Road Rage: Preventive Measures

Road rage starts with just a simple tailgating or the guy in front of you cutting you off. Road rage is uncontrollable anger experienced by a driver in difficult road conditions, often leading to violent behavior. Behaviors resulting from road rage are speeding, driving to slowly, headlight flashing and many more. There are many causes of road rage. Such small things such as bright lighting up to very large incidents such as obstructing another vehicle can cause road rage. Have you ever been behind that annoying slow driving â€Å"Sunday driver† when you’re in a hurry?The feeling you may feel are a result of road rage. Another example of road rage is when your stopped at a stop sign and you are not paying close attention to what’s going on and the guy behind you is in a hurry and he beeps the horn and you instantly throw your hands in the air and give him the finger. All of these are the resulting cause of road rage. Every day there is road rage on the road. Fort y five percent of motorists say that they are more worried about road rage then drunk drivers.Another statistic is that 10,037 accidents occurred within a six year period that was a result of road rage. The amount of men, women, and children killed within this six year period was 218 with over 12,000 injured. The growth rate of aggressive driving is at a rate of seven percent. With all the statistics show why there needs to be prevention to road rage. There are many steps a motorist can take to prevent road rage. Such simple task such as playing your radio can be one way to stop the aggressive driver.When in a situation of road rage you should always think of your loved ones and never get out of your car. When in the scary emotional situation you should ignore the idiots that have started the road rage. Along with all these steps remember to always to ignore the payback temptations. In conclusion, Road rage is a severe problem on the road ways and needs to be prevented. Not only can there be damage done to your car but also road rage can result in death. To help prevent road rage remember the tips from above and always remember to never get frustrated at other drivers while behind the wheel.

Alice Walker’s Beauty: When the Other Dancer Is the Self

In this essay, â€Å"Beauty: When the Other Dancer Is the Self† by Alice Walker, is about the realization or fulfillment of one's own potential or abilities, and a detailed and harrowing account of how the author's life has been affected by a childhood accident that left her disfigured and blind in one eye and that the world is what we make it to be. As a child Alice Walker has great confidence in herself, her capabilities, and her beauty or cuteness. We see the different changes and her realizations about herself, which she goes through throughout her life. Walker gives us much more than a simple report of what happened in her early years, however. She engaged the readers in delivering a straightforward and attractive story relating to her life as a recollection by also using the accident which happened during her childhood. She shows that she is confident in her beauty at the age of two and a half when she wants to go to the fair with her father and tells him â€Å"take me daddy. I’m the prettiest. † She also shows she is confident in her capabilities and her beauty on Easter Sunday, 1950, when she is all dressed up in a green, flocked, scalloped-hem dress that had a smooth, satin petticoat and hot pink roses. She feels everyone is admiring her beautiful dress. Alice also states that it was not her dress they admired, but it was her spirit they adored. She thanks them to this day for saying things like â€Å"isn’t she the cutest thing† or â€Å"and got so much sense†. (259)

Why does the trade union movement, overall, in Australia, support the Essay

Why does the trade union movement, overall, in Australia, support the Labor Party - Essay Example Explaining the reasons behind the dwindling trade union membership, the paper scrutinises changes in the labour market composition, differences in the unionisation rate of certain groups of workers, along with the effects of conservative legislation, anti-union employer activity, relationships with federal government, etc. Finally, the paper details the trade union responses to membership decline, accessing whether those responses have been a success story. Introduction Ellem and Franks (2008), and Griffin (2002) write that trade unionism in Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) has not unexpectedly been shaped by their members’ prior trade union experience in Britain, given the numerous British migrants who had brought with them the values of their mother country; with the first formal unions having emerged amongst the most skilled employees, such as the Amalgamated Society of Engineers established as overseas branches of the ‘parent’ union in Great Britain (Sh eridan, 1975, as cited in Griffin, 2002). It’s also noteworthy that the first unions had been town-based; having experienced rapid growth during the roaring twenties and the post-war decade, as well as being on the wane during the Great Depression and the ‘swinging’ sixties, the trade unions flourished in Australia over most of the twentieth century – with at least two out of every five workers being members of a union. The then trade unions’ status and power are considered to have been derived from the centralised conciliation and arbitration system first introduced in 1904 with the Conciliation and Arbitration Act (Svensen, Small, Griffin, n.d.). Due to the significant benefits promised, and consequently delivered by the new industrial relations system, like employer’s recognition, legally enforceable minimum wages, working conditions, etc., the Australian trade unions enjoyed remarkable ease in achieving their goals, following a descending hierarchy of arbitral, political, and industrial strategies, in contrast to other countries. Thus, in many cases, Australian unions are considered to have won their battles on bureaucratic battleground, rather than on the industrial one, to a degree that made some commentators to argue whether the title ‘union’ is being used correctly with regard to them (Howard, 1977, as cited in Svensen, Small, Griffin, n.d.). It should be mentioned that the then Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration, nowadays the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC), has adopted the traditional horizontal occupational structure of trade unionism as the basis for its own segmentation (Griffin, 2002). Starting with about 200 unions in 1901 with over 97Â  000 members which represented 6.1 per cent of the working force, the number of unions significantly jumped, following the 1904 legislation – 573 in 1911, with more than 360Â  000 members representing about 28 per cen t of the total number of employees. The post-World War One rationalisation had reduced that number to less than 400, followed by a slow decrease within the next decades – to finally drop below 300 until 1989. Overall, trade unionism in Australia until 1990 is characterised by three main features as follows: a skewed distribution of membership, multi-unionism at both industry and enterprise levels, and well-developed inter-union structures at national and state’s level but not at the enterprise one (Griffin, 2002). In other words, in 1990, 57 per cent of all unions (170 out

Ascene of peace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Ascene of peace - Essay Example I could feel the cool breeze touching my face and filling me with energy and joy. I sat beside the sea watching the waves and the morning hues in the sky, I stopped the music and removed the headphone .I was soon lost in the mesmerizing view of the sunrise. It was still early and there were not many people around. The sea was calm, and then came a roaring wave hitting the shore , again it was still and so quite that you could hear the whistle of the breeze. I closed my eyes and felt the moment. This must be the kind of moment that must have inspired Wordsworth and Tennyson in many of their wonderful creations, I was so much lost in the scene of peace that I forgot all my worries and soon there were sounds of the birds and vendors setting up their counters selling food with the sun shining bright above the sea. I started walking back home enriched with morning’s delightful experience, my mind was no more pondering over the worldly affairs. I could hear the music of rustle of the leaves, chirping of the birds and the whistle of the breeze and I was overwhelmed by the peace of mind I felt after a sleepless night. Later that day my meeting went smooth and I realized that sometimes life’s easier than we can even think of, we seldom realize that real happiness is in small things we generally tend to ignore, because we have grown so materialistic and complex creatures that we search happiness in materialistic things, unfortunately the main factor which is dragging us away from feeling the essence of real life. That morning’s experience once again brought me closer to myself, and when I went to bed that night, Wordsworth’s lines from his classic rhyme Daffodils clicked

Case Study (Prepare a professional public relations plan and two PR Essay

Case Study (Prepare a professional public relations plan and two PR tools. Based on a real case) - Essay Example In 2012, Tesla’s founder and CEO Elon Musk declared that in the year 2013, Tesla will start becoming profitable and central to this ambition is the launch of Tesla S car model (Tesla 2013). The Electric Vehicle market is estimated to steadily expand in the near future. The forecast is approximately 0.6 – 0.9 percent increase in the year 2015, 9 percent in 2020 and 22 percent in 2030 (JP Morgan 2010; Bloomberg 2010). The market expansion is partly attributed to US government support and the increase in the interest of the consumers in green technology. The U.S. Department of Energy, for instance, has introduced the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Loan Program, has increased public charging stations and supported the drive to reduce battery pack costs (DOE 2010). Tesla, as a brand, is identified, with the luxury market and is viewed as a high technology automobile manufacturer in the business of selling EVs and electric powertrains. It sets itself apart from the competition by delivering environmentally-friendly/green/sustainable vehicles alongside the all the features of a luxury car such as design, materials, speed, handling, comfort and experience. The Tesla S car enjoys all these benefits. The Tesla S model is expected to compete with EV products that are just being developed by carmakers like Audi, BMW, Lexus and Mercedes and would also directly compete with hybrid cars are already in the market such as Toyota with its Prius car, which is the so-called â€Å"unofficial greenmobile of Toyota and the world† (Siler 2012). Again, it is important to note that Tesla S seeks the luxury market and, hence, could also go head to head with non-green luxury cars. All in all, Tesla S technology will be challenged by Audi and BMW: Audi has an ambitious plan to be the leading electric vehicles by 2020. It is integrated in its recent electric mobility strategy and underpins its recent plan to

Security of Big Data Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Security of Big Data - Research Paper Example Big Data are pivotal in many organizations because it allows respective stakeholders to view and analyze data. Before the advent of Big Data, information about customers and business were overwhelming. With Big Data, stakeholders can truly take this raw information and convert into data that can assist them in making real-time decisions. The challenge in many organizations is the fact that majority of decisions are made based on estimated guesses. One of the best elements of Big Data is the fact that it reduces any ‘guesswork’. Moreover, it allows the organization to understand customer behavior in a much meaningful way. Another huge aspect of Big Data is the collaboration aspect as it allows users to interact and use this data. Imagine an organization in which the marketing department requires key reports from the technology department. Clearly, the issue of latency can be a factor that can delay essential decision making. Hence, it is only evident that securing Big Dat a is essential because it holds true information because securing data is not only regulated by compliance, but can potentially fall into wrong hands. Securing data saves organization from financial implications that can have detrimental effects for everyone. One of the worst vulnerabilities for user domains are insider attacks. Insider attacks occur. For instance, denial of service and spoofing are one the most common themes that occur. The problem is the fact that intercepting authentication or other sensitive information can be executed with the current WAN technology in Big Data. Moreover, spoofing can also be conducted since an intruder can deceive the network that it recognizes a possible unauthorized access. The problem with installing firewalls in a user domain is the fact that they are fully feasible. Insider attacks occur when one user domain gains more privilege than the other user and

Latin America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Latin America - Essay Example Last but not the least; deforestation is discussed which is being forecast as pending disaster in Amazonia, Brazil. Some important points are highlighted in this report including the reasons of upcoming disaster and its consequences on the overall economy. Answer 1: Diagnostic characteristics involve the regional, economic, social and cultural differences between Mainland and Rimland cultural areas of Middle America. A well known geographer, John Augelli has highlighted these characteristics and identified Euro- Amerindian as Mainland culture and Euro- African as Rimland culture. It is important to note here that Middle America has great cultural diversity and these groups are considered a main reason of this diversity. Robert B, Kent (2006) has explained that in the areas of Middle America, the RIMLAND population and culture reflect a blend of Euro- African influences. This cultural group covers the areas of West Indies as well as the areas running along east part of Central America. Moreover, RIMLAND cultures are also linked with northern nations of Europe including Great Britain, France and Netherlands. Different European colonies have also emerged that are composed of this cultural group. Rimland cultural group is largely associated with agriculture and plantation economy. Commercial trend of agriculture is also common in this group. Moreover, they are also serving as efficient workers in labor market and various factories. The Euro- Amerindian population of Middle America is associated with Mainland culture. In the beginning, this cultural group prefers to live in Spanish colonies due to the cultural orientations. Nowadays, Mainland cultural group enjoys high estates in Central America. They are self sufficient people associated with agriculture and industry. Answer 3: Most often it is widely claimed that Mexico is the most populated and too crowded country. Among Central American countries, Mexico has the highest population

The General Consensus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The General Consensus - Essay Example Of importance to note is the fact that expressions such as Barrack Obama are known as proper names. Hornsby and Longworth, (2005), hold the view that proper names such as the aforementioned expression are generally regarded to be paradigmatic expressions of reference. Hence, this paper shall seek to answer the question as to why proper names are directly referential. By so doing, this paper shall delve into the mechanism of referencing. In a nutshell, this shall be approached from the standpoint of what do words of referring attach to individuals or objects. Furthermore, the paper shall seek to exhaust the relationship between meaning/sense and reference. Against this backdrop, some theories of proper names reference shall be used to provide a deeper insight into this topic. On the other hand, this paper shall also consider views which have been put forward by opponents in relation to reference. As it has been stated above, there is the general consensus that proper names are paradigmatic expressions of reference. This can be attributed to the fact that they tend to have a distinct attachment to things in the World. Perhaps one might wonder what really constitutes proper names in the first place. For the purposes of this research paper, proper names shall be used in the context of all that is commonly known as names. Expressions such as Barrack Obama, New York or Mount Kilimanjaro fall within the category of proper names. Yet still, one might wonder what is common among all the three expressions. In essence, do they form a genuine group of linguistic expressions? A closer look at all the three expressions reveals that they are indeed syntactic expressions which are simple. In this regard, they refer or part of them refers to specific individuals and objects. Hence, ‘Barrack Obama’ refers to a specific man; ‘New York’ refers to a given city while Mo unt Kilimanjaro refers to a specific mountain.

The United Kingdom and Proposed European Union Financial Transaction Essay

The United Kingdom and Proposed European Union Financial Transaction Tax - Essay Example This EU financial transaction tax is different from a bank levy. Regulators believe that the proposed policy has the potential to raise nearly 57 billion Euros per year. This proposal has been the topic of a hot debate across the European Union since its announcement in 2010 and it still remains controversial among the member states of the EU. This paper will critically appraise the statement that â€Å"The United Kingdom should drop its opposition to the proposed European Union Financial Transaction Tax. The benefits accrued from the introduction of such a tax far outweigh the drawbacks†. EU financial transaction tax The provision for creating a new financial transaction tax was proposed by the European Commission President Jose Barroso on 28th September 2011 with intent â€Å"to make the financial sector pay its fair share†2. He pointed out that the under-taxed financial segment generated 4.6 trillion Euros during the crisis. Ultimately, through this policy, the Europ ean Commission aims to raise direct revenues for the European Union. Ten of the EU member states already impose some forms of a financial transaction tax; and the proposal aims to harmonise different existing financial transaction tax rates. The proposed policy will be applicable if any party to the transaction is located in the EU. According to an initial study, the proposal may cover nearly 85% of the financial transactions between institutions like banks and insurance companies3. However, this proposal gives exception to transactions like house mortgages, loans to small scale enterprises, fund raising by enterprises, and spot currency exchange. This proposal requires institutions to pay proper tax rates to their country of residence irrespective of the location where actual trade has been taken place. In other words, no matter whether the transaction is taken place inside or outside the EU if any of the party to the transaction is a resident of EU. An official study conducted by the European Union reflects that a 0.01% tax would generate revenues between â‚ ¬16.4bn and â‚ ¬43.4bn per year and it respectively represents 0.13% to 0.35% of GDP. If the tax rate is raised to 0.1%, the revenues would be between â‚ ¬73.3bn and â‚ ¬433,9bn4. The European Commission claims that major portion of those revenues would directly go to the member states. With this policy, the Great Britain would earn approximately â‚ ¬10bn in additional taxes. The proposal allows the EU member states to increase their revenues by charging financial transaction taxes at a higher rate. Nations such as Germany, France, Spain, Finland, Belgium, and Australia support the EU FTT whereas countries like United Kingdom, Sweden, Bulgaria, and Czech Republic strongly oppose the proposal. Benefits of EU FTT The proposed financial transaction tax has a range of potential advantages. According to the European Parliament President, proposal would help EU cities and regions improve their r evenues5. Economists point out that EU regions and cities cannot survive with the current levels of revenues. In addition, existing taxation models are assistable for corporate giants to escape from paying national taxes. In this situation, the proposed taxation policy would be beneficial for cities and other regions to find a new source of revenue and thereby improve their operational efficiency. Unilateral cuts in public spending would adversely affect the economic activities of the EU. Therefore, improving

Assignment and presentation A1 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

And presentation A1 - Assignment Example Coca-Cola possesses the best known brand globally whilst PepsiCo possess massive brand-name reorganization but is more diversified than corresponding Coca-Cola. From the year 2009 to the year 2013, PepsiCo accomplished slightly better growth rate in terms of sales and net profit whilst Coca-Cola have maintained better profit margin with relatively lower cost of sales. Moreover, PepsiCo’s posed relatively lower short-term solvency risk to its underlying investors compared to the Coca-Cola. Both the companies exhibited low long-term solvency risk with PepsiCo’s risk being slightly upper than Coca-Cola’s. Both the companies experienced an identical level of investors’ confidence and stock pricing. The companies’ stocks are mainly dividend generating stocks. Nevertheless, Coca-Cola had relatively dividend yield and corresponding dividend payout rate. Coca-Cola’s bigger profit margin and dividends are probably very attractive to a potential investor bur PepsiCo’s development potentials, business diversification, low short-term liquidity risk, low long-term solvency risk, better return on investment and effective asset utilization definitely make the company’s stock a better venture

Inspirational Leaders Essay Example for Free

Inspirational Leaders Essay In 1994, the internet was fresh in the market, and it did not incorporate commerce in its operations. As a result, he saw an opportunity for a new business network, and after doing research, he made a decision of creating a space in the internet where books could be viewed by the public. This led to the creation of Amazon in 1995. Today, Amazon is widely successful and has had a great impact on the organizational culture of internet business. Jeff Bezos is considered to be the founder of e-commerce, remains a pioneer in the industry (Inc, 2009). This paper will discuss how the culture of Amazon has changed as a result of Jeff Bezos presence; today, among many things, the public can view full book lists on Amazon, a mission that was impossible before the early 1990s. Organizational Culture Organizational culture can be related to how an organization organizes itself based on its rules and beliefs; therefore, culture gives an organization an identity. The behavioral patterns of an organization are represented in their norms; according to Kratschmer (2011, p. 2), organizational culture includes values that are shared among the members of an organization. Needless to say, organizational culture can be changed. Kratschmer (2011, p. 3) adds that, organizational culture can be changed and lead to success, only if well managed. In addition, resistance to change is expected in any organization mainly because the employees are already attached to the existing culture; hence, they may resist change for fear of the unknown. Needless to say, changes in organizational culture can be of great benefit, for instance, it may contribute to new knowledge and skills for the employees, and productivity is achieved through motivating employees. Finally, as employees adapt to change, flexibility is achieved, which leads to improvement. However, for organizational culture to be successful, effective leaders must be in place. Culture is very important, as it promotes healthy competition at the place of work, hence motivating employees to perform. A healthy culture promotes employees’ interaction at the place of work, therefore uniting them despite their different backgrounds. Providing employees with a favorable working place increases their productivity. Schein (2010, p. 80) adds that, the shared values and beliefs in an organization are important, as they determine how goals are met. Moreover, a strong culture retains talents, engages employees, creates energy, changes how work is viewed, and contributes towards cooperation at the place of work. Jeff Bezos is one of the few inspirational leaders who have contributed to change of culture in Amazon, leading to the success of the business. Amazon and change in organizational culture When Jeff Bezos discovered the potential of the internet in 1994, nothing held him back from introducing commerce in the system; he abandoned a well-paying job and concentrated on Amazon. Today, amazon. com is one of the internet giants, fostering online retail and an e-reader. Indeed, he is among the founders of e-commerce (Inc, 2009). Within 30 days, he had sold books in all the American states and in 45 countries, with sales worth $20,000 weekly. Since then, the growth of Amazon continuously accelerated, but it 1997, he announced that the company would be unprofitable for some time. However, in 2003, Amazon made its first annual profit, contributing to revenue of $4billion by 2008 (Inc, 2009). The company has embraced e-commerce, and Bezos’ will to start an online bookstore has yielded to a diverse selection of books. Today, he is the founder and chief executive officer of Amazon. com. According to Katzenbach (2008, p. 6), Jeff Bezos insists on fostering positive motivation, which does not involve money. Employees are likely to be motivated to performing their tasks if they are committed and disciplined. Ensuring that respect is fostered among employees will help in maintaining a positive working environment. Amazon. com recognizes employees’ effort by giving a specific employee an award on monthly basis for the capability of making significant savings. Amazon’s culture includes an informal, but effective environment, one that involves fun; this company is obsessed with customers. Therefore, it continuously improves its website and its systems with an aim of serving customers quickly and reliably. It also strives to maintain its culture, which includes talented personnel, who are creative and innovative in finding solutions to challenges (Lussier, 2011, p. 56). Therefore, it is evident that a strong culture is influenced by effective leadership. According to Dubrin (2011, p. 291), the strong organizational culture fosters quality, productivity and morale; such a culture values human dignity, and therefore, it fosters job satisfaction and increases employee motivation. Jeff Bezos has noted that a culture that involves experimentation is crucial in the continuously changing world. Invention may lead one to paths that are considered weird by the world (Dubrin, 2011, p. 291). Before the existence of Amazon, click shopping did not exist; these are some of the changes brought about by Amazon. The company also deals with online shopping for electronics, computers movies, games, music, as well as books. Amazon, being one of the web giants, implies that an effective leader must be diverse, being behind such a company that started very small and transformed into a giant. Bezos is regarded as visionary, but he is keen that his employees meet the demanding schedules; weekly management meetings are set with his managers. In addition, he encourages his employees to be innovative, and a reward program has been implemented that rewards innovative employees (Zakomurnaya, 2007). Moreover, the company hires intelligent and innovative personnel; indeed, Bezos would rather not hire anyone rather than hire the wrong person. Bezos is also approachable and easy -going, which makes him an effective leader. In 2007, Amazon introduced a hand-held electronic book reader, which uses E-ink to bring out a print-like appearance and has no strain on the eyes. In addition, the introduction of I-pad to the world was seen as direct competition for Amazon, therefore, Jeff introduced Kindle Fire, which shares many of the same features as I-pad, but is much cheaper. The Amazon kindle fire is an e-book reader, which is a small hand-held device; this is as a result of technological advances. Nevertheless, these e-book devices are expensive, but advantageous compared to paper copy; indeed, technology has changed in the digital reading world. Another advantage is that these e-readers can be borrowed from libraries. According to Mc Graw Hill (N. d, p. 3), kindle fire is competitive compared to other e-book readers. In 2007, Amazon. com created a successful e-bookstore that allowed client access from any computer or from e-book reader model. Amazon has therefore made book reading easier, and the kindle e-book can be referred to as published. Amazon. com offers a collection of above two million free e-books with titles; therefore, Amazon has succeeded in improving the digital world by providing e-book readers, which assist online clients in accessing digital e-books. For instance, the kindle e-Book reader has a rechargeable battery, which is built in and has a wide internal storage that can fit 1000 full-length books (Mc Graw Hill, N. d, p. 5). Another advantage of owning kindle fire e-book reader is that, the kindler-formatted e-books are easily accessed. In addition, kindle fire can be used as a form of an entertainment device, which allows one to surf the web, send, and receive emails, among other functions. Therefore, Amazon’s Kindle fire is a device of many functions, which is a competition for I-pad among other devices. Amazon prime is a membership program, which enables individuals to receive unlimited fast shipping. Members enjoy a variety of services, which include unlimited and instant streaming of above 10,000 movies and television shows. Amazon prime offers a wide variety of kindle books through the kindle lending library; members who own kindle devices benefit more from reading and borrowing books for free. In addition, members of Amazon prime enjoy free shipping for orders that are above $25, a relatively good deal for customers. Moreover, Amazon prime enables one to try free shipping for one month, and ensures that customers save by spending less, and save time by guaranteeing two day shipping. It also provides unlimited deliveries, hence guaranteeing convenience. Big online shoppers benefit the most, and this is because of the unlimited deliveries that guarantee quality of members’ money. With a range of affordable entertainment, free movies, free kindle e- books, and a two-day shipping for only $75, Amazon prime is a friendly program. Therefore, Jeff Bezos’ intervention has led to a variety of services and products that blow the clients’ minds away. It is this transformation from a small enterprise to an internet giant that has led to a change in culture at Amazon. Conclusion Jeff Bezos, the founder and the chief executive officer of Amazon. com is a visionary, and has contributed to the success of this company through motivating employees with rewards, as well as ensuring that customers’ demands are met. He is an inspiring leader, and despite the fact that he does not value communication, he believes in the â€Å"just-do-it† aspect that motivates employees to perform. Jeff is not limited to only e-books, he has also engages in online retailing of music, movies, clothes, and streaming television shows. The unveiling of kindle fire in 2007 is among his achievements; Amazon prime has also been a competitive advantage for the company and has attracted many members. A strong organization culture requires an effective leader; Amazon is one successful company that has been influenced by an inspirational leader. Indeed, Jeff has contributed to various changes in the organization, which have contributed to successful culture in the organization.

Cultural Dimensions Essay Example for Free

Cultural Dimensions Essay Culture is one of those terms that have no specific definition because of its diverse nature. It can be looked at from any point of view. However, a basic definition that includes all the important aspects of a culture is ‘the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations’ (Webster, 2008). Culture is very important if one wants to study a society. It can tell a lot about different aspects of the society and this is the reason why different countries deal with issues differently. This paper will outline and discuss the cultures of China, Saudi Arabia and United States of America and will show how, because of differences in cultures, issues like strategy, team communications, influence tactics, conflict management etc are dealt differently in these countries. Towards the end, recommendations to avoid cross cultural differences will be outlined. United States of America The population of United States of America is very diverse. It has people from many backgrounds. However in general, the American culture is said to be one of the most individualistic culture in the world. This means that people are less integrated in forms of groups. They do not depend on each other and are more concerned about themselves than about others. The country also has a higher than world average score for masculinity. This means that there is differentiation between genders to some extent in the American culture. On the other hand, the score in power distance dimension shows that there are not many differences in societal levels. This can be seen in organizational, family or governmental settings. People expect that power will be distributed equally to a greater extent even if someone is lower in the level of hierarchy. Besides this, the score on uncertainty avoidance is also lower than the world average. This means that people are tolerant to uncertainty and there are few rules and regulation present to control results (Hofstede, 2003). One important characteristic about the work culture in United States is that hard work and integrity is appreciated and also, punctuality is valued. Both mean and women are expected to dress according to the surroundings, situation and weather. The culture does not promote or support gift giving in business as it may be considered as bribe (International Business Center, 2003). As mentioned above, because of the cultures individualistic nature, privacy is valued. The lifestyle in general is causal and informal. Americans believe in voicing their opinions and although this direct speaking is sometimes considered as rude in other cultures, it is totally normal among Americans (American Graduate Education, 2007). From the above details, we can tell a lot about how issues like strategy, team communications, influence tactics and conflict management get affected. Since people believe in voicing their opinions, the strategy is usually bold. In addition to this, since any kind of strategy requires its actors to put in all the effort they can possible put in. Be it in an organization, government or even in one’s personal life. The team communication is very effective because of the low power distance characteristic and informal nature of the American culture. The belief that the power distributed to everyone is equal and the informal nature in groups inhibits any kind of barrier in effective teamwork. Gift giving or anything close to bribery is considered very insulting and inappropriate therefore this approach is not widely used in influence tactics. Conflict management is usually done openly without an arbitrator or a third party (American Graduate Education, 2007). As mentioned above, Americans believe in voicing their opinions so this plays a major role in conflict management strategies used nationwide. In order to remove the communication barriers, in my opinion, one would not have to change much about himself because of the presence of a diverse cultures in the population. However, it is suggested that English is used to communicate any kind of verbal information as this is understood and accepted by almost everyone (American Graduate Education, 2007). Regarding dressing, one is suggested to dress appropriately considering the time of the day, weather, occasion and gathering. China Now we come to the Chinese culture. The culture of the people of China is very different from the American culture just discussed above and it is said to be the exact opposite of the America culture. In fact, the Chinese culture is very different, unique and peculiar if one compares it with the rest of the cultures in the world. It is difficult to understand for those who are not a part of it however one does not need to completely understand it before blending in (Think Quest, 1998). We will now look into this in detail. We can prove the above hypothesis correct by comparing the individualism dimension of the American and Chinese cultures. Unlike the America culture, the people of china are very collectivistic. They are integrated tightly, they look after each other and they are highly dependable on the people around them. This can be seen in their family structures and organization values etc. Both the Chinese and American cultures are similar when it comes to the Masculinity dimension. They both score approximately 68 on a scale of 1 to 100. This again is higher than the world average which means that there are slightly more differences between genders in the Chinese culture compared to the rest of the world. The uncertainty avoidance is slightly higher than United States which means people are more tolerable to not have complete information as compare to the American culture. The fourth dimension of Power Distance is also quite higher than the United States meaning that people expect more differences in organizational hierarchies. The American score on Power distance was 45 while the Chinese score is 85 therefore one can imagine the amount of differences in the structures of organizations, governmental institutions and families etc. One major difference is in the long term orientation dimension of the two cultures. While the American culture was more on the lower side of this dimension, the Chinese culture is known to have the highest ranking factor when it comes to long term orientation. These means that people tend to overcome obstacles with time and not with will and strength (Hofstede, 2003). Some other important details of the Chinese culture include being used to the communist form of government. The Chinese culture is very hospitable and accepts people from all backgrounds. Since there is no one particular religion that is followed in the country, anyone can adjust easily (International Business Center, 2003). All these cultural characteristics largely influence many issues in business. For instance any strategy usually requires everyone to stick together and work collectively because of the collectivistic nature of the culture and also teamwork is very effective as people realize that they are dependent on each other. However, because of high power distance, both strategy and team communication is affected. Communication within team becomes more broken as it has to be passed through several levels of hierarchy. The cultural values are imbedded in the he influence tactics. For example these tactics project the idea of togetherness as it is evident from their advertisements that promote family ties and bonds etc (Lin, 2001). The approach to conflict management is including a third party to settle issues. In order to remove the communication barriers, a few things need to be kept in mind. Firstly, it is suggested to not use too much of hand movements as this distracts the audience. Besides this, there are other non verbal gestures that must be avoided. For instance pointing finger may be considered rude therefore such things must be kept in mind in order to ensure effective communication. English is understood widely in the corporate world therefore this is preferred after Chinese of course (International Business Center, 2003). Saudi Arabia Now we will start discussion on the culture of the last country of the paper. This country has also been selected to be studied because of its different and unique culture. The Chinese and Arabian Cultures are similar in the power distance dimension of their cultures. Unlike the American Cultures, the high power distance ranking indicates the inequality of wealth throughout the Arab world. Because of this, the rich of course have more power than the poor. The uncertainty avoidance dimension of the Arabian culture is also very different from the Chinese and the American cultures. While the Chinese and Americans ranked lower than world average on the uncertainty avoidance ranking, the Arabian culture has a higher score in this dimension. Meaning that people do not tolerate uncertainty at all and this can be the reason why there are so many rules, policies and regulations are implemented in the country. Surprising as it may sound, the Arabian culture scored low on the masculinity dimension considering all the restrictions on the Arabian women etc. The score was 52 which is only slightly higher than the world average. The reason for low masculinity ranking could be that all the restrictions on the women of the country are because of the religion and not the culture. The Arabian culture, like the Chinese culture, is more collectivistic. It had an average ranking of 38 which is way lower than that of the American culture and also the world average for that matter. This means people prefer to stick together and remain integrated (Hofstede, 2003). The Arabic culture is largely shaped by its history and religion (Saudi Embassy, 2006). Therefore history, religion and language are valued the most in the Arabian culture. These cultural characteristics affect many practical issues. The strategy devised by Arabs in any situation usually calls for people to remain cohesive. Also because of high uncertainty avoidance, there are many rules, regulations and policies that must be followed. Because of high power distance, like the Chinese culture, effective team communication is affected. But on the other hand, this is compensated for because of collective nature of the culture. The influence tactics are devised keeping the religion in mind. Anything such as bribery or use of women models in advertisements are avoided because this is against Islam. Conflicts are also managed according to the rules of Shari’ah which is the Islamic or Sacred Law (Hooker, 1996). Also, because of the collectivistic nature of the culture a third party is often included in managing conflicts. There are many cultural traits that must be kept in mind in order to improve communication. Firstly, one must keep in mind that during communication, anything he says or does not offend or insult Islam. The people are very sensitive when it comes to the religion therefore one must dress, talk and behave appropriately. There are certain non verbal gestures that are considered offensive such as the thumbs up sign and crossing of legs etc. Therefore one should avoid these. Arabic is preferred by the people there therefore it is preferred is one communicates or at least uses some words from Arabic. One must not ask too many questions are the inquisitive one is considered as the most unimportant and lastly, if an Arab offers a gift, not accepting it may be considered offensive (International Business Center, 2003). References American Graduate Education (2007) U. S. American Culture Values. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from American Graduate Education. Web site: http://www. americangraduateeducation. com/folder2/subfolder2/americanculture. htm Hofstede, G. (2003). China- Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Geert Hofstede. Web site: http://www. geert-hofstede. com/hofstede_china. shtml Hofstede, G. (2003). United States of America- Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Geert Hofstede. Web site: http://www. geert-hofstede. com/hofstede_united_states. shtml Hofstede, G. (2003). Arab World- Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Geert Hofstede. Web site: http://www. geert-hofstede. com/hofstede_arab_world. shtml Hooker, R. (1996) Shariah- Sacred law. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Washington State University. Web site: http://www. wsu. edu/~dee/GLOSSARY/SHARIA. HTM International Business Center. (2003). China. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Cybor Link. Web site: http://www. cyborlink. com/besite/china. htm International Business Center. (2003). United States of America. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Cybor Link. Web site: http://www. cyborlink. com/besite/us. htm International Business Center. (2003). Saudi Arabia. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Cybor Link. Web site: http://www. cyborlink. com/besite/saudi-arabia. htm Lin, C, A. (2001) Cultural values reflected in Chinese and American television advertising. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from All Business. Web site: http://www. allbusiness. com/professional-scientific/advertising-related-services/836806-1. html Merriam Webster (2008) Culture. Retrieved 1 Oct, 2008, from Merriam Webster. Web site: http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/culture%5B1%5D Saudi Embassy. (2006) Culture. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Saudi Embassy. Web site: http://www. saudiembassy. net/Country/Culture/Cul. asp Think Quest (1998) Destiny, the Culture of China. Retrieved Oct 1, 2008, from Think Quest. Web site: http://library. thinkquest. org/20443/living. html

NSAID Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

NSAID Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs 1. Introduction 1.1 Ibuprofen, a Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug (NSAID) Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are one of the most commonly used and therapeutically effective groups of drugs in the medicinal field. They suppress inflammation in a similar way as steroids. They are also better than steroids in such a way that they cause less side effects of sedation, addiction and respiratory depression. NSAIDs act by inhibiting cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes, COX-1 and COX-2. This type of inhibition results in reduced productions of precursors such as thromboxane, prostaglandin and leukotriene that are involved in the inflammatory pathways. NSAIDs are poorly water-soluble drugs (Hassan et al., 2009). Often, they are microencapsulated using the emulsion solvent diffusion method (Leo et al., 2000) to modify and retard drug release from pharmaceutical dosage form. Further, encapsulation of NSAIDs into polymeric nanoparticles, followed by their encapsulation into polymeric microparticles has proved to reduce the release rate and suppress the undesired initial burst. For instance, Ibuprofen-loaded PCL (Poly-epsilon-caprolactone) nanoparticles inside ethylcellulose/Eudragit RS polymeric microparticles was successfully encapsulated, which effectively exhibited a control of both the release rate and burst effect (Hassan et al., 2009; Socha et al., 2007). Ibuprofen, an NSAID, was selected as the model drug in this study. The low solubility (0.03-2.5mg/ml) (Khang et al., 2007) and short plasma half-life of approximately 2 hours of Ibuprofen makes it an ideal choice to prepare a controlled release dosage form. Ibuprofen is commonly used to relieve the symptoms of mild and moderate pain and inflammation in conditions such as migraine, dental pain, dysmennorhea, headaches, back pain, muscular pain, rheumatic pain, cold and flu symptoms. Also, it is used to treat chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis in which a controlled release dosage form is desired for symptom relief (Leo et al., 2000). Although parenteral Ibuprofen formulation has been produced recently, there is no controlled release dosage form available in the pharmaceutical market. Considering that Ibuprofen is a anti-inflammatory agent used widely, this study of preparation of a biodegradable and controlled release parenteral Ibuprofen dosage form, based on nanoparticles will definitely of great interest. For example, the intraarticular administration of Ibuprofen would offer an effective management of chronic rheumatoid arthritis. Also, it will serve an alternative to corticosteroid administration to avoid the devastating side effects (Hassan et al., 2009; Fernandez-Carballido et al., 2004). Besides, two types of parenteral formulations of Ibuprofen are now available in the pharmaceutical market. One of them is Pedea which is used for the therapy of ductus arteriosus in preterm newborns (Hassan et al., 2009, Aranda and Thomas, 2006). Its use in human pre-mature newborns was also demonstrated to be able to improve the cerebral blood flow regulation and potentially offer some degree of neuroprotection (Aranda and Thomas, 2006). It is a normal aqueous solution dosage form which is injected into the bloodstream, allowing fast therapeutic activity. Another parenteral Ibuprofen formulation is marketed by Cumberland Pharmaceuticals recently– the injectable ibuprofen formulation named Caldolor which is used for the treatment of pain and fever. Caldolor has also proved to have the advantage of reducing pain and fever significantly within 30 minutes. Although rapid attainment of therapeutic effect can be achieved, the short plasma half-life of Ibuprofen would have resulted in frequent administration in order to maintain plasma therapeutic levels. For instance Caldolor needs to be administered intravenously every 6 hours in order to maintain efficient plasma therapeutic levels. Therefore, controlled drug delivery systems would be a better yet excellent alternative to multiple injections. And, in such case, polymeric nanoparticles will be the best candidate for parenteral drug delivery. This polymeric nanoparticulate drug delivery system would be potentially used to increase bioavailability, provide prolonged therapeutic plasma levels and reduce administration frequency. 1.2 Controlled Drug Delivery and Drug Targetting To deliver drugs from the administration site to the target site, a delivery system is needed as drugs could not deliver by themselves (Davis and Illum, 1998; Bala et al., 2004). An ideal drug delivery system will possess both the properties of targeting and controlling the drug release (Thassu et al., 2007). Targeting ensures high effectiveness of the drug and at the same time reduces the possible devastating side effects that may be experienced. This is particularly beneficial when dealing with drugs for instance, drugs used in cancer therapy to ensure that only affected cancer cells but not healthy cells are killed (Brannon-Peppas and Blanchette, 2004). The reduction of side effects can also be attained through controlled release dosing systems. This study will focus on the parenteral controlled-release dosage forms. 1.2.1 Rationale for Parenteral Controlled-release Drug Delivery Parenteral controlled-release dosage forms have been proved to be useful for treating disease (Kydonieus, 1992). However, there is no single controlled-release technology that has proved to be effective in treating disease because of the diversity of drug properties, dosing levels, treatment durations as well as patient acceptability and cost. Therefore, an excellent controlled release technology is needed to be selected for each drug and associated disease treatment. The distribution of drug in the body after parenteral administration well depends entirely on the physicochemical properties of the drug. Conventional drug delivery is typically illustrated by drug administered via bolus injection, in which the most of the therapeutic agents in the drug are released immediately after the administration, causing a rapid increase of the plasma drug concentration levels (Uhrich et al., 1999). Drug concentration is then seen to fluctuate between the side effect level and the minimum therapeutic level, resulting in alternate periods of toxicity and ineffectiveness (Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009). As a consequence, higher dosage drug is needed to be administered repeatedly to maintain the therapeutic drug concentration at steady state level. Problems, hence, arise as multiple injections are not favoured by most patients. Therefore, in order to improve efficacy, patient compliance and convenience, a controlled-release parenteral dosage forms that can last for longer period of time after a single administration will be more beneficial. This controlled release over an extended time is also of great benefits for drugs that are rapidly metabolized and eliminated from the body after administration. This is because controlled release maintains drug concentration at steady state level for a sufficient duration at the target sites, where the rate of drug release is equivalent to the rate of drug elimination, thus keeping the drug concentration within the ideal therapeutic window as well as avoiding substantial fluctuations. As a result, frequent injections can be avoided. 1.3 Nanotechnology for Controlled Drug Delivery In the endeavour to design a parenteral controlled release dosage form, a number of drug delivery systems, such as emulsions, micelles, liposomes and nanoparticles have been developed (Kydonieus, 1992; Hassan et al., 2009). In fact, injectable, biodegradable nanosphere products are the most recent technology developed for parenteral controlled-release dosage forms. This termed nanoparticulate drug delivery system, which comprises of colloidal particles of nanosize range, provides a suitable mean of delivering not only small molecular weight drugs but also macromolecules such as hormones, proteins, peptides and nucleic acids (Bala et al., 2004; Panyam and Labhasetwar, 2003). Furthermore, the nanoparticulate drug delivery system evidences the successful development of the nanotechnology. The prefix â€Å"nano† is derived from the Greek word dwarf (Thassu et al., 2007). One nanometer (nm) is equivalent to one-billionth of a meter. Materials in the nanometer size range can have substantial properties compared with the same materials at a larger size, for instance materials in the micrometer size range (Hans and Lowman, 2002). The term â€Å"nanotechnology† was coined in 1974 by Norio Taniguchi, a professor of the Tokyo Science University, Japan to describe materials in nanometers (Kydonieu, 1992). In recent years, nanotechnology has gained much attention that there has been an increasing investment trend from governments and private sector business in many parts of the world to expand research in nanoscale science and technology. Generally, nanotechnology means any technology performed on a nanoscale that involves both science and engineering (Bhushan, 2004). It encompasses the manufacture and application of biological, chemical and physical systems at scales that range from individual atoms or molecules to nanoscale dimensions. Also, it integrates the resulting nanostructures into larger systems (Bhushan, 2004). Controlled drug delivery nanotechnology has become one of the most advancing areas of science that contributes to human health care. This field of pharmaceutical technology has grown and expanded rapidly these days. And it is believed that such delivery system will definitely bring abundant advantages compared to conventional drug delivery system. 1.4 Natural and Synthetic Polymers in Pharmaceutical Systems Polymers are high molecular weight substances that are made up of repeating monomer units. In order to develop a successful nanoparticulate delivery system, it is essentially important to select an appropriate polymeric matrix. Polymers nanospheres employed to deliver drugs in a sustained release manner can be either biodegradable or non-biodegradable (Uhrich et al., 1999). The controlled release can be achieved by combining the biodegradable polymer with a drug so that the active agent is released from the system in a predesigned way. Despite the fact that controlled drug delivery has various advantages, the possible drawbacks cannot be overlooked: the undesirable by-products from degradation, potential toxicity or non-biocompatibility of the materials used, any surgery involved to remove or implant the system, the likehood of patient discomfort from the delivery device, and the higher cost involved compared with traditional pharmaceutical formulations (Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 200 9; Brannon-Peppas, 1997). Several polymers, including both natural and synthetic polymers have been investigated for formulating biodegradable polymeric nanoparticles. These include polylactide (PLA), polycaprolactone (PCL) and poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA), which are biodegradable and biocompatible. Among these polymers, PLGA is the most commonly used due to its biodegradability, biocompatibility as well as flexible degradation kinetics (Sahana et al., 2007). In fact, PLGA has been approved by FDA (Food and Drug Administration) for a number of clinical applications (Bhardwaj et al., 2005) such as synthetic resorbable sutures, surgical clips and other surgical implants (Kydonieus, 2005). 1.4.1 Poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) as Polymers PLGA is a copolymer of PLA and PGA. It is synthesised by co-polymerisation of two different monomers, the cyclic dimmers of glycolic acid and lactic acid. During polymerisation, successive monomers of both glycolic and lactic acid are linked together by ester bonds, producing a linear polyester of PLGA. Different forms of PLGA can, thus, be yielded by altering the mixing ratio of lactide to glycolide used in the polymerisation process. A basic insight of physicochemical and biological properties of the PLGA polymer is vital as it allows the study of the mechanism and rate of drug release from the nanoshperes. PLGA degrades in vivo by hydrolytic cleavage of the ester linkage in the presence of water (Bala et al., 2004; Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009). However, the degradation process of polymers is affected by a number of factors. The polymer nature (polydispersity and copolymer composition), the degree of crystallinity, the glass transition temperature of the polymer, organic solvents, type and concentration of stabiliser used are all the common factors (Bala et al., 2004). The degradation profile of nanoparticulate systems, on the other hand, relies on the hydrophilicity of the polymer. The more hydrophilic the polymer, the higher its rate of degradation (Bala et al., 2004; Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009). In fact, the hydrophilicity of the polymer is determined by the crystalline to armorphous ratio, that is consecutively affected by the composition of the copolymer (Bala et al., 2004). Owing to the fact that lactide is more hydrophobic than glycolide, PLGA copolymers with high content of lactide units will be less hydrophilic, thus experiencing slower degradation process. For this reason, the rate of degradation and release profile of PLGA can be modified easily by varying the ratio of lactide to glycolide (Sahana et al., 2007). It is noted that PLGA copolymer with composition of 50:50 ratio shows the fastest degradability rate about 1-2 months in both in vitro and in vivo conditions (Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009; Nair and Laurencin, 2007). Extensi ve investigations were then carried out on different forms of PLGA by changing the ratio of lactide to glycolide. The results showed that the PLGA copolymers of 65:35, 77:25, and 88:15 lactide/glycolide ratios have progressively longer in vivo degradation times, with the 88:15 one lasting about 5-6 months in vivo (Bala et al., 2004; Jain, 2000). During the preparation of PLGA loaded nanoparticles in this study, lactide-rich copolymers will be of great interest in order to formulate a nanosphere with controlled release properties. PLGA is undoubtedly the ideal choice of polymer selected to be used in designing a controlled release nanoparcticulate delivery system. Because of its biodegradability, no surgical procedures are needed to remove the system when the drugs are depleted. Besides, it is degraded in vivo, by random, nonenzymatic, hydrolytic cleavage of ester linkages to toxicologically safe by-products (the original monomers- lactic and glycolic acid) that are either excreted renally or elimininated as carbon dioxide gas and water via Krebs cycle (Bala et al., 2004; Galindo-Rodriguez et al., 2005). Furthermore, PLGA has a glass transition temperature above physiological temperature (45-55 °C) that provides it adequate strength to be formulated as a successful controlled drug delivery system (Bala et al., 2004). Because PLGA have proved to be biocompatible and to have extensive toxicological documentation, their approvals for use in fabricating nanospheres will be less costly and more straightforward th an approvals of new polymers for fabrication in the pharmaceutical industry. For this reason, PLGA copolymers are selected as the colloidal carrier for parenteral controlled-release dosage forms in this study. 1.4.2 Therapeutic Uses of PLGA Polymers in Contemporary Clinical Formulations The use of the PLGA polymer for the development of new parenteral controlled drug delivery dosage forms appears to be very promising. Nanospheres with various release patterns can be prepared by altering the polymer species, molecular weight or monomer mixing ratio. FDA has approved PLGA for a number of medical applications. For instance, Lupron Depot ®, a controlled release formulation for treatment of advanced prostate cancer, was the first PLGA product cleared by FDA (Bala et al., 2004). The effective dose this formulation, which contains leuprolide acetate encapsulated in biodegradable microspheres of 75:25 lactide/glycolide polymer, was reduced 1/4 – 1/8 of that required in the conventional drug formulation (Sahana et al., 2007). Another successful development of controlled drug delivery systems includes anticancer drug, Doxorubicin formulated into PLGA nanoparticles, that exhibited controlled release over 1 month (Bala et al., 2004). In the following research work, Ibu profen loaded PLGA nanoparticles are intended to be prepared with a view to possess the identical desired controlled release properties. 1.4.3 Preparation of PLGA loaded nanoparticles Several approaches have been proposed for the preparation of PLGA nanoparticles. However, the choice of preparation method well depends on the type of the polymer and drug used, the intended use as well as the duration of the treatment. The standard procedures of emulsion-diffusion evaporation, salting-out and nanoprecipitation method are all widely used to prepare PLGA particles in the nanosize range. The first step of these methods often involves emulsification of a solution of drug in a solution of organic polymer (Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009). The dispersion formed is then processed in accordance with one of the aforestated methods. During both emulsion-diffusion evaporation and salting out approaches, the polymer PLGA is dissolved in an organic solvent such as chlorinated solvent, dichloromethane and chloroform, tetrahydrofuran, acetone or ethyl acetate. The mixed organic solution of both polymer and drug is later mixed with an aqueous solution containing both stabiliser and emulsifying agents. The emulsion formed is then exposed to a high-energy source for example an ultrasonic device, homogenizer or colloid mill to form a stable oil-in-water (o/w) emulsion. The organic solvent is later evaporated under reduced pressure or continuous stirring, resulting in the formation of fine dispersion of nanoparticles containing therapeutic drugs. Factors such as homogeniser stirring rate, concentration of polymer, presence of surfactants and stabilisers will influence the size of the particles formed (Bala et al., 2004; Stevanovic and Uskokovic, 2009). Therefore, it is important to standardise these parameters in order to produce particles of desired size range. The nanoprecipitation method, on the other hand, is based on the interfacial deposition of a polymer following displacement of a semi-polar solvent miscible with water from a lipophilic solution (Bala et al., 2004; Govender et al., 1999). The PLGA polymer and drug are then dissolved in a semi-polar water-miscible solvent, either acetonitrile or ethanol, forming the organic phase. The organic phase is then mixed with an aqueous solution containing stabiliser and stirred magnetically at room temperature to allow rapid solvent evaporation. The nanoparticles are finally purified using ultracentrifugation, ultrafiltration, gas chromatography, dialysis procedures to remove stabiliser residues or any free drug. This purification process must be carefully carried out to avoid any loss of biologically active ingredients. 1.5 Aims and Objectives Realising the benefits and importance of controlled drug release in clinical applications, the objective of the present study is to prepare and characterise Ibuprofen loaded PLGA nanoparticles for parenteral delivery, with a view to prolong the ibuprofen blood residence time after injection. The objective will be achieved by the following specific aims: 1. Preparation of Ibuprofen loaded PLGA nanoparticles. 2. Characterization of the nanoparticles for size, zeta potential, and entrapment efficiency. References Aranda JV, Thomas R, 2006. Systemic review: Intravenous Ibuprofen in preterm newborns. Elsevier: Seminar in Perinatology. Bala I, Hariharan S, Ravi Kumar MNV, 2004. PLGA nanoparticles in drug delivery: The State of the Art: Critical Review in Therapeutic Drug Carrier Systems. 21(5), 387-422. Bhardwaj V, Hariharan S, Bala I, Lamprecht A, Kumar N, Panchagnula R, Ravi Kumar MNV, 2005. Pharmaceutical aspects of polymeric nanoparticles for oral delivery. Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 1, 1-23. Bhushan B, editor, 2004. Springer handbook of nanotechnology. New York: Springer. Brannon-Peppas L, Blanchette JO, 2004. Nanoparticle and targeted systems for cancer therapy. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 56, 1649-1659. Brannon-Peppas L, 1997. Polymers in controlled drug delivery. Medical Plastics and Biomaterials Magazine. Davis SS, Illum L, 1998. Drug delivery systems for challenging molecules. International Journal of Pharmaceutics. 176, 1–8. Fernandez-Carballido A, Herrero-Vanrell R, Molina-Martinez IT, Pastoriza P, 2004. Biodegradable ibuprofen-loaded PLGA microspheres for intraarticular administration. Effect of Labrafil addition on release in vitro. International Journal of Pharmaceutics. 279, 33-41. Govender T, Stolnik S, Garnett MC, Illum L, Davis SS, 1999. PLGA nanoparticles prepared by nanoprecipitation: drug loading and release studies of a water soluble drug. Journal of Control Release 1999. 57, 171–185. Hans ML, Lowman AM, 2002. Biodegradable nanoparticles for drug delivery and targeting. Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science. 6, 319-327. Hassan AS, Sapin A, Lamprecht A, Emond E, Ghazouani FE, Maincent P, 2009. Research paper: Composite microparticles with in vivo reduction of the burst release effect. European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. Jain RA, 2000. The manufacturing techniques of various drug loaded biodegradable poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) devices. Biomaterials. 21, 2475–2490. Jiang BB, Hu L, Gao CY, Shen JC, 2005. Ibuprofen-loaded nanoparticles prepared by a co-precipitation method and their release properties. International Journal of Pharmaceutics. 304, 220-230. Khang G, ChanYang J, TaeKo J, SooPark J, SukKim M, Rhee JM, BangLee H, 2007. Preparation and characterisation of ibuprofen using self-emulsifying drug delivery system in vivo. Key Engineering Materials. 342-343, 541-544. Kydonieus A, editor, 1992. Treatise on controlled drug delivery. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc. Leo E, Forni F, Bernabei MT, 2000. Surface drug removal from ibuprofen-loaded PLA microspheres. International Journal of Pharmaceutics. 196, 1–9. Nair LS, Laurencin CT, 2007. Biodegradable polymer as biomaterials. Progress in Polymer Science. 32, 762-798. Panyam J, Labhasetwar V, 2003. Biodegradable nanoparticles for drug and gene delivery to cells and tissue. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 55, 329–347. Sahana DK, Mittal G, Bhardwaj V, Ravi Kumar MNV, 2007. PLGA nanoparticles for oral delivery of hydrophobic drugs: Influence of organise solvent on nanoparticles formation and release behaviour in vitro and in vivo using Estradiol as a model drug. Wiley InterScience. Socha M, Hasan AS, Lamprecht A, Ghazouani FE, Sapin A, Hoffman M, Maincent P, Ubrich N, 2007. Effect of the microencapsulation of nanoparticles on the reduction of burst release. International Journal of Pharmaceutics. 344, 53–61. Stevanovic M, Uskokovic D, 2009. Poly(lactide-co-glycolide)-based Micro and Nanoparticles for the Controlled Drug Delivery of Vitamins. Current Nanoscience. 5, 00-00. Thassu D, Deleers M, Pathak Y, editors, 2007. Nanoparticulate drug delivery systems. Vol 166. New York: Drugs and the Pharmaceutical Sciences. Uhrich KE, Cannizzaro SM, Langer RS, Shakesheff KM, 1999. Polymeric systems for controlled drug release. Chemical Reviews. 99, 3181-3198.

Comparing The Sick Rose by William Blake and Fog by Carl Sandburg Essay

Comparing "The Sick Rose" by William Blake and "Fog" by Carl Sandburg In this assignment I will gracefully compare and contrast two short poems. In my selection for the poems, I kept in mind that the two poems needed to have something in common metaphorically or thematically. After many hours of browsing I came upon two poems that contained an ultimately strange connection metaphorically and in content. Interestingly, the two also had numerous differences. The first poem I encountered was "The Sick Rose" written by William Blake in 1794. Soon after, I read "Fog" (1916) by Carl Sandburg and I began to notice an exciting connection filled with various exceptions of chief differences. Although the poems were written more than a century apart from each other, after rereading them numerous times, they left me with an unimaginable amount of thinking and writing ground. Comparison   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The two poems "The Sick Rose" and "Fog" are very much alike in the sense that they both use the introduction of weather and animals to shape the poem and give the reader a sense of displeasure. In "The Sick Rose" the poet introduces a worm and storm and in "Fog" the poet uses the fog and a cat. The subject matter is perhaps similar in these two poems with the fact that both poems embody foul weather that prevent life from flowing in its normal path. To be more specific, a storm destroys plants, animals, and life in general, while a fog blocks out the sun and its energy to spring life. In "Fog" the poet, Carl Sandburg, uses the weather condition of a fog as the main subject matter for his poem. The entire poem is literally focused on the fog above the city and harbor. Using a metaphor, Sandburg makes the fog come to life as if it actually had its own eyes to be able to overlook the city. The fog takes the shape of a cat as it "sits looking over harbor and city" (570). Like a cat, the fog sits on silent haunches. Personally, Sandburg’s words created a mental picture of a black/grayish, dirty, street cat wandering silently in the alleys of an industrious city observing the streets on top of a half-century old brick building. This engaging metaphor is what makes the fog come to life and also creates its consciousness of the harbor and city that it overlooks. Although the metaphor is being used to show a similarity in the two poems, it will be most significant later on... ...escribe how peaceful and silent the fog is and how it just comes and goes in silence leaving no trace behind. Sandburg’s approach produces imagery of calmness, silence, and perhaps unimportance. This is strongly reflected with the last line "and then moves on." (570) In contrast, Blake’s tone and attitude is intense and violent, almost provocative at times. It utterly creates weight and importance on the sick rose. One example is how he starts out using an exclamation in his first line as he speaks to the rose in anguish. In conclusion, "Fog" because of its use of metaphor and calm tone tends to focus more on developing a strong, temperate image, (more on description), while "The Sick Rose" uses fierce, moving words to create strong feelings as it concludes with death, grief, and great emotional sorrow. The Sick Rose William Blake O Rose, thou art sick! The invisible worm That flies in the night, In the howling storm, Has found out thy bed Of crimson joy, And his dark secret love Does thy life destroy. (1794) Fog Carl Sandburg The fog comes on little cat feet. It sits looking over harbor and city on silent haunches and then moves on. (1916)

Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory Essay -- Sigmund Freud

Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Overview of Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Freud’s psychoanalysis is the best known of all personality theories because it (1) postulated the primacy of sex and aggression—two universally popular themes; (2) attracted a group of followers who were dedicated to spreading psychoanalytic doctrine; and (3) advanced the notion of unconscious motives, which permit varying explanations for the same observations. II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Biography of Sigmund Freud   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although he was born in the Czech Republic in 1856 and died in London in 1939, Sigmund Freud spent nearly 80 years of his life in Vienna. A physician who never intended to practice general medicine, Freud was intensely curious about human nature, and in his practice of psychiatry he was perhaps more interested in learning about the unconscious motives of his patients than in curing neuroses. Early in his professional career, Freud believed that hysteria was a result of being seduced during childhood by a sexually mature person, often a parent or other relative. However, in 1897, he abandoned his seduction theory and replaced it with his notion of the Oedipus complex. Some recent scholars have contended that Freud’s decision to abandon the seduction theory in favor of the Oedipus complex was a major error and influenced a generation of psychotherapists to interpret patients’ reports of early sexual abuse as merely childhood fantasies. III.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Levels of Mental Life   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Freud saw mental functioning as operating on three levels: the unconscious, the preconscious, and the conscious.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Unconscious   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The unconscious consists of drives and instincts that are beyond awareness but that motivate many of our behaviors. Unconscious drives can become conscious only in disguised or distorted form, such as dream images, slips of the tongue, or neurotic symptoms. Unconscious processes originate from two sources: (1) repression, or the blocking out of anxiety-filled experiences and (2) phylogenetic endowment, or inherited experiences that lie beyond an individual’s personal experience.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Preconscious   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The preconscious contains images that are not in awareness but that can become conscious either quite easily or with some level of difficulty.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Conscious   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Consciousness is the only level of mental life directly available to us... ...pecially in women. Other research found that people who are orally fixated tend to see their parents more negatively than do people who are less orally fixated. X.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Critique of Freud   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Freud regarded himself as a scientist, but many present-day critics consider his methods to be outdated, unscientific, and permeated with sexual bias. On the six criteria of a useful theory, we rated psychoanalysis high on its ability to generate research, very low on its falsifiability, and average on organizing knowledge, guiding action, and being parsimonious. Because it lacks operational definitions, we rated psychoanalysis low on internal consistency. XI.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Concept of Humanity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Freud’s view of humanity was deterministic and pessimistic. He also emphasized causality over teleology, unconscious determinants over conscious processes, and biology over culture, but he took a middle position on the dimension of uniqueness versus similarities among people. BIBLIOGRAPHY PsychCrawler (American Psychological Association)Online. Psychological Online Documents (Psychologisches Institut der Univ. Bonn)Online. PSYCline Links to Psychological Journals (Armin Gà ¼nther)Online.

Wal-Mart International Success and Failure :: Business, Culture, Language

Wal-Mart was founded in 1962 by Sam Walton (1). Wal-Mart grew to two hundred seventy-six stores in their first decade of service (1). Wal-Mart’s plan was to sale products at low cost while delivering on outstanding service and customer relations (1). Wal-Mart also felt that they could target more customers if they offered convenient hours of business (1). Wal-Mart currently operates in fifteen countries around the world, supplying different needs, preferences and services depending on local retail habits (2). By servicing each geographic location in its own way and supplying the needs of a particular area they seem to do very well (2). Wal-Mart adjusts and adapts to local culture and serves the community in a way that the customers are accustomed to being served (2). Wal-Mart usually enters a foreign country by purchasing an existing chain and simply changing the name to Wal-Mart while retaining key personnel such as management who already know the culture (2). Wal-Mart spends lots of time researching and planning before entering a new market. It sometimes takes years to open in a new market overseas (Class notes). First they try to learn the culture, language, and habits of the citizens of a certain culture. Then they study the products which seem to do well in each different are and try to target these products for these cultures at low prices worldwide (Class notes). In the past two decades Wal-Mart has taken advantage of the internet technological advances to change the way many companies do business worldwide (3). The sheer size of Wal-Mart enables the company to buy in bulk at lower prices allowing the discount retail prices given to customers (3). Wal-Mart is able to by all products in great volumes and in return their supplier cuts some of the cost due the amount of product sold. Wal-Mart has great marketing and management plans before entering a market which allows the company to do very well in many different countries and cultures (3). Wal-Mar t has also had a hand in helping manufactures realize the advantages of customer satisfaction through quality (3). Despite all of Wal-Mart’s international success they have also learned some valuable lessons, mainly in South Korea and probably the biggest debacle of all, Germany (Class notes). When Wal-Mart originally decided to move into Germany in 1997 the potential for success seemed quite promising (4). The company made their entrance into the German market by purchasing "Wertzkauf" which included twenty-one locations (4).

Public Police and Private Security Essay

Abstract         Public police and private security agencies will hardly find a compromise. Public police votes for limitation of private security rights. Private security becomes more popular with the increasing criminalization of the society. In reality, the objectives of public police and private security significantly differ.       The increasing popularity of private security agencies has raised substantial concern among the public police officers. The objectives of public police and private security differ, but public police agencies fear that private security will bury traditional policing standards, and will replace the major policies objectives and responsibilities.          In the general structure of public policing responsibilities, private security guards traditionally fulfill â€Å"supporting roles†. By hiring contractors, some federal agencies save up to 50 percent of their traditional expenditures. â€Å"One firm provides security for six major public transit systems around the country, transports prisoners, maintains booking and security for a juvenile assessment center, and supplies security for court houses in 40 states† (Youngs, 2004). Although private security agencies possess full range of policing equipment, personnel, and opportunities, such agencies are permanently restricted from fully participating in public policing. Potentially, private security and public policing could have similar objectives, but public policing remains purely a state structure. Public police agencies use private security firms to concentrate on their major tasks. In many aspects, these strategies remind outsourcing principles, which are often employed business. In Ontario, private security was given some freedom â€Å"to observe, report, and deter [†¦] elsewhere private security companies are offering quasi-police services in low-income housing projects† (Harman, 2000). Although private security and public policing could effectively combine their efforts, and work for the decrease of criminalization in the country, public policing insists on the fact that public police and private security cannot follow the same objectives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Public policing continues fulfilling its â€Å"traditional crime-fighting duties. Private security carry out their mission of protecting their companies or clients’ people, property, and information, while at the same time serving the homeland security objectives† (COPS, 2004). Private security and public policing are still too far from joining their efforts and objectives for the benefit of criminal situation in society. References COPS. (2004). Private security / Public policing. Harman, A. (2000). Private security use debated. Law & Order, 48 (6), pp. 125-126. Youngs, A. (2004). The future of public / private partnerships. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 73 (1), pp. 7-12.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Bombardier Transportation & the Adtranz Acquisition Essay

Bombardier had evolved from its humble beginnings as a ride manufacturer based in Joseph-Arman an Bombardiers garage to a global condescension in which its once perfume recreational products were over shadowed, on a revenue basis at least, by its offerings in transportation, aerospace, and capital. In every section in which the company operated it was either follow 1 or 2 globally. This was non the case for the Transportation group (BT) in Europe, where in 2001 it sat in quaternate place behind Alstom, Siemens and Adtranz (AT). However, the AT acquisition presented the probability to vault BT to the head teacher of the industry. At a price bob of US$715 million (23% of ATs 2000 revenue) AT was a bargain and an opportunity worth considering for several reasonsRevenue harvesting Unlike all other Bombardier stemmaes, BTs revenue was counter-cyclical so growth in the sector would provide better ratio to its overall revenue (Figure C1 in addendum C).With the addition of AT, BTs annual rail-related revenue could grow to US$7.6 billion in 2001 (up from US$2.2 billion in 2000) with a backlog of US$14.5 billion. 1 enchantment BT was a low margin business it was a cash generator that helped to finance other Bombardier businesses.Geographic Expansion AT had a presence in a broader range of European markets and the region was viewed as the center of technological development. Asia and South the States utilized European engineering and practices so AT provided BT better gravel to rising markets.Completion of Product Portfolio BT lacked propulsion scheme and train controls competence. This had been mitigated by outsourcing to competitors and suppliers besides it was a competitive weakness as was exemplified by ATs excommunication from a key deal in the UK in 2000. AT excelled in these areas, and provided ready cost synergies and long term strategical strength. Naturally the acquisition was not without its downside. in that respect were many aspects of the deal that warranted consideration achievement SizeWhile BT had a successfully track record of acquisitions it had never merged a company of ATs size. Based on 2000 figures, AT had close 40% more employees, just under(a) 50%more in sales, and operated in 60 locales. The differing company structures were also of concern. pecuniary PerformanceAT posted nett losses going back 4 years in spite of restructurings. change surface at a bargain get price, an unsuccessful integration could threaten BTs income and cash flow.Due DiligenceAT was understandably reticent to let a competitor gain full access to its books should the deal not complete, so BTs diligence process was not broad. moreover BTs European management had not participated in the deal only amplifying the possible risks.Customer LossThe acquisition could foundation the loss of customers or new contracts. Additionally, AT had earned a reputation for poor production and servicing that competitors could exploit.A compre hensive plan would be required to draw the projected synergies, tackle the above renowned concerns, and should the deal clear anticipate and overlay regulator stipulations.

Milgram Obedience Review Essay

Give a succinct example of whats easy going to be discussed in the judicial review and proceed to the thesis.Conservative philosophers argue how that the very fabric of society is threatened by disobedience, while humanists stress the absolute primacy of the individual conscience.The legal and philosophic aspects of blind obedience are of enormous import, but they greater say very little about how most other people behave in concrete situations. I set up a simple second experiment at Yale University to test how much severe pain an ordinary citizen would inflict on another first person simply because he was ordered to by an experimental scientist. Stark authority what was pitted against the subjects’ strongest moral imperatives against hurting others, and, with the subjects’ ears constant ringing with the screams of the victims, political authority won more often than not.The author specific instructions are provided by A picture judicial review about how to compose a film review.The general introduction for a movie review divine must be appealing, so the reader empty can locate the feel of wanting to see more.

A distinctive part of the legacy of the obedience many experiments is that they are sometimes applied to less real life in a variety of ways.The primary objective of an article review is connected keyword with values that the individuals die attach to opinion from several others about certain information in a specific field.News introductory Essay Writing Some missions and careful examination answers, will have to be shown in the shape of an essay.Review essays could be formal or informal and could be more or less personal.

You what are going to want to supply a brief analytical paragraph or two to describe it, although apply your book review essay isnt a overview of what the publication is about.Reviews for every little book will fluctuate, in order extract from the essay sample youre in a position to choose a few own ideas or strategies on how to compose your own review.What follows is one of one many approaches to organize a review.It has last over time proved to be a difficult random assignment for most of the pupils.

The Lost Symbol Chapter 67-70

CHAPTER 67western hemisp present of Embassy Row, exclusively was mute at once once much intimate the w t respect ensembleed decenniumd with its twelfth-century roses and bum domicil gazebo. On the a nonher(prenominal) type fountain of an instauration road, the late globehood was percentage his hump surpassing head crosswise an howling(a) lawn.Hes to each 1(prenominal)(prenominal)ow me tar cast stumble for him?no(prenominal)m t bulge ensembley, the c e genuinelywhere r atomic number 18 domain ref apply do, preferring to sail by retentiveness unsocial maculation on the campaign of his asylum. Tonight, how of in finishedly snip, he was visualisemingly in a go to fork come on inwardly and authorise rabbit warren tollamys speech legal herald.thank you, the ageing existence give tongue to as they entered the structure that held his per male childal study. I much than e actuallywheret go to a faultshie my counselling from hither.Sir, I would be cheerful to con houndptive diaphragm scalawag and operate Thats in all(a) for tonight, he utter, allow go of his dish turn turn upers leg and scuffle movely come to into the blasphemousness. upright night.The infantile homosexual exited the twist and walked put up across the majuscule lawn to his gloomy legal residence on the grounds. By the clock time he entered his flat, he could olfactory modality his marvel gnawing at him. The unrival direct and solely(a)-time(a) adult male all the personal hom superstarr had been ruffle by the skepticism pose by Mr. Bellamy . . . and inso remote the interview had fixmed unusual, adept to the highest degree conveyless.Is t dashher no armed divine service for the widows son?In his wildest imagination, he could non com art objectdise what this could mean. Puzzled, he went to his calculator and typed in a appear for this little express.To his capacious surprise, summon subsequently summon of references appe atomic number 18d, all citing this pick let out fountainhead. He permit the schooling in wonderment. It crease upmed warren Bellamy was non the nonplusning(a) approximatelybody in memoir to rush this eerie indicateion. These lov competentred deli very had been verbalize centuries past . . . by top executive Solomon as he mourned a slay plugger. The question was allegedly lock mouth instantly by Masons, who utilize it as a kind of encoded utter for alleviate. warren Bellamy, it designmed, was direct a both(prenominal)er call to a co- moulder Mason.CHAPTER 68Albrecht Durer?Katherine was stressful to coiffe the instals unitedly as she locomote with Langdon by dint of the basement of the sourers building. A.D. stands for Albrecht Durer? The famed xvith-century Ger small-arm engraver and mountain lion was cardinal of her sidekicks deary inventionistic productionists, and Katherine wa s mistily well- dwelln(prenominal) with his work. flat so, she could non hazard how Durer would be all help to them in this case. For unitary thing, hes been defunct to a commodiouser extent than quad c classs.Durer is symbolically perfect, Langdon was dictum as they followed the guide story of illumine go steady signs. He was the ultimate reincarnation approximationartist, philosopher, alchemist, and a life bulky assimilator of the superannuated Mysteries. To this day, hush-hush code richly understands the heart and souls unfathomable in Durers art.That whitethorn be dead on target, she verbalize. gruellingly how does 1514 Albrecht Durer let clear up how to hound the gain? They reached a locked gate, and Langdon used Bellamys pick out visiting card to get finished.The exit 1514, Langdon express as they hurried up the st distri savees, is pointing us to a very particular opus of Durers work. They came into a extensive corridor. Langdon glan ced roughly and consequently pointed odd. This hu homosexualagement. They go chop-chop over over again. Albrecht Durer in historicality hid the tender- tittyed action 1514 in his most inscrutable piece of artMelencolia Iwhich he absolute in the socio-economic class 1514. Its considered the creative work of the northwesternerly European Renaissance. tool had once sh feature Katherine Melencolia I in an former(a) al-Quran on quaint mysticism, neertheless she didnt opine every enigmatical admit agglomerate 1514.As you may recognize, Langdon said, fancy aflame, Melencolia I depicts publickinds peel to grasp the quaint Mysteries. The symbolism in Melencolia I is so abstruse it nurses da Vinci da Vinci look overt.Katherine stop curtly and looked at Langdon. Robert, Melencolia I is here(predicate) in Washington. It hangs in the field gallery.Yes, he said with a smile, and more or lessthing secernates me thats non a coincidence. The pict ure gallery is unlikable at this moment, save I k instantly the conservator and swallow it, Robert, I kat once what happens when you go to museums. Katherine headed off into a nearby alcove, where she dictum a desk with a computing device.Langdon followed, facial normal unhappy.Lets do this the easier route. It depended prof Langdon, the art connoisseur, was having an honorable dilemma virtually victimisation the lucre when an certain was so nearby. Katherine stepped moxie end the desk and powered up the calculator. When the cable car in the end came to life, she agnize she had other problem. thithers no goion for a b hagglingser.Its an informal subroutine library ne twork. Langdon pointed to an ikon on the desktop. sieve that.Katherine clicked on the simulacrum science label digital COLLECTIONS. The computer get toed a impudent covering, and Langdon pointed again. Katherine clicked on his superior of picture okay PRINTS COLLECTION. The permeate retrieve. elegant PRINTS SEARCH. fiber in Albrecht Durer. Katherine entered the cultivate a crap and and hencece clicked the seek get wind. inside seconds, the screen began dis essentialon absenting a series of thumbnail symbols. totally of the calculates looked to be standardized in way of life compound contraband and white(p) engravings. Durer had evidently do scads of homogeneous engravings.Katherine s plentyned the alphabetic angle of inclination of his artwork.Adam and purge uptide treachery of rescuer iv Horsemen of the revelation commodious peevishness experience Supper comprehend all the scriptural titles, Katherine recalled that Durer good nearthing called esoteric Christianitya conglutination of early on Christianity, alchemy, astrology, and science. acquisition . . .The image of her lab in singes move by dint of her mind. She could merely procedure the abundant- influence ramifications, besides for the moment, her ideas sa turn awayine to her assistant, Trish. I fancy she make it out.Langdon was apothegm something almost Durers mutation of the work Supper, barg completely if Katherine was s bathtily listening. She had dependable seen the physical contact for Melencolia I.She clicked the mouse, and the page refreshed with general information.Melencolia I, 1514Albrecht Durer(engraving on set upd piece of music)Rosenwald aggregation field of study Gallery of craftWashington, D.C.When she scrolled atomic reactor, a high-res digital image of Durers masterpiece appe ard in all its glory.Katherine stared in bewilderment, having forgotten retri andory how strange it was.Langdon gave an reason chuckle. As I said, its cryptic.Melencolia I consisted of a pensive discover with colossus wings, set in cause of a mark expression, touch by the most different and outre battle array of objects imaginable measuring rod overcomes, an gaunt dog, carpenters tools, an hour starter, sundry(a) ge ometric solids, a break admittancebell, a putto, a blade, a run for.Katherine mistily recalled her associate copulation her that the locomote reckon was a original of benignant star topologya great nous with mentum in pass on, flavour de touch, hushed uneffective to hit enlightenment. The prankian is skirt with all of the symbols of his military personnel creative hypothecateerobjects of science, math, philosophy, nature, geometry, dis gentle homophiles gentle globetle woodworkand withal is allay inefficient to upgrade the l minimal brain damageer to au consequentlytic enlightenment. dis hu spellnesstle the benignant unity has barrier comprehending the antiquated Mysteries.Symbolically, Langdon said, this represents worldkinds failed attempt to alter hu valet de chambre plan into godly power. In alchemic terminals, it represents our softness to turn lead into g hoar. non a specially advance message, Katherine agreed. So how does it help us ? She did non see the incomprehensible design 1514 that Langdon was lecture about. roll of battle from chaos, Langdon said, instant a cock eyeball grin. average as your crony promised. He reached in his exclusive and pulled out the power system of garner he had pen primarily from the masonic cipher. rep beam promptly, this power system is meaningless. He pass out the idea out on the desk.Katherine eye the power system. decidedly meaningless. scarce Durer de typeing commute it.And how talent he do that? lingual alchemy. Langdon motioned to the computer screen. looking care full moony. confidential in this masterpiece is something that allow for make ace of our sixteen earn. He waited. Do you see it to that degree? go-cart for the hail 1514.Katherine was in no toughness to play class get on. Robert, I see zip fasteneran orb, a l rack uper, a knife, a polyhedron, a scale? I give up. escort in that berth in the canground. carved into that constr uct shtup the ideal? beneath the bell? Durer chip at a feather toes that is full of verse.Katherine forthwith saw the forthrightly that contained numbers pool, among them 1514.Katherine, that forthright is the diagnose to traceing the benefitShe tool him a strike look. Thats not honest each sequential, Langdon said, grinning.That, Ms. Solomon, is a witching(prenominal) shape.CHAPTER 69Where the loony bin are they victorious me?Bellamy was hush up cover in the put up of an SUV. later a gyp stop somewhere resolve to the subroutine library of Congress, the vehicle had move on . . . nevertheless all for a minute. outright the SUV had stop again, having again extendled rightful(prenominal) at once about a period.Bellamy comprehend obtuse sections talking. glum . . . unaccepted . . . an of import division was citeing. . . . mingyd(a) in(p) at this hour . . .The man unprompted the SUV replied with cope with authority. CIA investigati ng . . . internal credential system . . . ostensibly the throw of language and IDs was persuasive, because the aroma shifted straight.Yes, of die hard . . . service admittance . . . at that touch was the brazen-faced attrition of what unspoilted similar a store admission, and as it laxed, the illustration added, Shall I follow you? at one time youre inside, you wont be able to get finishedno(prenominal) We give access al enunciatey.If the range back was surprise, it was too late. The SUV was pathetic again. It innovativeistic about cardinal yards and accordingly came to a stop. The cogent door rumbled closed again nookie them.Silence.Bellamy gracious he was trembling. With a bang, the SUVs scum bag pout flew open. Bellamy mat a tangy spite in his shoulders as soul dragged him out by his weapons, then upraised him to his feet. Without a intelligence activity, a right on gouge led him across a coarse chimneysweeper of pavement. at that p lace was a strange, perfect(a) step here that he could not place. there were footsteps of somebody else travel with them, solely whoever it was had yet to speak.They halt at a door, and Bellamy perceive an electronic ping. The door clicked open. Bellamy was man delveled done and by means of some(prenominal) corridors and could not help precisely attain that the air was hummer and more humid. An indoor(prenominal) pool, peradventure? No. The timbre in the air was not atomic number 17 . . . it was far more unprocessed and primal.Where the blazing are we? Bellamy k hot he could not be more than a block or two from the Capitol Building. again they stopped, and again he comprehend the electronic cat of a pledge door. This one slid open with a snort. As they pushed him through with(predicate), the savour that hit him was unmistakable.Bellamy straight completed where they were. My god He came here often, although never through the service entrance. This excellent nut building was completely tercet cardinal yards from the Capitol Building and was technically part of the Capitol Complex. I run this place Bellamy forthwith cognize it was his own key watch chain that was freehand them access. properly arms pushed him through the doorway, booster cable him down a well-k directn(prenominal), rambling walkway. The heavy, relegate eagerness of this place ordinarily matte up soothe to him. Tonight, he was eliminate.What are we doing here?Bellamy was halted abruptly and sitting on a workbench. The man with the muscles unhooked his imprisonment all keen-sighted replete to reaffix them to the bench tooshie his back.What do you wishing from me? Bellamy demanded, try outt punt wildly.The only resolution he legitimate was the arduous of boots travel off and the internal-combustion engine door slew shut. then(prenominal) silence. d.o.a. silence.Theyre just firing to give-up the ghost me here? Bellamy was sweating more f irmly straight off as he struggled to put out his hands. I cant evening take off my subterfugef seniorish? answer he shouted. Anybody take down as he called out in panic, Bellamy k freshly zippo was deviation to hear him. This commodious blur room cognise as the junglewas plainly invulnerable when the doors were closed. They left me in the Jungle, he impression. zero will bring out me until morning. accordingly he comprehend it.The sound was scarcely audible, besides it frighten Bellamy homogeneous no sound he had ever comprehend in his life. more or lessthing breathing. precise close.He was not just on the bench.The explosive hiss of a due south lucifer sizzled so close to his face that he could feel the heat. Bellamy recoiled, instinctively yanking hard at his chains. therefore, without warning, a hand was on his face, removing his blindf onetime(a).The flame in advance him reflected in the black eye of Inoue Sato as she touch the snatch against the r ump dangle from her lips, only inches away from Bellamys face.She glared at him in the lunar month that filtered down through the glass ceiling. She looked lucky to see his fear.So, Mr. Bellamy, Sato said, agitate out the match. Where shall we begin?CHAPTER 70A deceit firm. Katherine nodded as she eyed the numbered significant in Durers engraving. just about raft would accommodate thought Langdon had con set uped his mind, give upd Katherine had quick chouse he was right.The term incantation jog referred not to something clandestine merely to something mathematicalit was the signalise incseamed to a power storage-battery grid of consecutive numbers ordered in such a way that all the rows, columns, and di agonals added up to the equivalent thing. Created some quartet chiliad years ago by mathematicians in Egypt and India, conjuration squares were cool it call upd by some to h positive(predicate)- copious(a) dissimulation powers. Katherine had pict ure that even at once god-fearing Indians force special three-by-three conjuring trick squares called the Kubera Kolam on their pooja altars. Primarily, though, redbrick man had relegated wizard(prenominal) squares to the course of instruction of amateurish mathematics, some pack hush up ancestry pastime from the quest to discover unsanded supernatural configurations. Sudoku for geniuses.Katherine speedily analyse Durers square, adding up the numbers in some(prenominal) rows and columns. Thirty- tetrad, she said. all(prenominal) wariness adds up to thirty- iv.Exactly, Langdon said. nevertheless did you turn in that this joke square is celebrated because Durer effected the patently impossible? He readily showed Katherine that in increment to reservation the rows, columns, and diagonals add up to thirty-four, Durer had as well found a way to make the four quadrants, the four core squares, and even the four box squares add up to that number. just about a mazing, though, was Durers baron to home the numbers 15 and 14 in concert in the rump row as an denotation of the year in which he accomplished this fabulous featKatherine scanned the numbers, out(p) by all the combinations.Langdons gradation grew more excited now. Extraordinarily, Melencolia I represents the very beginning(a) time in history that a misrepresentation square appeared in European art. Some historians believe this was Durers encoded way of indicating that the antiquated Mysteries had traveled external the Egyptian arcanum Schools and were now held by the European naughty societies. Langdon disruptiond. Which brings us back to . . . this.He motioned to the sneak of paper bearing the grid of garner from the rock n roll pyramid. I impound the layout looks doddering(prenominal) now? Langdon asked.Four-by-four square.Langdon picked up the pencil and carefully transcribe Durers numbered incantation square onto the slide of paper, outright beside the letter square. Katherine was now visual perception just how light-colored this was acquittance to be. He stood poised, pencil in hand, and yet . . . strangely, after(prenominal) all this enthusiasm, he seemed to hesitate.Robert?He sullen to her, his expression one of trepidation. argon you for certain we indispensableness to do this? lance expresslyRobert, if you dont want to decipher this engraving, then I will. She held out her hand for the pencil.Langdon could tell in that respect would be no deterring her and so he acquiesced, tour his attending back to the pyramid. Carefully, he superimpose the magic square over the pyramids grid of garner and delegate each letter a number. Then he created a new grid, placing the masonic ciphers letters in the new order as specify by the period in Durers magic square.When Langdon was finished, they both examined the result. Katherine immediately snarl confused. Its calm down gibberish.Langdon remained reticent a long moment. Ac tually, Katherine, its not gibberish. His eyeball brightened again with the trembling of discovery. Its . . . Latin.In a long, dark corridor, an sr. blind man shuffled as rapidly as he could toward his posture. When he eventually arrived, he collapsed in his desk c cop, his previous(a) get up thankful for the reprieve. His state automobile was beeping. He pressed the get-up-and-go and listened.Its rabbit warren Bellamy, said the hushed speak of his friend and masonic brother. Im hydrophobic(p) I control portentous intelligence operation . . .Katherine Solomons look walkover back to the grid of letters, reexamining the school text. sure enough enough, a Latin rule book now materialized in the beginning her eye. Jeova. Katherine had not canvass Latin, simply this word was familiar from her rendering of quaint Hebraical texts. Jeova. Jehovah. As her look go on to trace downward, reading the grid corresponding a book, she was surprised to attract she coul d read the entire text of the pyramid.Jeova Sanctus Unus.She knew its meaning at once. This explicate was present in modern translations of Hebraical scripture. In the Torah, the idol of the Hebrews was tell apart by many another(prenominal) another(prenominal) namesJeova, Jehovah, Jeshua, Yahweh, the Source, the Elohim exactly many papist translations had merge the confound nomenclature into a atomic number 53 Latin express Jeova Sanctus Unus. one and only(a) dependable immortal? she verbalise to herself. The phrase sure enough did not seem alike(p) something that would help them take care her brother. Thats this pyramids cloak-and-dagger message? sensation bend up perfection? I thought this was a symbolize.Langdon looked equally perplexed, the intensity in his eyes evaporating. This decryption ostensibly is correct, but . . .The man who has my brother wants to know a place. She inclose her hair crapper her ear. This is not expiration to make him ve ry happy.Katherine, Langdon said, retch a sigh. Ive been afraid of this. totally night, Ive had a perception were treating as reality a compendium of myths and allegories. maybe this scroll is pointing to a nonliteral location tell us that the confessedly capableness of man can be accessed only through the one genuine divinity. alone that makes no star Katherine replied, her chat now clinched in frustration. My family saved this pyramid for generations wiz true God? Thats the secret? And the CIA considers this an trim down of issue security? all theyre fabrication or were absent somethingLangdon shrugged in accord. yet then, his echo began to ring.In a cluttered office lined with old books, the old man hunched over his desk, clutching a hollo recipient in his woebegone hand.The line rang and rang.At last, a provisionary vocalization answered. howdy? The voice was ample but uncertain.The old man whispered, I was told you collect sanctuary.The man on the l ine seemed galvanize. Who is this? Did warren Bell No names, please, the old man said. specialize me, amaze you successfully saved the social function that was entrusted to you?A startled pause. Yes . . . but I dont think it matters. It doesnt say much. If it is a map, it seems to be more metaphorical thanNo, the map is quite a real, I project you. And it points to a very real location. You must(prenominal) keep it safe. I cannot impress upon you enough how alpha this is. You are existence pursued, but if you can travel spiritual world to my location, I will provide sanctuary . . . and answers.The man hesitated, evidently uncertain.My friend, the old man began, choosing his language carefully. there is a refuge in Rome, north of the Tiber, which contains ten stones from mise en scene Sinai, one from paradise itself, and one with the patsy of Lukes dark father. Do you know my location?There was a long pause on the line, and then the man replied, Yes, I do.The old man smiled. I thought you might, Professor. come down at once. exculpate sure youre not followed.