noteworthy to observe that the application or working process of this technology could be very complicated and needs accuracy in other to function properly and adequately. Now Qater has chosen to utilize the cooling technology by way of solar energy to generate cool air in its large capacity stadiums in the 2022 FIFA World cup. The first of the kind to be hosted in the middle east. This is the biggest challenge of the century for a small country like Qater who are determined to conquer the summer heat and make the atmosphere chilling and comfortable for people all over the world who will be at the tournament. Most of such people are Europeans who are used to cold and cool weather. At the same time Qatar has decided to reduce cost by employing this technology. But I must forewarn before we delve in depth into this research work, that if the subject matter is not understood properly, if the rudiments and nitty gritties of the technology are not clearly explained, if the step by step process of the workability of the technology are not clearly defined, if the dimensions of operations as projected by Qater sports development ministry are not accurately modified etc. this could lead to an unnecessary waste of taxpayers money and could be the most fatal mistake made by a Nation in recen t times. That is why a lot of time will be taken to explain the step by step process of the technology from various perspectives and works of authorities before i draw my conclusion and master plan. Thus the work will be divided into three broad parts. The first part will focus on the overall technology, the second part will focus on its application in Qater, in this part the following will be clearly explained though with stronger and more professional terminologies: 1- Solar Harvesting. 2- Storage. 3- Heat Conversion. 4- Cold Storage. 5- Chilled Air Delivery. The third part will show by picturesque diagrams, how the newly modified concepts will be pragmatic in its application. At the end of the research, the following will be accurately and professionally achieved: an improvement in the design concept with product design specification (PDS), accurate calculation such as the energy required for the stadium etc. Lastly this research will put forward the following in both a descripto ry and an analytic form for easy application by the end user i.e. †¢ Focus on low energy concepts to create thermal comfort. †¢ Apply innovative, green, highly efficient cooling technology. †¢ Produce electrical energy by integrated photovoltaic systems. The Objectives of the study which are as follows will be clearly and precisely achieved: - Introducing the new cooling technology. - Applying the cooling system into the outdoor stadiums. -

Social media plan Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Social media plan - Coursework Example E-communication is a computerized system that enables financial transaction be able to be completed in a fast manner and with proper confidentiality. It is mostly used by customers while paying for a particular service (Kevin, 2011).In our case study which is the Jet Chatter Company the role of social media will be to target the market by ensuring the information about which service is open and when the arrival and departure time is for the next plane The plan is to understand how the jet company can use social media to its advantage without missing it. It can use it to inform passengers on the delayed or also on the new packages that the business has. It is important to note that the solution of the social media is to ensure that communication is efficient and received in a far wider area. It is for this reason social media should be embraced. Social media canals be used as an inquiry desk and complains area this can help lessen the time taken by customers and employees in going to the offices physically and this will help in adjusting and ensuring that information is received in a timely manner. It enhances customer education regarding the issues facing and going on in the jet chatter company. When customers are aware of what they are doing it is easier to update them on other issues and this will boost on the companies transparency. In the Jet Chatter Company it is important to understand the services that should be offered by the social media unit. Through the use of social media they can use to empower customers to interact and also understand other services that are needed for the business to include. Feedback are important for any business to grow and it for this fact that the management of the Jet management group should be serious enough to ensure that a lot is considered so as to receive as many complaints as

Crime-free Children Today Essay Example for Free

Crime-free Children Today Essay Open a newspaper or switch on the radio for news and you will no doubt see a number of horrifying crimes reported there murder, rape and robberies are no longer surprising or shocking news to the Indian citizens. But what can shock us is the fact that most, at least a third, of the crimes committed in a year are by youngsters below the age of 18. Juvenile delinquency is increasing rapidly. A large part of the world’s children are in India. Children are often perceived as the epitome of innocence and naivetà © by most people. But the phrase â€Å"child-like innocence† can no longer be used, because the adolescents are one of the most violent age categories in the world. There are many incidences of crimes committed by the adolescents these days. The number of juvenile court cases are increasing and the crimes become more horrifying by the minute. There are increasing evidences of road rages, crimes against women, violence in school etc. all committed by teenagers. Parents and others involved in a child’s life are equally responsible for the child’s hostile behavior. The amount of violence in the adolescent’s day-to-day life plays a large role in this issue, too. The child’s guardians have to take time to understand this complex problem and try to solve it; but what most of the Indian parents do is say to themselves, â€Å"He/she will grow out of it,† and simply avoid the issue, hoping it is just a phase. But this ignorant way of treating the problem is the start of a life-long trouble that will not only affect the family, but also the society, because in most of the cases of aggressive juvenile violence, the adolescent grows to be a criminal, thus delaying the development and progress of the nation.  The family does not bother to think of what may be the cause of the child’s behavior. Violent mannerisms in children can include a wide range of behaviors: explosive temper tantrums, physical aggression, fighting, bullying, homicidal thoughts, use of weaponry, cruelty towards animals, destruction of property etc. Most of this is caused by the problematic upbringing of the child – parents who pamper and spoil their children or agree to the child’s tantrums are endangering the child’s future. The television and the media can also increase a child’s violent tendencies. A child tends to imitate what he observes and this is a huge problem in India, because Indian cinema often has its heroes resort to violence to bring down their opponents. This makes the child think that using assault and bloodshed to achieve one’s needs is fine. Video games lessen the child’s value for a human life, as most of them involve killing animated characters. Being a victim of sexual abuse, presence of firearms in the house and even head injuries during childhood can cause adolescent violence. Remember, violence always leads to violence. Now that most of the people and the Government of India are starting to recognize and address this issue, solutions have to be found and made accessible to the citizens. Parents have to look out for signs of intense anger, impulsiveness, irritability and cruelty in children and look for the reason. Feelings of revenge and vengeance should be discouraged; tell them what the Father of our Nation once said, â€Å"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.† Make it clear to them that violence does not solve anything. Only clearheaded thinking can lead to good results. The amount of violence that the child is exposed to through media has to be restricted, but the media can also help by raising awareness and to show the children the adverse affects of violence. Developing a reading habit is also highly helpful in curbing a child’s hostility. Family conflicts, problems in school, discrimination by other children etc. should be found out and solved. Parents should not hesitate to consult a psychiatrist if necessary. Making the adolescent part of the Indian population is necessary because only calm and responsible children can grow into stable, responsible, patriotic citizens in the future. We should remember that it is the youth that will shape our country’s future. Every child is bright in his or her own way and it is the duty of the adults to keep the light burning, for the next generation will fulfill the dreams of our great leaders and lead our  nation to its victorious destiny only if our society is united, strong and nonviolent. Teach the children to follow the Mahatma’s policy, the motto that toppled the British, the strongest invading force of the past century: nonviolence.

The History Of The Ginger Smart Basics Tourism Essay

The History Of The Ginger Smart Basics Tourism Essay Roots Corporation Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Indian Hotels Company Limited. IHCL is a part of the Tata Group of companies, which is Indias premier business house. On December 24, 2003, RCL operated the first of its kind category of Smart Basic hotels across India. RCL develops and operates a fast expanding chain of economy hotels across India under the GINGER brand. The Smart Basic concept created a revolution in the Indian Hospitality Industry. These hotels are termed as GenNext category of hotels. GenNext means generation next, i.e., these hotels are completely new concept, which has changed the outlook of hospitality industry in India. They signify simplicity, convenience, informality, style, warmth, modernity and affordability. The concept of Ginger hotels was developed in association of renowned corporate strategy thinker Dr. C.K. Prahalad and the hotels have been inherently designed and established by IHCL. The first of the Smart basics hotels was launched in Bangalore and was called as IndiOne. First, they completed the test marketing and subsequent fine-tuning of hotel facilities and services of IndiOne then rolled out the concept across India. Now the category of hotels has been launched with a new name Ginger Hotels which is in accord with the fresh, simple and stylish world of Smart basics. The ginger Hotels are built in such a way that they meet the key needs of todays travellers at affordable rates. It follows the concept of Smart Basics which is a philosophy of providing intelligent, thought out facilities and services at a value pricing and reflects the new spirit in which people live and work today. Ginger Hotels target middle-income group people with increasing disposable income. This class likes to spend on travel but not on luxury accommodation, they look for accommodation, which can provide value for their money. All they want is a clean, secure and hygienic accommodation at affordable prices. Ginger Hotels follow generic strategy of growth in which they focus on the cities which has already experienced significant growth. Such cities generally show growth in certain business activities like population growth rates, tourism and convention activities, air traffic volume, local commercial real estate occupancy and retail sales volume. These cities tend to have strong demand for hotel facilities and services. They invest in hotels that are situated near both business and leisure centres which tends to create great demand for hotel services and enables them to attract both weekday business guests and weekend leisure travellers. They have a separate team consisting of members from finance, marketing, development and hotel management departments who assess the financial return of every new investment that the group decides to make and the team clears only those projects that they find are financially viable and which would provide them profitable returns. They target markets that do not have wide seasonal fluctuation in occupancy and focus on small entrepreneurs, traders etc. Ginger has the first mover advantage. Looking at the increasing cost trends in real estate market in the last few years. Ginger Group of hotels lease out the area, building, or takeover some non-branded hotel, in this way they save significant amount of cost and time and moves into the market early which helps them in capturing significant market share ahead of its competitors. The company has identified over 80 cities and intends to focus more cities in the future. In order to increase their customer base, the company intends to continue growing organically in the existing cities in which they operate by selectively establishing more ginger hotels. The Indian Hospitality Industry is highly competitive and fragmented. Ginger hotels compete with three star full service hotels from unorganised sector. Earlier ginger hotels were the only branded three star hotels from the organised sector but the competition for ginger hotels have grown significantly after the announcement by newer inte rnational and local hotel companies to set-up hotels across the country in the value segment. Some of the potential competitors of ginger hotels are Lemon Tree Hotels, Ibis (Accor), Keys (Bergruen Hotels), Hilton, Garden Inn Hotels (DLF) etc. Initially Ginger Hotels leased land in order to build hotels but now they are doing things differently from building a hotel on the top of a shopping mall and redeveloping an existing property. Ginger Hotels provide similar services that a normal hotel provides like rooms with T.V>, fridge, tea/coffee makers, laundry, restaurants, Wi-Fi connections, meeting rooms, business centres, Gyms, Car rental services, Doctor on call, Currency exchangers etc. The manner in which these services are provided differentiates it from other normal hotels. The tag line of Ginger hotels is PLEASE HELP YOURSELF which means most of the services offered have to be carried out by the customer himself. There are no room services or bellhops this strategy adopted by ginger, benefits customers and the hotel, customers, can save upon the tips, which otherwise they would have to pay for room services and hotel can save upon the cost of human resource. Most of the services have to be carried out by the guest himself like while checking into the hotel a guest does not need the assistance of the reception counter as ginger hotels have Self Check-In Kiosk. In addition, there is Give n Take Counter that th e guest can use to deliver used clothes for laundry. There is an ironing room in every floor of ginger hotels. Further are water dispensers on each floor. Ginger hotels also have round the clock vending machine to provide with packed snacks and hot/cold beverages irrespective of the working of the restaurant. In addition, a vending machine to supply other things like toiletries, combs, toothpastes, soaps, mosquito repellents etc. ginger has outsourced food and beverage partners operating on a revenue share model. They have introduced facilities like SMART wellness, which is Ayurvedic wellness facility for business travellers at a low cost. In addition, SMART sleep that includes posture-pedic mattress for absorbing and redistributing pressure from the body weight. In future Ginger Hotels intends to develop its own merchandise range that will be offered in hotel and on the website. The size of the room in the hotel is kept small around 180 sq. Feet as compared to 250-400 sq. Feet of p remium hotels. The concept of Help Yourself has helped the company in operating the hotel with just 25 staff members as compared to premium hotels where they employ around 250 people. The room charges range from Rs. 999 to Rs. 3000, which is quite affordable. All this practice has helped them to cut their marketing costs significantly. Early Mover status and establishes regional operational and synergy has enabled ginger to develop and operate its hotels efficiently and successfully. Ginger Hotels offer standardised products and maintain uniformity of hotel chain. They have come up with unique product features consisting of design, appearance, decoration, colour that attracts the customers attention. The company has developed a record of accomplishment of expanding the business operations through organic growth and maintain high quality, also achieve their financial target. Since there is a shortage of Human resource in ginger hotels, they have adopted a flexible and robust IT system in collaboration with Tata Consultancy Services, which is a company- wide seamlessly, integrated IT system developed by SAP. Ginger hotels has a unique value proposition that appeals the middle class budget people and makes it a flourishing business. If we look at the Indian Hotel Industry, there are certain strengths or favourable factors that contribute to the prosperity of the company in the industry. Ginger hotels are associated with low cost airlines and low cost mode of transportation thus providing a low price better quality accommodation. Apart from this Ginger hotels are located near railway stations and bus stops and are situated in places, which can be beneficial for both business people and tourists. They are mostly located in the city with less seasonal fluctuations in accommodation. Most of the employees are outsourced thus ginger maintains a low amount of staff as the hotel does not offer any room service thus it helps in providing cost benefit. Ginger hotels also provide all basic amenities like gym, ATM, Wi-Fi etc. that helps the hotel in maintaining its standard and quality. This brand is very fresh and simple. It gives a new feeling as expected by the new emerging middle-income group in the country. Ginger relies on regional advertising rather than spending on national campaigns thereby cutting significant amount of cost and successfully building a brand. They have also been able to gain a lot of reputation by being a part of Tata Group, which is a pioneer in the Indian market. Another aspect of their brand strength comes from their holistic value. They have also taken a great consideration for disabled people by designing the last room in the hotel especially for them. They are budget hotels and operate on low cost. They have the ability of spreading themselves quickly across the county in just span of 8 years they have opened up around 40 hotels across the country. The brand Ginger has become very successful hotel chain in India by achieving the occupancy rate of 80%. As Ginger Hotels enjoy certain advantages and strengths they have to face various threats and weaknesses. Ginger hotels is unable to attract higher-middle class and upper class who look for more luxury and services and ginger being a budget hotel does not provide much services. Since ginger is economy chain of hotels, they have a high employee turnover due to limited scope and remuneration provided by the group. This makes ginger incur huge costs by training new employees repeatedly. Ginger comes under the category of three star hotels and it has to face a tuff competition from the local hotels of unorganised sector that are even cheaper and provide services. Apart from these local hotels there are many new brands which have announced their desire to enter the budget hotel segment thus providing more competition to ginger hotels. There are always two faces of a coin, same is the case with ginger hotels, if there are strengths, weaknesses also prevail. Ginger is characterised by a high turnover of frontline staff, rapid, growth and dispersed location. Gingers ability to attract good talent and retain employees is critical for their growth strategy and that people are critical to maintaining the quality and consistency of its services and thereby their brand and reputation. Ginger has outsourced most of its activities only 8 to 9 managers per hotel are on the rolls of ginger rest other facilities like kitchen, restaurant, and backend maintenance are outsourced. Ginger has 175 permanent employees. Ginger hotels have collaborated with various hotel management schools to develop talented students who can meet the rapidly growing demands of the company. The company uses a multi- step recruitment process for retaining and recruiting the best talent. Ginger has implemented extensive training programs and periodic tests for managerial and other hotel-based staff primarily through training partners. They provide various career advancement opportunities to their employees. Ginger hotel organises a two-month extensive training period for new unit managers during which they receive training in managing all core aspects of the hotel operations and they get familiar with the company culture and philosophy. Ginger group also conducts timely web based tests to assess the knowledge and skills of the workers. The company uses performance linked compensation structure, career oriented training to motivate its employees. Even after having such an extensive human resource strategy. Ginger hotels face various challenges as it mainly operates in smaller non-metro cities where the employees are less exposed to new technology, comfort and modern amenities, it becomes a difficult task for the company to gear up the employees upto the standard of ginger hotels. Designing a system to recruit right kind of people and provide right training to employees is a difficult question for ginger hotels as the development inputs are different for different locations. Additionally acquiring professionally qualified employees in remote areas and non-metro cities and retaining them is an area of concern. In order to retain the employees, ginger has come up with various measures so that employees can get additional value in terms of non-monetary rewards like developing employee competencies by providing certifications etc. but consistently ensuring this across all the locations is a big challenge. Ginger uses unconventiona l recruitment process as conventional recruitment becomes very expensive for the group. They have created a portal called [emailprotected] from where almost 48% of the companys recruitment takes place and rest of the recruitment takes places through referral programmes in which existing employees refer a new employee and if the referred person gets selected the referrer gets reward in this way the company satisfies both the existing and new employees. They have also merged with various management schools and employees go to colleges and collaborate with them by linking with their syllabi, they call students for get together and use students as summer interns so that they build relationship even before the recruitment starts. They try to keep their staff motivated by giving them a chance to learn new things and upgrade their skills. Since they are budget hotels so they choose e-learning initiatives to cut costs. They have in house training, induction and e-learning modules based on c ustomer feedback systems. The compliance with quality standards are monitored through both scheduled and unscheduled visits, periodic tests and reviews at each hotel. In addition, the practice of mystery audits and of tracking customer comments through guest comment cards, allows ginger to improve its services and facilities at each hotel. Gingers corporate marketing and advertising strategies are designed to enhance consumer awareness and preference for the ginger brand as offering the value, convenience and comfort in the economy hotel segment in Indian Hospitality industry. Ginger has to reshape the customer expectations, as still Indian customers are uncomfortable with the concept of smart basics and self-service. Each day they have to entertain many customers who enter the hotel without knowing what to expect. Customers often complaint about services which are not provided by the ginger hotels. However, creating awareness for ginger brand is a difficult task to perform, as ginger is a budget hotel, as its business model does not allow huge expenditure on media and promotion. Nevertheless, even after facing various challenges. Ginger has been able to respond effectively to the changing dynamics and economies of the Indian Hospitality Industry. With the continuing expansion across the country, customers are now seei ng a greater value in ginger hotels. Ginger CEO Prabhat Pani said, Ginger hotels, like any other Tata enterprise, would continue to be driven by respect for people and nature, and would like to epitomise environment-friendliness and social responsibility in all aspects of business.

Dialogue Essay - Ron was Unhappy :: Dialogue Essays

Dialogue Essay - Ron was Unhappy Ron was unhappy with the way his life had turned out. He had always expected to be a celebrity; a wealthy celebrity. He had not realized that this would probably require a lot of hard work and discipline. He had depended on luck. Luck had let him down. As he looked back on his short life, he could see how often he had had the opportunity to take luck by the throat. But those opportunities were past now. His life no longer had the prospect of wealth or celebrity. He had been born to a couple of teenagers. They had never really grown up the whole time he’d known them. He was the mature one of the family, and he resented this. He had no brothers or sisters. His parents, though alive, were no longer together, and he felt as if he was all alone in the world. Holidays divided between different households was difficult for him to come to terms with. It robbed the holidays of the joy he so much wanted them to hold. He had long ago decided to forgo holidays altogether, not because they no longer had any meaning for him, but because they meant so much. He refused to see them turned into tugs-of-war. Ron had joined the service as soon as he got out of high school, not because he wanted to, but because he didn’t really have anything better to do, and no place better to do it. He was not a model soldier. He was in and out of trouble, but somehow managed to get out with an honorable discharge. He still had nothing better to do. He finally found himself a job in a factory. Nothing too demanding, and perhaps a little demeaning to his intelligence. But it kept him fed. He didn’t hate his job, but he had no loyalty to it. He smoked a little too much. He loved his cigarettes. He didn’t think he was addicted, and would quit from time to time, sometimes for weeks, sometimes for months, and twice for a couple of years. But he loved tobacco. He knew it might kill him someday, but this did not cause his affection to waver. He also loved women. They seemed to love him as well. At least those who could get close to him. But there was something about him that they could not penetrate, no matter how much or how often they tried.

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The pharmaceutical companies continue to be accused of many unethical practices so the story of pharmaCARE comes as no surprise. The company started with good intentions but went down because of greed. It was a well-established company already famous for its integrity and high quality products. In the beginning, they were believed to enhance the quality of life around the world. The company continued to succeed due to its research and capitalized on a new breakthrough of a diabetes drug that they believed would help slow down the terrible progression of the Alzheimer’s disease. So after a few years, they created a subsidiary called CompCARE to be the â€Å"compounding pharmacy† to make the new drug named AD23. Because of the â€Å"supposed† success of this drug, it was in such high demand that CompCARE became to engage in methods outside the scope of what a compounding pharmacy is allowed to do, their practices pushed the limits and the end result was over 200 cardiac related deaths due to AD23. PharmaCare had several groups of people with stakes in what they had intended to achieve. These stakeholders in this scenario include PharmaCARE and CompCARE, one of its subsidiaries; both companies had high financial stakes in the success of AD23. There was also Wellco, a large drugstore chain, the employees of these 3 companies, the nation of Colberia and its citizens because their livelihood was tied to the success of AD23. Many of the social problems Colberia experienced like the destruction of its environment and consequently endangering of its native species through the company’s extensive activities and business practices came from PharmaCare. The company took advantage of the country’s low standard of living and its economic predicame... ...ng mean. When people are able to make that distinction, they’ll take the time to question themselves, and then question others’ actions including their reasoning and in this case, data rather than blindly accepting their decisions until the true situation comes to light. The failure with pharmaCARE started long before people started dying. PharmaCARE began to fail as soon the company felt it was ok to pay just a dollar a day to the Colberian people who didn’t know and felt they were being helped but instead were being exploited for their knowledge while their environment was being polluted. When CompCARE began to use unethical methods to get AD23 manufactured eventually leading to the deaths of more 200 people. It takes more than a statement â€Å"We CARE about YOUR world ®Ã¢â‚¬  to right the wrongs that all of this greed caused. Their actions must speak louder than words.

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The 20th century was a pivotal time period for psychology. During this time period many sub-disciplines of psychology were created which in essence contributed to the growth and further development of psychology. One of those sub-disciplines of psychology that seems to constantly grow and has gained momentum over the years has been forensic psychology. Although Munsterberg was not the first to suggest that psychology should be applied to the law, instead it was Freud in 1906 during a speech to an Australian judge that there are factors within psychology that should be applied to the law. Although he was the man behind the discovery of forensic psychology and several other sub-disciplines of psychology. Munsterberg developed a Psychology lab in Harvard in 1892. Munsterberg managed to overcome obstacles and criticism and committed to the development of psychology and not only its sub-disciplines. Forensic psychology is such a complex sub-discipline of psychology, and this complexity makes it difficult to define. The simplest way to define forensic psychology would have to be: sub-di...

Alt Options for Conception

The ere is also a reoccurred called intrauterine insemination; which is basically artificial inseam nation and is used to treat infertility and help a woman reproduce. Both of these procedures shoo w enormous progress in helping couples who cannot conceive naturally to build a family, b UT most importantly to ensure that more lives are being created. â€Å"A conception conundrum emphasized the negatives of donor insemination a ND not the positives. My husband and I happily turned to donor insemination to conceive our children. Our two teenage daughters have never struggled with identity issues.Our older k knows several halfpennies, and are all bright, inquisitive, lovely kids. There are many positive outcomes to artificial donor insemination, and my family is proof of that. † (Walters 6). Naturally and normally, an egg and sperm fertilize inside a woman's body wit hoot the help of a medical procedure. When natural conception takes place, the fertilize De egg attaches to the li ning of the womb and continues to grow, and 9 months later a baby is b Ron. However if a woman has been struggling to become pregnant, she has other options. IV f or instance is a form f assisted reproductive technology.This meaning that special medical techno sues are used to help a woman become pregnant. Assisted reproductive technology is used on lye after all other less expensive and less invasive techniques have failed. According to The Human Fertilization & Embryology Authority, there are rough holy 5 steps to IV. Step 1 is usually to prescribe fertility medications to stimulate egg g production. A woman wants or desires more than one egg considering some eggs will not d evolve or fertilize after retrieval. Doctors will check hormone levels through blood tests, and do occasional transnational ultrasounds to examine the ovaries.Step 2 requires a minor surge kcal procedure, to retrieve eggs by using ultrasound imaging to guide a hollow needle through t he pelvic cavity in able t o remove the eggs. Medication is used to reduce pain or discomfort. Set p 3 is the step in which the male is asked to produce a sample of his sperm so that it can be pr prepared to be combined with the eggs. Step 4 is the process in IV called insemination, where e the sperm and eggs are combined and stored in a laboratory in attempts to be fertilized. If the ere is a lower arability of fertilization, CICS or internationalism sperm injection, may be us De.Through the procedure of CICS a single sperm is injected directly into the egg in an attempt to be fertilized. From then on out the eggs are monitored to confirm that fertilization is taking place. After this step is completed, the fertilized eggs are considered embryos. The last step in IV is where the embryos are transferred into the woman's uterus three to five days following their fertilization. A small tube ( a catheter) is inserted into the uterus to transfer the embryos. HTH s procedure is happily completely painless for wome n, although few may experience some cramping.If all of the steps of the procedure are successful, implantation usually occurs around d six to ten days following egg retrieval. Just like most medical procedures, there are possible risks. Fertility medication ins can have some side effects including mood swings, hot flashes, headaches, abdominal pains, bloating, and hot flashes. Although its rare, fertility medications may cause OCHS, (ovarian hyperventilation syndrome). Symptoms of OCHS may include feelings of being bloated or abed minimal pains. Keep in mind that these are small risks, and rarely take effect.Marie, a middle aged woman shares with the world her experience with IV a ND it's success on Corticosteroid. Org. â€Å"It's horribly commercialese, but if it wasn't w e wouldn't have it. There is a whole medical/ commercial infrastructure that seems to determine that no matter what the cause of infertility, IV is nearly always the answer. This makes sense for many patients, bu t the incentive structures for largesse provision of just one type of treatment may crowd out others. † Marie had underwent the IV process, and it was all and all success.However, IV doesn't assure women of a 100% success rate. ‘The first IV cycle showed me to be a poor responder, and after producing only two follicles, the cycle was canceled. I was crushed. I had been infertile, but now I was sterile as well. † cycle showed me to be a poor responder, and after producing only two follicles, the cycle was canceled. Was crushed.. It only takes one, they said, ye ah right, some women make 20 eggs and I couldn't understand why wasn't able to make 1 [ Sic]. † (Toucans& Montgomery 1022). IV isn't the only medical advancement we've had to help women conceive.W hen it isn't necessarily the woman's ‘fault† that she can't become impregnated, the o there cause to look at is a man's low sperm count. If a man's sperm count falls in a low range, Into routine In semination may be considered. II_J is both cheaper and less invasive than IV F, and is usually tried prior to IV. Intrauterine insemination (III) is a fertility treatment which I involves placing sperm inside a woman's uterus to facilitate fertilization. The goal of XIII is to in crease the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the e chance of fertilization.In other words, XIII provides the sperm an upper hand, by giving TA head start, but a sperm is still required to reach and fertilize the egg on its own; which is why if the woman is also struggling to conceive, this method isn't most effective. With both Inviter fertilization and Intrauterine Insemination, we have seen a d aromatic increase of pregnancies in women who would otherwise not be able to conceive eve. Inviter fertilization is a way of creating pregnancies, while a less expensive and invasion eve yet less effective procedure called intrauterine insemination is a way of upping a man' sp erm count.

Girls And Boys Playing Sport Together Essay

Girls and boys should not be in co-ed teams due to the injuries, fighting, social issues and the difference in both sexes performance. Another issue is the misunderstandings during physical contact sports, like football, rugby, lacrosse and hockey. Therefore girls and boys should not play sports together because it complicates and presents an unsafe environment. Usually when boys and girls play sports together major injuries occur, especially when the sport has a lot of contact. Studies show that females tend to receive concussions more often when playing sports that allow contact with males. Doctor Fin from Sunny Brook hospital reports â€Å"77% of females who play co-ed sports end up with concussions†. (Linkn17) Between interviewing school sports teams, girls have mentioned a lot that size does matter. Jenny, A rugby player from J.Clarke Richardson explains â€Å"It’s scary when you have a huge 6 foot tall, jacked boy running at you and then tackles you to the ground . It tends to hurt you way more when it’s a boy then when it’s a girl, due to the size and strength difference†. (helan14) When boys and girls start to grow up strength become an issue. Michael health teacher from Donald A Wilson describes why. †The difference between girls and boys strength is, when boys hit puberty they get stronger and girls do not.† (micheal30) Therefore teens and adult girls should be prohibited to play sports together because the injuries that follows with it. Co-ed sport teams can cause social issues, as well as bullying, along with physical issues. Girls are made fun of and called ‘butch’ due to playing on a boys sports team. Alyssa from O’Neil Secondary Explains, â€Å"I feel playing with boys is more of a challenge than it is when playing with just girls, but I’m always made fun of by the boys on my team and the girls at my school.†(Alyssa23) Girls can not be in a change room with boys, due to their different body parts. Coach Jim says, â€Å"Now that these kids are older boys are thinking more sexual even so the girls are not nake d, also they have different body parts so they cannot be using the same change room. This is an issue for gossip, about the girls, or reverse.† (jim43) Sometimes girls are grabbed or touched by boys unexpectedly and freak out, although the boy wasn’t intentionally doing it. Matt from co-ed rugby reveals, â€Å"Onetime I picked up this girl and accidentally put my hand in her shirt and she freaked out, and made a huge scene, I was mad because I wasn’t doing it on  purpose and I only touched her stomach.† (matt12) So With all of this information, it is proven that it has caused social issues , physical issues and bullying that still continues due to co-ed sports teams. Girls and playing with boys causes many misunderstandings and a very big change and the ability to perform well during games. Boys sometimes may be scared to perform as usual with girls due to the most common factor, hurting them. Jack from Dolphins foot ball team says, â€Å"I was running towards this girl who had the ball but, I got scared because I felt I was going to hurt her, so I slowed down and she got away†. (jack19) Misunderstandin gs constantly occur in co-ed sports teams like, when a guy touches a girl, but the boy not realizing what he has done because he is trying to treat the girl like any other player, but the girl is taking it into a sexual situation.†He picked me up, with his hand grabbing my butt. I started kicking him and hit him in the face, I felt extremely violated†. Alexis said from Durham College football team. (Alexis25) Sometimes females back down when a guy 10 times the size of your size approaches you during a contact sport, like football or rugby and hockey, even soccer in some cases.†I had the ball and a guy 30 times the size of me came running towards me and I dropped the ball and ran another direction I got scared I Guess playing with the opposite sexes does have some cons†. Megan from N.D expresses. (Megan18) Co-ed sports have been proven to show a difference and lack in their ability to perform during games. Also the amount of misunderstandings that have lead to fighting is not appropriate and safe environment for boys or girls. Co-ed sports teams should not be permitted due to the consequences along the way. Males and females playing sports together cause a lot of misunderstandings. Boys have a lot of sexual thoughts when they are teens and like to joke around, but when it comes down to playing their sport their intention is not what, females seem to think. Males have shown that the ability to perform well playing with girls isn’t as strong. Women have shown that the size and strength have stopped them from playing their best due to the fear of injuries. Along with these consequences, social issues have become a problem with co-ed teams. The biggest thing proven is the amount of injuries women get, due to strength and size, well playing on co-ed teams. Girls and boys should not be allowed to play in any physical sports teams together, due to the points above. It should be prohibited.

Performance Appraisal Essay

Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a dramatic play that epitomizes the sacrificial role of women, parental and filial obligations, and the unreliability of appearances. The play illustrates the story of the Helmers family, introducing the role and purpose of each character. Moreover the play shows the advantages and limitations of the dramatic form. First and foremost, Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House shows the different advantages of the dramatic forms. These advantages give appeal to its audience. One of these advantages is the use of social interaction skills. With dramatic plays, one an enhance his/ her ability to interact to others, the way he/ she talks, and the way he/ she deliver his/her lines or part. Another advantage is the language development. The vocabulary is more improved in most dramatic play. Script writers often use words that are easy to understand but in addition, they also include new words that maybe new to the audiences’ hearing. Vocabulary is not the only part that is improved; sentence structuring is as well developed. In dramatic forms, organization of words is highly different. The third advantage of dramatic forms is the use of symbols. In literature, symbolism is very important. Symbols make the story more understandable for the audience or readers. Symbols are the objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas and concepts. Lastly in dramatic forms, fantasy and reality are mixed together. Sometimes fantasy is being turned to reality and on the other hand reality is being turned to fantasy. However, A Doll’s House doesn’t only show the advantages of the dramatic forms, it also shows its limitations. These limitations sometimes let the audience want for more. Dramatic forms that are not detailed like Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House turn off the audiences’ ppetite. Oftentimes plays are being summarized, script writers do not include unnecessary details, and they only write what is needed and appropriate for the play. They do not give the audience the whole picture, hence they let the audience think of their own conclusion in some part. In addition, plays have limitations on time. Script writers avoid the audience to get bored, so they avoid long and repetitive scripts. Also plays like this are confusing, since script writers do not give the whole picture to the audience; confusion starts to arise in the middle of the play. Summing up, Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House shows the advantages and limitations of the dramatic forms. Advantages such as language development and use of symbols make dramatic forms more understandable and interesting. Therefore, these advantages help the audience to be more comfortable and attached to the story. On the other hand, the play also illustrates the limitation of dramatic forms.

The Da Vinci Code Chapter 48-51

CHAPTER 48 Langdon could scarcely believe his own supposition, and yet, considering who had given this stone cylinder to them, how he had given it to them, and now, the inlaid Rose on the container, Langdon could formulate only one conclusion. I am holding the Priory keystone. The legend was specific. The keystone is an encoded stone that lies beneath the sign of the Rose. â€Å"Robert?† Sophie was watching him. â€Å"What's going on?† Langdon needed a moment to gather his thoughts. â€Å"Did your grandfather ever speak to you of something called la clef de voute?† â€Å"The key to the vault?† Sophie translated. â€Å"No, that's the literal translation. Clef de voute is a common architectural term. Voute refers not to a bank vault, but to a vault in an archway. Like a vaulted ceiling.† â€Å"But vaulted ceilings don't have keys.† â€Å"Actually they do. Every stone archway requires a central, wedge-shaped stone at the top which locks the pieces together and carries all the weight. This stone is, in an architectural sense, the key to the vault. In English we call it a keystone.† Langdon watched her eyes for any spark of recognition. Sophie shrugged, glancing down at the cryptex. â€Å"But this obviously is not a keystone.† Langdon didn't know where to begin. Keystones as a masonry technique for building stonearchways had been one of the best-kept secrets of the early Masonic brotherhood. The Royal ArchDegree.Architecture.Keystones.It was all interconnected. The secret knowledge of how to use a wedged keystone to build a vaulted archway was part of the wisdom that had made the Masons such wealthy craftsmen, and it was a secret they guarded carefully. Keystones had always had a tradition of secrecy. And yet, the stone cylinder in the rosewood box was obviously something quite different. The Priory keystone – if this was indeed what they were holding – was not at all what Langdon had imagined. â€Å"The Priory keystone is not my specialty,† Langdon admitted. â€Å"My interest in the Holy Grail is primarily symbologic, so I tend to ignore the plethora of lore regarding how to actually find it.† Sophie's eyebrows arched. â€Å"Find the Holy Grail?† Langdon gave an uneasy nod, speaking his next words carefully. â€Å"Sophie, according to Priory lore, the keystone is an encoded map†¦ a map that reveals the hiding place of the Holy Grail.† Sophie's face went blank. â€Å"And you think this is it?† Langdon didn't know what to say. Even to him it sounded unbelievable, and yet the keystone was the only logical conclusion he could muster. An encrypted stone, hidden beneath the sign of theRose. The idea that the cryptex had been designed by Leonardo Da Vinci – former Grand Master of the Priory of Sion – shone as another tantalizing indicator that this was indeed the Priory keystone. A former Grand Master's blueprint†¦brought to life centuries later by another Priory member.The bond was too palpable to dismiss. For the last decade, historians had been searching for the keystone in French churches. Grail seekers, familiar with the Priory's history of cryptic double-talk, had concluded la clef de voute was a literal keystone – an architectural wedge – an engraved, encrypted stone, inserted into a vaulted archway in a church. Beneath the sign of the Rose.In architecture, there was no shortage of roses. Rose windows.Rosette reliefs.And, of course, an abundance of cinquefoils – the five-petaled decorative flowers often found at the top of archways, directly over the keystone. The hiding place seemed diabolically simple. The map to the Holy Grail was incorporated high in an archway of some forgotten church, mocking the blind churchgoers who wandered beneath it. â€Å"This cryptex can't be the keystone,† Sophie argued. â€Å"It's not old enough. I'm certain my grandfather made this. It can't be part of any ancient Grail legend.† â€Å"Actually,† Langdon replied, feeling a tingle of excitement ripple through him,† the keystone is believed to have been created by the Priory sometime in the past couple of decades.† Sophie's eyes flashed disbelief. â€Å"But if this cryptex reveals the hiding place of the Holy Grail, why would my grandfather give it to me? I have no idea how to open it or what to do with it. I don't even know what the Holy Grail is!† Langdon realized to his surprise that she was right. He had not yet had a chance to explain to Sophie the true nature of the Holy Grail. That story would have to wait. At the moment, they were focused on the keystone. If that is indeed what this is†¦ . Against the hum of the bulletproof wheels beneath them, Langdon quickly explained to Sophie everything he had heard about the keystone. Allegedly, for centuries, the Priory's biggest secret – the location of the Holy Grail – was never written down. For security's sake, it was verbally transferred to each new rising senechal at a clandestine ceremony. However, at some point during the last century, whisperings began to surface that the Priory policy had changed. Perhaps it was on account of new electronic eavesdropping capabilities, but the Priory vowed never again even to speak the location of the sacred hiding place. â€Å"But then how could they pass on the secret?† Sophie asked. â€Å"That's where the keystone comes in,† Langdon explained. â€Å"When one of the top four members died, the remaining three would choose from the lower echelons the next candidate to ascend as senechal.Rather than telling the new senechal where the Grail was hidden, they gave him a test through which he could prove he was worthy.† Sophie looked unsettled by this, and Langdon suddenly recalled her mentioning how her grandfather used to make treasure hunts for her – preuves de merite.Admittedly, the keystone was a similar concept. Then again, tests like this were extremely common in secret societies. The best known was the Masons', wherein members ascended to higher degrees by proving they could keep a secret and by performing rituals and various tests of merit over many years. The tasks became progressively harder until they culminated in a successful candidate's induction as thirty-second- degree Mason. â€Å"So the keystone is a preuve de merite,†Sophie said. â€Å"If a rising Priory senechal can open it, he proves himself worthy of the information it holds.† Langdon nodded. â€Å"I forgot you'd had experience with this sort of thing.† â€Å"Not only with my grandfather. In cryptology, that's called a ‘self-authorizing language. ‘ That is, if you're smart enough to read it, you're permitted to know what is being said.† Langdon hesitated a moment. â€Å"Sophie, you realize that if this is indeed the keystone, your grandfather's access to it implies he was exceptionally powerful within the Priory of Sion. He would have to have been one of the highest four members.† Sophie sighed. â€Å"He was powerful in a secret society. I'm certain of it. I can only assume it was the Priory.† Langdon did a double take. â€Å"You knew he was in a secret society?† â€Å"I saw some things I wasn't supposed to see ten years ago. We haven't spoken since.† She paused. â€Å"My grandfather was not only a ranking top member of the group†¦ I believe he was the top member.† Langdon could not believe what she had just said. â€Å"Grand Master? But†¦ there's no way you could know that!† â€Å"I'd rather not talk about it.† Sophie looked away, her expression as determined as it was pained. Langdon sat in stunned silence. Jacques Sauniere? Grand Master? Despite the astonishing repercussions if it were true, Langdon had the eerie sensation it almost made perfect sense. After all, previous Priory Grand Masters had also been distinguished public figures with artistic souls. Proof of that fact had been uncovered years ago in Paris's Bibliotheque Nationale in papers that became known as Les Dossiers Secrets. Every Priory historian and Grail buff had read the Dossiers.Cataloged under Number 4o lm1 249, the Dossiers Secrets had been authenticated by many specialists and incontrovertibly confirmed what historians had suspected for a long time: Priory Grand Masters included Leonardo Da Vinci, Botticelli, Sir Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, and, more recently, Jean Cocteau, the famous Parisian artist. Why not Jacques Sauniere? Langdon's incredulity intensified with the realization that he had been slated to meet Sauniere tonight. The Priory Grand Master called a meeting with me.Why? To make artistic small talk? It suddenly seemed unlikely. After all, if Langdon's instincts were correct, the Grand Master of the Priory of Sion had just transferred the brotherhood's legendary keystone to his granddaughter and simultaneously commanded her to find Robert Langdon. Inconceivable! Langdon's imagination could conjure no set of circumstances that would explain Sauniere's behavior. Even if Sauniere feared his own death, there were three senechaux who also possessed the secret and therefore guaranteed the Priory's security. Why would Sauniere take such an enormous risk giving his granddaughter the keystone, especially when the two of them didn't get along? And why involve Langdon†¦ a total stranger? A piece of this puzzle is missing, Langdon thought. The answers were apparently going to have to wait. The sound of the slowing engine caused them both to look up. Gravel crunched beneath the tires. Why is he pulling over already? Langdon wondered. Vernet had told them he would take them well outside the city to safety. The truck decelerated to a crawl and made its way over unexpectedly rough terrain. Sophie shot Langdon an uneasy look, hastily closing the cryptex box and latching it. Langdon slipped his jacket back on. When the truck came to a stop, the engine remained idling as the locks on the rear doors began to turn. When the doors swung open, Langdon was surprised to see they were parked in a wooded area, well off the road. Vernet stepped into view, a strained look in his eye. In his hand, he held a pistol. â€Å"I'm sorry about this,† he said. â€Å"I really have no choice.† CHAPTER 49 Andre Vernet looked awkward with a pistol, but his eyes shone with a determination that Langdon sensed would be unwise to test. â€Å"I'm afraid I must insist,† Vernet said, training the weapon on the two of them in the back of the idling truck. â€Å"Set the box down.† Sophie clutched the box to her chest. â€Å"You said you and my grandfather were friends.† â€Å"I have a duty to protect your grandfather's assets,† Vernet replied. â€Å"And that is exactly what I am doing. Now set the box on the floor.† â€Å"My grandfather entrusted this to me!† Sophie declared. â€Å"Do it,† Vernet commanded, raising the gun. Sophie set the box at her feet. Langdon watched the gun barrel swing now in his direction. â€Å"Mr. Langdon,† Vernet said,† you will bring the box over to me. And be aware that I'm asking you because you I would not hesitate to shoot.† Langdon stared at the banker in disbelief. â€Å"Why are you doing this?† â€Å"Why do you imagine?† Vernet snapped, his accented English terse now. â€Å"To protect my client's assets.† â€Å"We are your clients now,† Sophie said. Vernet's visage turned ice-cold, an eerie transformation. â€Å"Mademoiselle Neveu, I don't know howyou got that key and account number tonight, but it seems obvious that foul play was involved. Had I known the extent of your crimes, I would never have helped you leave the bank.† â€Å"I told you,† Sophie said,† we had nothing to do with my grandfather's death!† Vernet looked at Langdon. â€Å"And yet the radio claims you are wanted not only for the murder of Jacques Sauniere but for those of three other men as well?† â€Å"What!† Langdon was thunderstruck. Three more murders? The coincidental number hit him harder than the fact that he was the prime suspect. It seemed too unlikely to be a coincidence. The three senechaux? Langdon's eyes dropped to the rosewood box. If the senechaux were murdered, Sauniere had no options.He had to transfer the keystone to someone. â€Å"The police can sort that out when I turn you in,† Vernet said. â€Å"I have gotten my bank involved too far already.† Sophie glared at Vernet. â€Å"You obviously have no intention of turning us in. You would have driven us back to the bank. And instead you bring us out here and hold us at gunpoint?† â€Å"Your grandfather hired me for one reason – to keep his possessions both safe and private. Whatever this box contains, I have no intention of letting it become a piece of cataloged evidence in a police investigation. Mr. Langdon, bring me the box.† Sophie shook her head. â€Å"Don't do it.† A gunshot roared, and a bullet tore into the wall above him. The reverberation shook the back of the truck as a spent shell clinked onto the cargo floor. Shit! Langdon froze. Vernet spoke more confidently now. â€Å"Mr. Langdon, pick up the box.† Langdon lifted the box.† Now bring it over to me.† Vernet was taking dead aim, standing on the ground behind the rear bumper, his gun outstretched into the cargo hold now. Box in hand, Langdon moved across the hold toward the open door. I've got to do something! Langdon thought. I'm about to hand over the Priory keystone! As Langdon moved toward the doorway, his position of higher ground became more pronounced, and he began wondering if he could somehow use it to his advantage. Vernet's gun, though raised, was at Langdon's knee level. A well-placed kick perhaps? Unfortunately, as Langdon neared, Vernet seemed to sense the dangerous dynamic developing, and he took several steps back, repositioning himself six feet away. Well out of reach.† Vernet commanded,† Place the box beside the door.† Seeing no options, Langdon knelt down and set the rosewood box at the edge of the cargo hold, directly in front of the open doors. â€Å"Now stand up.† Langdon began to stand up but paused, spying the small, spent pistol shell on the floor beside the truck's precision-crafted doorsill. â€Å"Stand up, and step away from the box.† Langdon paused a moment longer, eyeing the metal threshold. Then he stood. As he did, he discreetly brushed the shell over the edge onto the narrow ledge that was the door's lower sill. Fully upright now, Langdon stepped backward. â€Å"Return to the back wall and turn around.† Langdon obeyed. Vernet could feel his own heart pounding. Aiming the gun with his right hand, he reached now with his left for the wooden box. He discovered that it was far too heavy. I need two hands. Turning his eyes back to his captives, he calculated the risk. Both were a good fifteen feet away, at the far end of the cargo hold, facing away from him. Vernet made up his mind. Quickly, he laid down the gun on the bumper, lifted the box with two hands, and set it on the ground, immediately grabbing the gun again and aiming it back into the hold. Neither of his prisoners had moved. Perfect.Now all that remained was to close and lock the door. Leaving the box on the ground for the moment, he grabbed the metal door and began to heave it closed. As the door swung past him, Vernet reached up to grab the single bolt that needed to be slid into place. The door closed with a thud, and Vernet quickly grabbed the bolt, pulling it to the left. The bolt slid a few inches and crunched to an unexpected halt, not lining up with its sleeve. What's going on? Vernet pulled again, but the bolt wouldn't lock. The mechanism was not properly aligned. The door isn't fully closed! Feeling a surge of panic, Vernet shoved hard against the outside of the door, but it refused to budge. Something is blocking it! Vernet turned to throw full shoulder into the door, but this time the door exploded outward, striking Vernet in the face and sending him reeling backward onto the ground, his nose shattering in pain. The gun flew as Vernet reached for his face and felt the warm blood running from his nose. Robert Langdon hit the ground somewhere nearby, and Vernet tried to get up, but he couldn't see. His vision blurred and he fell backward again. Sophie Neveu was shouting. Moments later, Vernet felt a cloud of dirt and exhaust billowing over him. He heard the crunching of tires on gravel and sat up just in time to see the truck's wide wheelbase fail to navigate a turn. There was a crash as the front bumper clipped a tree. The engine roared, and the tree bent. Finally, it was the bumper that gave, tearing half off. The armored car lurched away, its front bumper dragging. When the truck reached the paved access road, a shower of sparks lit up the night, trailing the truck as it sped away. Vernet turned his eyes back to the ground where the truck had been parked. Even in the faint moonlight he could see there was nothing there. The wooden box was gone. CHAPTER 50 The unmarked Fiat sedan departing Castel Gandolfo snaked downward through the Alban Hills into the valley below. In the back seat, Bishop Aringarosa smiled, feeling the weight of the bearer bonds in the briefcase on his lap and wondering how long it would be before he and the Teacher could make the exchange. Twenty million euro. The sum would buy Aringarosa power far more valuable than that. As his car sped back toward Rome, Aringarosa again found himself wondering why the Teacher had not yet contacted him. Pulling his cell phone from his cassock pocket, he checked the carrier signal. Extremely faint. â€Å"Cell service is intermittent up here,† the driver said, glancing at him in the rearview mirror. â€Å"In about five minutes, we'll be out of the mountains, and service improves.† â€Å"Thank you.† Aringarosa felt a sudden surge of concern. No service in the mountains? Maybe the Teacher had been trying to reach him all this time. Maybe something had gone terribly wrong. Quickly, Aringarosa checked the phone's voice mail. Nothing. Then again, he realized, the Teacher never would have left a recorded message; he was a man who took enormous care with his communications. Nobody understood better than the Teacher the perils of speaking openly in this modern world. Electronic eavesdropping had played a major role in how he had gathered his astonishing array of secret knowledge. For this reason, he takes extra precautions. Unfortunately, the Teacher's protocols for caution included a refusal to give Aringarosa any kind of contact number. I alone will initiate contact, the Teacher had informed him. So keep your phoneclose.Now that Aringarosa realized his phone might not have been working properly, he feared what the Teacher might think if he had been repeatedly phoning with no answer. He'll think something is wrong. Or that I failed to get the bonds. The bishop broke a light sweat. Or worse†¦ that I took the money and ran! CHAPTER 51 Even at a modest sixty kilometers an hour, the dangling front bumper of the armored truck grated against the deserted suburban road with a grinding roar, spraying sparks up onto the hood. We've got to get off the road, Langdon thought. He could barely even see where they were headed. The truck's lone working headlight had been knocked off-center and was casting a skewed sidelong beam into the woods beside the country highway. Apparently the armor in this† armored truck† referred only to the cargo hold and not the front end. Sophie sat in the passenger seat, staring blankly at the rosewood box on her lap. â€Å"Are you okay?† Langdon asked. Sophie looked shaken. â€Å"Do you believe him?† â€Å"About the three additional murders? Absolutely. It answers a lot of questions – the issue of your grandfather's desperation to pass on the keystone, as well as the intensity with which Fache is hunting me.† â€Å"No, I meant about Vernet trying to protect his bank.† Langdon glanced over. â€Å"As opposed to?† â€Å"Taking the keystone for himself.† Langdon had not even considered it. â€Å"How would he even know what this box contains?† â€Å"His bank stored it. He knew my grandfather. Maybe he knew things. He might have decided he wanted the Grail for himself.† Langdon shook his head. Vernet hardly seemed the type. â€Å"In my experience, there are only two reasons people seek the Grail. Either they are naive and believe they are searching for the long-lost Cup of Christ†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Or?† â€Å"Or they know the truth and are threatened by it. Many groups throughout history have sought to destroy the Grail.† The silence between them accentuated the sound of the scraping bumper. They had driven a few kilometers now, and as Langdon watched the cascade of sparks coming off the front of the truck, he wondered if it was dangerous. Either way, if they passed another car, it would certainly draw attention. Langdon made up his mind. â€Å"I'm going to see if I can bend this bumper back.† Pulling onto the shoulder, he brought the truck to a stop. Silence at last. As Langdon walked toward the front of the truck, he felt surprisingly alert. Staring into the barrel of yet another gun tonight had given him a second wind. He took a deep breath of nighttime air and tried to get his wits about him. Accompanying the gravity of being a hunted man, Langdon was starting to feel the ponderous weight of responsibility, the prospect that he and Sophie might actually be holding an encrypted set of directions to one of the most enduring mysteries of all time. As if this burden were not great enough, Langdon now realized that any possibility of finding away to return the keystone to the Priory had just evaporated. News of the three additional murders had dire implications. The Priory has been infiltrated.They are compromised.The brotherhood was obviously being watched, or there was a mole within the ranks. It seemed to explain why Sauniere might have transferred the keystone to Sophie and Langdon – people outside the brotherhood, people he knew were not compromised. We can't very well give the keystone back tothe brotherhood.Even if Langdon had any idea how to find a Priory member, chances were good that whoever stepped forward to take the keystone could be the enemy himself. For the moment, at least, it seemed the keystone was in Sophie and Langdon's hands, whether they wanted it or not. The truck's front end looked worse than Langdon had imagined. The left headlight was gone, and the right one looked like an eyeball dangling from its socket. Langdon straightened it, and it dislodged again. The only good news was that the front bumper had been torn almost clean off. Langdon gave it a hard kick and sensed he might be able to break it off entirely. As he repeatedly kicked the twisted metal, Langdon recalled his earlier conversation with Sophie. My grandfather left me a phone message, Sophie had told him. He said he needed to tell me thetruth about my family.At the time it had meant nothing, but now, knowing the Priory of Sion was involved, Langdon felt a startling new possibility emerge. The bumper broke off suddenly with a crash. Langdon paused to catch his breath. At least the truck would no longer look like a Fourth of July sparkler. He grabbed the bumper and began dragging it out of sight into the woods, wondering where they should go next. They had no idea how to open the cryptex, or why Sauniere had given it to them. Unfortunately, their survival tonight seemed to depend on getting answers to those very questions. We need help, Langdon decided. Professional help. In the world of the Holy Grail and the Priory of Sion, that meant only one man. The challenge, of course, would be selling the idea to Sophie. Inside the armored car, while Sophie waited for Langdon to return, she could feel the weight of the rosewood box on her lap and resented it. Why did my grandfather give this to me? She had not the slightest idea what to do with it. Think, Sophie! Use your head. Grand-pere is trying to tell you something! Opening the box, she eyed the cryptex's dials. A proof of merit.She could feel her grandfather's hand at work. The keystone is a map that can be followed only by the worthy.It sounded like her grandfather to the core. Lifting the cryptex out of the box, Sophie ran her fingers over the dials. Five letters.She rotated the dials one by one. The mechanism moved smoothly. She aligned the disks such that her chosen letters lined up between the cryptex's two brass alignment arrows on either end of the cylinder. The dials now spelled a five-letter word that Sophie knew was absurdly obvious. G-R-A-I-L. Gently, she held the two ends of the cylinder and pulled, applying pressure slowly. The cryptex didn't budge. She heard the vinegar inside gurgle and stopped pulling. Then she tried again. V-I-N-C-I Again, no movement. V-O-U-T-E Nothing. The cryptex remained locked solid. Frowning, she replaced it in the rosewood box and closed the lid. Looking outside at Langdon, Sophie felt grateful he was with her tonight. P. S.Find Robert Langdon.Her grandfather's rationale for including him was now clear. Sophie was not equipped to understand her grandfather's intentions, and so he had assigned Robert Langdon as her guide. A tutor to oversee her education. Unfortunately for Langdon, he had turned out to be far more than a tutor tonight. He had become the target of Bezu Fache†¦ and some unseen force intent on possessing the Holy Grail. Whatever the Grail turns out to be. Sophie wondered if finding out was worth her life. As the armored truck accelerated again, Langdon was pleased how much more smoothly it drove. â€Å"Do you know how to get to Versailles?† Sophie eyed him. â€Å"Sightseeing?† â€Å"No, I have a plan. There's a religious historian I know who lives near Versailles. I can't remember exactly where, but we can look it up. I've been to his estate a few times. His name is Leigh Teabing. He's a former British Royal Historian.† â€Å"And he lives in Paris?† â€Å"Teabing's life passion is the Grail. When whisperings of the Priory keystone surfaced about fifteen years ago, he moved to France to search churches in hopes of finding it. He's written some books on the keystone and the Grail. He may be able to help us figure out how to open it and what to do with it.† Sophie's eyes were wary. â€Å"Can you trust him?† â€Å"Trust him to what? Not steal the information?† â€Å"And not to turn us in.† â€Å"I don't intend to tell him we're wanted by the police. I'm hoping he'll take us in until we can sort all this out.† â€Å"Robert, has it occurred to you that every television in France is probably getting ready to broadcast our pictures? Bezu Fache always uses the media to his advantage. He'll make it impossible for us to move around without being recognized.† Terrific, Langdon thought. My French TV debut will be on† Paris's Most Wanted.† At least Jonas Faukman would be pleased; every time Langdon made the news, his book sales jumped. â€Å"Is this man a good enough friend?† Sophie asked. Langdon doubted Teabing was someone who watched television, especially at this hour, but still the question deserved consideration. Instinct told Langdon that Teabing would be totally trustworthy. An ideal safe harbor. Considering the circumstances, Teabing would probably trip over himself to help them as much as possible. Not only did he owe Langdon a favor, but Teabing was a Grail researcher, and Sophie claimed her grandfather was the actual Grand Master of the Priory of Sion. If Teabing heard that, he would salivate at the thought of helping them figure this out. â€Å"Teabing could be a powerful ally,† Langdon said. Depending on how much you want to tell him. â€Å"Fache probably will be offering a monetary reward.† Langdon laughed. â€Å"Believe me, money is the last thing this guy needs.† Leigh Teabing was wealthy in the way small countries were wealthy. A descendant of Britain's First Duke of Lancaster, Teabing had gotten his money the old-fashioned way – he'd inherited it. His estate outside of Paris was a seventeenth-century palace with two private lakes. Langdon had first met Teabing several years ago through the British Broadcasting Corporation. Teabing had approached the BBC with a proposal for a historical documentary in which he would expose the explosive history of the Holy Grail to a mainstream television audience. The BBC producers loved Teabing's hot premise, his research, and his credentials, but they had concerns that the concept was so shocking and hard to swallow that the network might end up tarnishing its reputation for quality journalism. At Teabing's suggestion, the BBC solved its credibility fears by soliciting three cameos from respected historians from around the world, all of whom corroborated the stunning nature of the Holy Grail secret with their own research. Langdon had been among those chosen. The BBC had flown Langdon to Teabing's Paris estate for the filming. He sat before cameras in Teabing's opulent drawing room and shared his story, admitting his initial skepticism on hearing of the alternate Holy Grail story, then describing how years of research had persuaded him that the story was true. Finally, Langdon offered some of his own research – a series of symbologic connections that strongly supported the seemingly controversial claims. When the program aired in Britain, despite its ensemble cast and well-documented evidence, the premise rubbed so hard against the grain of popular Christian thought that it instantly confronted a firestorm of hostility. It never aired in the States, but the repercussions echoed across the Atlantic. Shortly afterward, Langdon received a postcard from an old friend – the Catholic Bishop of Philadelphia. The card simply read: Et tu, Robert? â€Å"Robert,† Sophie asked,† you're certain we can trust this man?† â€Å"Absolutely. We're colleagues, he doesn't need money, and I happen to know he despises the French authorities. The French government taxes him at absurd rates because he bought a historic landmark. He'll be in no hurry to cooperate with Fache.† Sophie stared out at the dark roadway. â€Å"If we go to him, how much do you want to tell him?† Langdon looked unconcerned. â€Å"Believe me, Leigh Teabing knows more about the Priory of Sionand the Holy Grail than anyone on earth.† Sophie eyed him. â€Å"More than my grandfather?† â€Å"I meant more than anyone outside the brotherhood.† â€Å"How do you know Teabing isn't a member of the brotherhood?† â€Å"Teabing has spent his life trying to broadcast the truth about the Holy Grail. The Priory's oath is to keep its true nature hidden.† â€Å"Sounds to me like a conflict of interest.† Langdon understood her concerns. Sauniere had given the cryptex directly to Sophie, and although she didn't know what it contained or what she was supposed to do with it, she was hesitant to involve a total stranger. Considering the information potentially enclosed, the instinct was probably a good one. â€Å"We don't need to tell Teabing about the keystone immediately. Or at all, even. His house will give us a place to hide and think, and maybe when we talk to him about the Grail, you'll start to have an idea why your grandfather gave this to you.† â€Å"Us,†Sophie reminded. Langdon felt a humble pride and wondered yet again why Sauniere had included him. â€Å"Do you know more or less where Mr. Teabing lives?† Sophie asked.† His estate is called Chateau Villette.† Sophie turned with an incredulous look. â€Å"The Chateau Villette?† â€Å"That's the one.† â€Å"Nice friends.† â€Å"You know the estate?† â€Å"I've passed it. It's in the castle district. Twenty minutes from here.† Langdon frowned. â€Å"That far?† â€Å"Yes, which will give you enough time to tell me what the Holy Grail really is.† Langdon paused. â€Å"I'll tell you at Teabing's. He and I specialize in different areas of the legend, so between the two of us, you'll get the full story.† Langdon smiled. â€Å"Besides, the Grail has been Teabing's life, and hearing the story of the Holy Grail from Leigh Teabing will be like hearing the theory of relativity from Einstein himself.† â€Å"Let's hope Leigh doesn't mind late-night visitors.† â€Å"For the record, it's Sir Leigh.† Langdon had made that mistake only once. â€Å"Teabing is quite a character. He was knighted by the Queen several years back after composing an extensive history on the House of York.† Sophie looked over. â€Å"You're kidding, right? We're going to visit a knight?† Langdon gave an awkward smile. â€Å"We're on a Grail quest, Sophie. Who better to help us than a knight?†