The Gathering Essay

To an extent The Gathering portrays the dark side of human nature. A dark side of a human is the side that tells that human to do evil and bad things. The Gathering is a novel written by Isobelle Carmody. When the main character Nathanial and his mother move to a new town called Cheshunt he realises that something is terribly wrong. He soon finds himself in a group with four other people called the chain, fighting the dark, ancient evil that bruised Cheshunt a long time ago. A long time ago Cheshunt was bruised by an ancient evil which caused bad things to happen there. In Cheshunt, there were people with power over others and their power corrupted them. Mr Karle, a teacher and the leader of the school youth group tried to manipulate people by using their fears against them. Even though The Gathering shows the dark side of humans it also displays the good side of humans. An ancient evil bruised Cheshunt a long time ago and this caused bad things to happen there. When Nathaniel decided to walk his dog for the first time since he arrived at Cheshunt, he met a security guard who told him about Cheshunt. He said that â€Å"some places are made for trouble. Years ago some bad things happened here†. This shows that bad things happened at Cheshunt. An old lady; named Anna, who used to live in Cheshunt for a long time told Nathanial that Cheshunt â€Å"was a bad place†. This shows that Cheshunt was a bad place. The girl by the name of Lallie, who united the chain, told the group that â€Å"Long ago terrible things were done in Cheshunt. These deeds bruised the earth and a cycle of darkness has grown in Cheshunt†. This shows that terrible deeds bruised Cheshunt a long time ago. Cheshunt was bruised by ancient evil long ago and because of this many people displayed their dark side and committed evil deeds. In addition, the corrupting force of power exhibits the dark side of people. One of the members of the Chain named Danny was physically hurt by the police; who have power over the citizens of Cheshunt. He told Nathaniel that â€Å"power makes the police into Gorillas†. As Gorillas are stereotypically ferociously violent and are inhumane creatures, this shows that the police’s power corrupts them. When Nathanial and his mother were at the zoo Nathanial asked her if she thought that â€Å"a policeman could be evil†. She told him that anyone who has power over others can be evil. This shows that anyone who has power can be evil. She also quoted that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This shows that anyone who has power can be corrupted. People who have power over others can be corrupted and when they are corrupted the show their dark side. Furthermore, Mr Karle attempts to manipulate people by using their fears against them. Nissa Jerome was a member of the chain and her weakness was love. Nissa was scared of admitting or giving in to love. Mr Karle used her fear to his advantage and said to her that she was â€Å"unfeminine and unattractive† and that â€Å"no one could love such a creature except out of pity†. As love was Nissa’s fear this shows that Mr Karle was trying to manipulate Nissa by using her fear against her. Danny was scared of the police and the power of authority. Mr Karle used Danny’s fear against him when he said â€Å"I think you must truly have damaged your brain in that field. The dog must have bitten into it†. As on the night that the police hurt Danny, Danny was being hurt by the police’s dog, this shows that Mr Karle tried to manipulate Danny. Nathanial was scared of turning out like his father. Mr Karle used Nathanial’s fear against him when he told Nathanial that he â€Å"is going the way of his father†. This shows that Mr Karle tried to manipulate Nathaniel by using his fear against him. Mr Karle tried to manipulate many people and by doing this he is displaying his dark side. Although The Gathering exhibits the dark side of people it also displays the good side of people. Throughout The Gathering, Nissa and Nathanial build up their relationship. Eventually their relationship became so good that Nissa â€Å"leaned forward and pressed her lips on† his. This shows that The Gathering displays the good side of human nature. Seth was another member of the chain and when the group was at the beach; Seth nearly drowned. The reason he didn’t drown was that the group worked so hard to save him that â€Å"by the time they reached the sand none of them had the strength to walk†. As the group used all their strength to save Seth this shows how much the group cared about Seth. This also shows that The Gathering displays the good side of human nature. The Gathering displays both the good side and dark side of people. A long time ago Cheshunt was bruised by an ancient evil which caused bad things to happen there. In Cheshunt, there were people with power over others and their power corrupted them. Mr Karle, a teacher and the leader of the school youth group tried to manipulate people by using their fears against them. Even though The Gathering shows the dark side of humans it also displays the good side of humans. In the end the Chain stayed together, defeated Mr Karle and rid Cheshunt of the evil that bruised it a long time ago.

Activating Communities for Hunger Relief Efforts

The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank on Behalf of App Users By abashedly Activating Communities for Hunger Relief Efforts, foodstuffs(TM) Donates to The San Franciscans Food Bank on Behalf of App Users 1 888 parallelism Free Mobile App Promotes Healthier Communities by Providing Weight Management Tools while Fighting Hunger Through Food Bank Donations.Oklahoma City, K footwear's is a free app that combines weight management with feeding the hung ray by donating to food banks such as the San Francisco Marin Food Bank In San Francisco, CA. Joining a nationwide network of footwear's affiliated food banks, the San Franciscans Food Bank continues Its work to build healthier communities while engaging locals through technology to sup port a cause. In order for the the San Francisco Marin Food Bank to receive donations from footwear's, a user must report â€Å"tweezing† (cutting calories from their food) to the app.Once footwear's race elves the number of calories that a weight consciou s consumer has chosen to eliminate from their food, the food bank will receive a donation in that amount. An equal number of nutritious calories will then b e distributed to hungry families in the area. â€Å"The SF Marin Food Bank is pleased to begin our partnership with footwear's to enable con summer to support our work to end hunger In our community,† said Blain Johnson, Food Bank m Edie relations manager. It is important to us that footwear's aligns with our goal to promote healthy com unities. Support from footwear's will allow us to provide healthy food to families in need. † As a food bank that distributes 105,000 meals worth of food every day, the San Franca compare Food Bank is a partnering food bank that supports many struggling members of the communities I s serves. The 46 million pounds it distributes each year can now be supported by weight conscious, cause conscious, consumers who appreciate the impact foodstuffs will have on their neighbors. Towhees make s it possible for consumers to be â€Å"heroes† who serve their comma entitles at no cost of time make the process of donating to their community even easier, footwear's allows users to post a â€Å"tweak† on Faceable or Twitter which doubles or triples each donation. The approach consists of footwear's users simply telling the app what food they ar e thinking of buying, eating or preparing.The app instantly displays images of suggested â€Å"tweets† that re move enough calories to make a positive difference but not in a way that changes the taste or leaves users hungry. To provide users with this simple tool, footwear's maintains a corkscrewed picture e database of more than 44,000 small changes that show users how to â€Å"tweak† everything from a particular ar brand of cheeseburger at a national restaurant chain to grocery store purchases, and homemade e dishes of every kind. s proud and excited to support the San Francisco Marin Food Bank,† said Elise Shannon, footwear's Executive Vice President of Partnership Development. â€Å"The San Francis Marin Food Bank is a highly committed and respected organization that provides outstanding service to of dimensioned members of our community. † footwear's is rapidly expanding its partner base to food banks all across the nation, with more Joining each week, said Ms. Shannon, herself a former food bank executive. Food banks that wish to affiliate with footwear's may contact Ms.Shannon by email at Elise ( @ ) foodstuffs dot com dot Jay Walker, the inventor of footwear's, is also the chairman of Patent Properties and curator of TEEMED, the health and medicine edition of the famous TED conference. A noted entrepreneur r, Mr.. Walker has founded three companies that serve more than 50 million customers. He is best know n as the creator of Principle, which brought a new level of value to the travel industry. Http:// www. foodstuffs. Com HTTPS://www. Faceable. Com/Foodstuffs HTTPS ://twitter. Com/Foodstuffs HTTPS://foodstuffs. Tumbler. Com

Snake

Analysis of Theme in â€Å"Snake† A theme found in the poem â€Å"Snake† is that the respect man has for nature hinges on the difference between instinct and learned behavior. D. H. Lawrence expresses this theme through the use of similes and conflict. The literary elements used in the poem help clearly point out this meaningful message. As the poem begins, the narrator comes across a golden-brown snake as he approached his water trough. At first, the narrator shows respect and admiration for the creature.As stated in line (27), â€Å"But must I confess how I liked him, How glad I was he had come like a guest,† shows He felt honored by the snake’s presence. It is the narrator’s natural instinct to feel this way. The narrator then goes on to compare the snake to cattle by saying in line (16) â€Å"He lifted his head from his drinking, as cattle do, and looked at me vaguely, as drinking cattle do. † The use of this simile represents the respect the narrator has for the snake and reflects on the snake’s harmless behavior. Soon after, the narrator’s natural admiration and respect for the snake is interrupted by the voice of his education.Here begins the main internal conflict the narrator faces. The narrator listens to the voice in his conscience say, â€Å"The voice of my education said to me, he must be killed, for in Sicily the black, black snakes are innocent, the gold are venomous. and voices in me said, if you were a man, you would take a stick and break him now, and finish him off. (Line 22)† The narrator’s decision to listen to the voice of his education instead of his true feelings is what ultimately brings about the main consequence, which is the sense of guilt resulting from such a petty action.The consequence the narrator faced for killing the snake he had once admired was the feeling of regret and guilt. Although he showed respect and felt honored by the snake’s presence, both were overshadowed by the action of the narrator. The peaceful atmosphere immediately shifted when the narrator thought in his mind, â€Å"And immediately I regretted it. I thought how paltry, how vulgar, what a mean act! I despised myself and the voices of my accursed human education. (Line 63)† The negative feelings felt by the narrator were brought forth by something that man usually views as insignificant, the elationship between nature and man-kind. All that was left for the narrator to do was to extinguish his self-inflicted sense of sin against nature. The poem concludes on line 72 when the narrator utters, â€Å"And I have something to expiate: a pettiness. † The poem â€Å"Snake† clearly sends the message that the respect man has for nature depends on the difference between the inner conscience and the impulse of learned human behavior. The theme shines light on the importance of the relationship between nature and mankind because at the end of the day, they are both more similar than we assume.

Tips for a 5th Grade Student Entering Middle School (6th Grade) Essay

Tips for a 5th Grade Student Entering Middle School (6th Grade) - Essay Example unior school to the middle school results in the same feelings for every student; however, it brings new opportunities to develop and prove your capabilities in front of rest of the world (Consalvo, 2005). In brief, the 3-year journey at the middle school is all about the notion of change that plays an influential role in a student’s life, and that decides the nature of experience a student has during this period (Haffner, pp. 105-108). Transition from a senior at the junior school to a junior at the middle school requires a number of changes from a student, and it is very important that the student to prepare himself/herself for the expectations of the higher platform. In the junior school, I was a child or merely a kid depending on parents at home, teachers at school, and friends in the playground. However, middle school provided a sense of independence to me that every child acquires at the commencement of the middle school (Haffner, pp. 105-108). Thus, the foremost recommendation is to remain prepared for new surprises, challenges, tasks, etc while facing them as opportunities to become successful in the school. In this regard, independence is the major attribute of the middle school; however, it comes with the responsibility of fulfilling obligations individually. This may seem fun-filled experience, and it was a thrilling journey; however, it did require many efforts. For instance, academically, schoolwork suddenly becomes more difficult, as things transform from descriptive to analytical, and teachers expect students to be more logical and interpretive in their thoughts. On contrary, I was depending all the time on teachers and parents to help me in the schoolwork during the junior school; however, this practice changes when parents, as well as teachers start depending on the students to put efforts and prove the skills. Besides academic complexities, middle school is also the period of transition from a child to an adult physically, and these physical

Results and Discussion and abstract (action research paper) Essay

Results and Discussion and abstract (action research paper) - Essay Example The results revealed that the behaviors of Kinder Adlaw students during whole group sessions before introducing the clip system were not that good; the attitudes of the students towards the clip system were well behaved, competitive, confident, and very participative; and there are huge changes in the behavior of Kinder Adlaw after implementing the clip system. Research provides information about the behaviors of Kinder Adlaw students during the whole group sessions before introducing the clip system, the attitudes of the students towards the clip system, and lastly the changes in the behavior of Kinder Adlaw after implementing the clip system. It was found out that behaviorally, Gabriel often talked out of turn during the whole group sessions before introducing the clip system. He was very minimal in raising hand and was minimally called. With his very minimal raising of hand he was not called. He sometimes raised hand and talked out of turn as evidenced by the total frequency values of 1 (1. Raised hand and was called), 1(2. Raised hand and was not called), 2 (3. Raised hand and talked out of turn), and 11 (4. Talk out of turn) respectively. This means that Gabriel was very noisy, talked out of turn, yet attentive and active, but, lack discipline and respect for the one who is talking. This means that Gabriel was very attentive, but, he usually cannot wait for his turn. He is also very excited to share his answer and forget to raise his hand as he just shouts out his answer even if the teacher did not call for him. This shows that he has not learned the value of courtesy in social setting like classroom. Gabriel's attitude towards the clip system was that of eagerness to gain clips, and shows interest in the discussions. It is remarkably notable that Gabriel became more interested with the discussions. He often raised hand but sometimes forgot to control him self and talked out of turn. It was then improved because he controlled his excitement in answering teacher questions. In fact he has 11 clips in talked out of turn in pre test then reduced to 1 clip. This is remarkably a good sign that students' behavior can be improved. 2. Ilysse Ilysse behavior was almost the same with Gabriel. She also often talked out of turn during whole group sessions before introducing the clip system. She also has very minimal occasions in raising hand and was minimally called. Despite her very minimal raising of hand, she was not called. She also experienced raising her hand and was not called, and then turns to raised hand and talked out of turn. In that manner she became noisy, then, turns to talk out of turn. In this regard her behavior before introducing the clip system was very noisy, talked out of turn, yet attentive and active, but, lack discipline and respect for the one who is talking. She was too sleepy and inactive during the session but she shows an eagerness to gain clips. Her interest in the discussion was not that good. It is important to note that Ilysse became conscious with her actions. She did not talked out of turn after implementing the clip system and became more interested with the discussions. In fact she often recited on the whole session even though she often was not called by her teacher. This means that Ilysse developed a self-confidence and discipline within the entire session. 3. Louis Louis is the quietest during classroom discussions. But when he is

Demonstrate your comprehension of SocioCultural Theory Essay

Demonstrate your comprehension of SocioCultural Theory - Essay Example For instance, if an individual travels in a foreign land and spends adequate time there, he or she is likely to learn the language of the foreign country. The sociocultural theory explains that the interaction of people from different origins and backgrounds exposures people to a dynamic learning experience. Essentially, the learning environment has grown to be very dynamic in the recent years. People from different ethnic and racial backgrounds meet in similar education institutions for studies. In this case, cultural interaction has been promoted and, therefore, diversified the educational exposure. According to the social cultural theory, each culture has its unique kits of intellectual adoption. The kits for intellectual adoption provide children with an opportunity to utilize their basic mental skills in a manner that is adaptive to their present culture. Different cultures have different intellectual adoption kits and, therefore, living in different cultures requires an individual to possess diversified intellectual adaption kits. The American education system is quite diversified and accommodates students from different races, ethnic groups and minority groups. Research has shown that students from the minority ethnic groups perform poor compared to those from the majority ethnic groups. The poor performance of students from the minority ethnic groups is fueled by a number of factors. For instance, the students feel alienated from the rest of the student population. In addition, students from minority ethnic groups feel unmotivated and, therefore, lack the mutual drive for efficient performance. The issue of ethnicity in the education system should be resolved to enhance equitable access to the education services for all students. Students should not be victimized on basis of skin complexion or ethnic background. Instead, students should be motivated to interact socially and learn from each other’s culture.

Accounting Controversies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Accounting Controversies - Essay Example Deception was the name of the game for Enron. They concealed their controversial and suspicious dealings and transaction with their growing debt so that they appear debt-free and admirable to stockholders and the public. At last, every lie and cover up was made known to many when the company suddenly and unexpectedly filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. That was their last resort. Not even company partnerships and affiliations could save the money and the glory of Enron. When the news of bankruptcy of Enron was revealed, the reasons behind Enron’s downfall remained unclear and uncertain. There were mixed reactions among businessmen, politicians, stockholders and others. Most of them were enraged while some felt concerned. There were those who were not surprise that the discrepancies with the financial statements could actually happen. It was as if it was the common habit among those who wish to decrease their debt. Questions such as the reason behind the downfall as well as the possible ways and means for preventing bankruptcy rose among the interested public. What hindered the company or the government from foreseeing the end of Enron? Was there money laundering or fraud behind the scandal? If there was, has the laws implemented by the government sufficient to verify the financial records of Enron? To shed light on the Enron controversy, a whistleblower, Sherron Watkins, decided to confess all the financial secrets of the company. The government took its role by initiating an investigation powered up by some of the congressional committees. Aside from Watkins, other key players admitted their involvement and decided to testify while some still pleads not guilty. The involvement of an accounting firm as reputable as Arthur Andersen with the controversy, heightened the interest of the public as well as legislators, economists and politicians. The firm also experienced a great loss even though the verdict has not yet been announced. Their clients retracted their loyalty and shifted to other competitive firms. Some employees resigned and sought other jobs from other companies. The accounting firm did a great job on the falsification and manipulation of Enron's financial statements that the discrepancies remained unnoticed to the public and to the government. The implications of the scandal in the political arena was expected since it had close ties with the White House due to the fact that the once prestigious company spent millions of dollars to support Bush's presidential campaign last 2002 elections. Aside from that, Enron's chief executive had personal and friendly relationships with Bush. The latter distanced from Kenneth Lay to prevent any public misconceptions. The investigations of the scandal also revealed that the company requested the presence of two US cabinet members preceding their file for bankruptcy. Even the current vice-president Dick Cheney did not escape the political associations between the government and Enron. The vice resident had several meetings with the executives of the company in lieu of their energy administration plans. The economic implications of the Enron case included the accounting industry's review of their financial policies with the fear of having the same fate as Enron. Other companies who also used the same aggressive accounting methods as Enron have been affected. They steered away from the limelight and have seemed to have lay-low for the meantime while the issues are still steaming. Enron was not the only one negatively affected by the scandal for the same fate went to Arthur Andersen. He was found guilty of destruction of financial records which

Research and Development Skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Research and Development Skills - Essay Example Poor image classification leads to poor study results. The research aims at ascertaining the principle behind image classification and as well as focussing on higher achievements to be made with regard to factual findings on the same. The main problems associated with image classification, is the failure to ascertain and clearly present picture. Considerable progress has been made in the 21st century with the development of artificial satellites. This has progressively improved the research on earth observation and environmental The development on image classification has been brought about with regard to research groups like Silicon Valley, NASA Research Centre, GTE and others leading to the development of Fourier transform techniques bringing about notable enhancement with classification of imagery data. This brings about the concept of research enhancement to considerably bring to record other spatial and planetary data needed to make out new findings. With regard to ethical issues, the research ensures adherence to the set ethical standards set with respect to electromagnetic properties researches. The search for perfect data should not deceive through data alteration, circumvention of existing laws and the transgression of reasonable and legitimate expectation of

Tragic Hero or not Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Tragic Hero or not - Research Paper Example Why does he behave the way he does? On what note does it end? Thesis Statement: Tragedy has been defined by many theorists. Aristotle defined tragedy as â€Å"Tragedy is the imitation of an action; and an action implies personal agents, who necessarily possess certain distinctive qualities both of character and thought; for it is by these that we qualify actions themselves, and these- thought and character- are the two natural causes from which actions spring, and on actions, again all success or failure depends....† (Janko) The concept will be elaborated further in the paper. Given the deep rooted definition, Othello is hailed in the literature world as the biggest tragic hero of all times. He had his vulnerabilities and tragic flaws which caused his downfall. But they were his intentions and his madness in love which made him righteous too at that time. How else does Othello count as a tragic hero? Let’s reflect on that. Draft of the essay: Othello, the Moor of Venice is one of the most renowned tragic heroes. He is the protagonist of the famous William Shakespeare play, Othello.His relevance to the literature as a tragic hero has been debated over and over again.While many literary authors believe that he is a tragic hero, there are some who oppose the view. What makes Othello a tragic hero are his intentions which were always righteous. ... His life defies logic, it is pure. He is shaken to know that he has been betrayed and has been wronged. His vulnerabilities pave way for him to react ferociously leading him to kill his beloved only to realize towards the end that â€Å"he loved too much but not too well†. By all accounts, this gratifies him as tragic hero with tragic flaws. In Othello’s case his tragic flaws were his blind faith trust in Iago. The paper throws light on Othello’s development and disintegration as a tragic hero in this great play by William Shakespeare. The paper draws a connection between Aristotle’s perception of a tragic hero and Othello. How does his character befit the Aristotlean analysis of tragedy and a tragic hero.? Discuss William Shakespeare’s Othello, the Moor of Venice as a tragedy. As defined by Aristotle, is it correct to label Othello a â€Å"tragic hero† and to classify the play as an Aristotelian tragedy? Othello-the Moor of Venice – T he Tragic Hero A tragedy always results in death of the protagonist. The concept was first defined by Aristotle in 250 B.C in the following words: â€Å"Tragedy is the imitation of an action; and an action implies personal agents, who necessarily possess certain distinctive qualities both of character and thought; for it is by these that we qualify actions themselves, and these- thought and character- are the two natural causes from which actions spring, and on actions, again all success or failure depends....† (Janko) Tragedy has been a conspicuous part of classical literature throughout the course of history. It has been shown and portrayed in various plays from Oedipus Rex to Hamlet to Romeo and Juliet. Aristotle explained the concept of a â€Å"tragic hero† in Poetics. According to him, the tragic hero must fall due

About silk road Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

About silk road - Essay Example The whole process happened in a period. Traders who operate on the Silk Roads, however, they take great interest mostly in the safety of the products that they are particularly interested and in products that they trade in. This assures them of the protection of the trade route i.e. the Silk route or the Silk Road (Elisseeff 222). This paper will give detailed information on the silk roads including all the aspects. This means that the importance of silk roads will be covered in detail. Additionally, the history and the origin of these roads will be covered. On the other hand the disadvantages or the pros of the roads will also be given. Many researchers have conducted researches on these types of roads thus giving relevant information about Silk roads. The Silk Roads as discussed above are said to have originated during the 1st century. It came to this because of the efforts of the country China. China at first consolidated a road to the Western world and India. The two routes were obtained through direct settlement in the area of the Tarim Basim and diplomatic relationship countries of the Parthians, Dayuan and Bactrians further west. People used these routes to extract opportunities to exchange culture and other behaviors (Elisseeff 243). After the Roman conquest that happened in Egypt in 30 BC, the regular communications and the trade between several countries blossomed on an unprecedented scale. The countries that were on this blossom were China, India, Africa, Europe, and Southeast Asia. It was found that the Roman Empire inherited the eastern trade routes from the earlier Hellenistic powers and the Arabs. After the Roman Empire took over the Silk Roads, the citizens of the Roman Empire would have the opportunity of receiving luxuries and greater prosperity for the empire as a whole. With the presence of the Silk Roads, the Greco-Roman trade kept on rising to new levels. This trade was started by Eudoxus of Cyzicus in 130 BC. The trade rose to about

President Truman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

President Truman - Essay Example In my opinion, the bombing was a brutal and totally unjustified measure that could have been avoided. First, this method was fundamentally inhumane and barbaric as bombs were dropped right on the cities populated by civilians (including children, of course) who had nothing to do with the warfare. If USA intended to demonstrate its military power ‘scaring’ Japanese government and forcing it to surrender, the bombs could have been dropped somewhere beyond the borders of the cities (e.g. in the harbor). Moreover, I would disagree with the arguments of the bombings’ advocates on the fact that this attack had drawn the end of the war nearer saving many lives. This statement seems completely unreasonable as bombs killed a great number of innocent civilians and were not worth the price. Another reason why Truman was wrong in his decision to use nuclear weapon (by the way, just once in the world’s history) is that Hiroshima & Nagasaki bombings weren’t actually necessary for the victory in the war: the regular bombings continued anyway and the Japanese government being under intense pressure was about to surrender. In other words, American bomb attack hadn’t played a crucial role in establishment of peace, but had become a vast disaster resulting in numerous casualties, radiation spread and devastation. Thus, I consider President Truman’s decision to be useless, brutal and inhumane having much in common with mere genocide and

The roles of entrepreneurs in the society Essay Example for Free

The roles of entrepreneurs in the society Essay Introduction Entrepreneurship is the capacity and willingness to develop, organize and manage a business venture along with any of its risks in order to make a profit. However, some school of thought would define an entrepreneur as one who manages the factors of production in order to first satisfy or meet human needs and not primarily for the desire to make profit. The most obvious example of entrepreneurship is the starting of new businesses. Entrepreneurs occupy a central position in a market economy serving as the spark plug in the economys engine, activating and stimulating all economic activities. A society is prosperous only to the degree to which it rewards and encourages entrepreneurial activity because it is the entrepreneurs and their activities that are the critical determinant of the level of success, prosperity, growth and opportunity in any economy. The most dynamic societies in the world are the ones with the most entrepreneurs, plus the economic and legal structure to encourage and motivate entrepreneurs to greater activities. Some of the roles of entrepreneurs in the society include: 1. Provide solution to societal challenges: Every society has a challenge or a gap. The entrepreneurs identify these challenges and strive to satisfy the needs in the society. For example, the automobile companies found a solution to the challenge of mobility. 2. Creation of goods and services: Entrepreneurs are innovators who work tirelessly to produce goods and services to satisfy their customers or consumers. 3. Job creation: By their activities, entrepreneurs succeed in creating jobs and helping to reduce the rate of unemployment in the society. This eventually contributes to reducing the incidence of vices such as criminal activities in the community leading to improvement in the safety and security of people in the society. It eventually reduces poverty in families who are engaged by these entrepreneurs. 4. Contribute to community development activities: Entrepreneurs perform their social responsibilities to the community by contributing to community development activities. 5. Foster economic growth and development: They increase production of goods and services with possible increase in demand and eventual increase in the Gross and Net Domestic Product of the country. 6. Create wealth: By creating jobs, entrepreneurs create wealth. 7. They are philanthropists: Most entrepreneurs also engage in Philanthropic activities in the society. An example is Alfred Nobel who funds the Nobel Prize. 8. They are agents of change: Entrepreneurs are the regenerators of the society. They act as agents of change. An example is Mark Zuckerberg who started the face-book and linked the world. 9. They create chains of ideas and opportunities by taking one bold step: By taking one bold step, more ideas are generated by people. Hence, entrepreneurs give birth to more entrepreneurs with greater positive impacts on the society. 10. Improve the standard of living of the people and their quality of life: By creating jobs and more job opportunities, entrepreneurs improve the standard of living and quality of life of the people in the society. This will also help to increase life span and reduce the morbidity and mortality rates in the society. 11. Reduction in cost of production of prices of products and services: By producing goods or services needed by other companies or organizations, entrepreneurs help to reduce the cost of producing these goods by these companies and thereby lead to fall in prices of goods and commodities which will help to increase demand and meet consumers’ needs. References

Toll Road Development in Indonesia

Toll Road Development in Indonesia In Indonesia, road is classified into Public Road and Toll Road. Public road means the road provided for general traffic. Road itself mean land transportation infrastructure that comprises all parts of the road, including the supplementary building along with the equipment thereof dedicated for transportation. Meanwhile the definition of Toll Road in Indonesia is public road that become part of a road network system and as a national road in which the users are required to pay toll Function of Toll Road in Indonesia Based on Law 38/2004 and Government Regulation 15/2005, toll road has position and function described as the following : The toll road is operated to: a. ensures an obstructed traffic in a developed area; b. increases the efficiency and effectiveness of the goods and services distribution service in order to improve the economic development; c. alleviate the financial burden of the Government by means of including the participation of the road user; and d. to improve the equal distribution of the results of development and justice. The toll road shall be managed by the Government and/or a business entity that is qualified to do so. The user of a toll road shall be subjected to a mandatory requirement of paying a fee for the toll to be used as a return of investment, maintenance and development of the toll road. Requirement of Toll Road The toll road shall have a higher specification, higher safety and convenience service levels than those of the existing public roads which have requirement as follows: The toll road used for intercity traffic shall be designed at least eighty (80) kilometers per hour, and a toll road in urban areas shall be designed at a speed plan of at least sixty (60) kilometers per hour. The toll road shall be designed to enable it to hold the heaviest axle of eight (8) tons at the lowest; Each toll road link shall have railings and be served by crossing facilities in the form of bridges of tunnels. The pints which may be dangerous to toll road users shall be equipped with safety structures with the strengths and structures that are able to absorb vehicle crash energy. Economic Function of Toll Road The main principle economic function of toll road is based on achieving economic optimum that can be described as follows : Policy to encourage road network development and its benefits, as well as balanced inter-regional development Ensuring equal distribution of development activities and gains, and equilibrium in area development with due principle of justice, Increasing the efficiency of distribution services for improvement of the economy particularly in the more developed areas Ease the financial burden of the government through road user participation Decreasing congestion in highly growth regions resulting efficient travel times and low vehicle operating costs Concept of Public Private Partnership (PPP) The term of public-private partnership was used first time in the United States to definite correlation between joint public and private sector for educational programs for urban renewal in the 1950s until 1960s(Yescombe 2007). In fact, there is no single or uniformed definition of PPP in the world including in Indonesia. According to Delmon (2009) PPP is defined as an arrangements between public and private entities for delivery of infrastructure services and are seen as a way of raising additional funds for infrastructure investments but more importantly as a means to extend or leverage better budget funding through efficiency gains. In UK, PPP is explained as an arrangement by which a government service or private business venture is funded and operated through a partnership of government and the private sector. (NAO 2009) The term PPP covers a range of different structures which can be used to deliver a project or a service. The term can cover a spectrum from relatively short term management contracts; through concession contracts; to joint ventures and partial privatizations where there is a sharing of ownership between the public and private sectors which depend on the country and the politics of the time. PPP fills a space between traditionally procured government projects with governments budget and full privatization with privates budget, where government no longer has a direct role in ongoing operations. PPP enables to develop projects which do not have enough profitability with revenues only from projects and are not self-sustaining. Under traditional public sector approach, the public sector designs, builds, operates, and maintains infrastructure, and sets level of quantity and standards of service quality, while under privatization approach, the private sector conducts all of these aspects in place of the public sector. Under PPP approach, the public sector is ultimately accountable for service provisions, although the private sector designs, builds, operates There are various characteristics of PPP as follows: PPP is an arrangement between public and private sector. Usually, it takes form of Contract or Agreement. PPP is applied as a method for provision of public services. Public Services in this definition, are not limited to road services. Public sector remains responsible for the project because a PPP project is operated to deliver public services specified by public sectors. PPP often includes investment and construction of facilities by private sectors. But there can be PPP which does not include facility construction. PPP is applied only when it delivers Value for Money. It means adoption of PPP is recommended if it can bring larger benefits to the public compared to other means of project. PPPs can follow a variety of structures and contractual formats. However, all PPPs incorporate three key characteristics: A contractual agreement defining the roles and responsibilities of the parties, Sensible risk-sharing among the public and the private sector partners, and Financial rewards to the private party commensurate with the achievement of pre specified outputs. PPP is one tool available for decision makers in reforming infrastructure or service delivery. It is most effective way when it is accompanied by other reform activities to underpin and reinforce the PPP and to support sustainable improvement. A successful PPP is designed with careful attention to the context or the enabling environment within which the partnership will be implemented. Where the operating environment can be reformed to be more conducive to the goals of PPP, this should be accomplished. Where elements of the operating context cannot be changed, the PPP design must be tailored to accommodate existing conditions. To be successful, PPP must be built upon a sector diagnostic that provides a realistic assessment of the current sector constraints. Specifically, the sector diagnostic will cover: (1) technical issues; (2) legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks; (3) Institutional and capacity status; and (4) Commercial, financial, and economic issues. Objectives of PPP The prime objective of government in using PPP is to achieve improved value for money, or improved services for the same amount of money as the public sector would spend. Besides that, other objective is desiring to provide increased infrastructure provision and services within imposed budgetary constraints by utilizing private sources of finance, if possible, via off balance sheet structures or to accelerate delivery of projects which might otherwise have to be delayed. The Main Principles of PPP According(Agency 2012) in Design, Build, Finance and Operate (DBFO) of Road Project, the main principles of PPP are: a. Transfer of Risk The risk allocation between every stakeholder must be well informed therefore every party both government and private know every risk on staging of toll road development such as design, construction and operation/maintenance, including financing of its project. b. Value for Money The government has authority to determine the economical and financial of project, in using government money and private money or combination both of them. c. Managerial Responsibility Private sector have capability and responsibility to manage, operate and maintain of road project d. Payment for Service For road project that full financed by government, the staging of road development is carried out by Private Sector. The Government has authority to regulate and monitor every progress of its staging. Government will pay the private sector based on performance of project and has right to terminate project if it is needed. e. Partnership The government and private are committed to cooperate in practice to get efficient and effective result. f. Private-sector Innovation By understanding risk factors in road project, the private sector has used innovation for efficiency of road development staging. The Private Sector concept encourages a productive partnership between the public and private sectors, by using private capital and commercial expertise to fund initial construction and long-term maintenance of Private Sector roads in operation year. Investment Concept Regarding (Horngren 1994) investment decisions concerning long-term plan for the use of capital (capital budgeting) consist of six staging process: (1) identification stage, choosing type of investment suitable with organizational objective, (2) search stage, seeking alternative investment capital that can meet the organizational goals, (3) information-acquisition stage, searching data and qualitative and quantitative analysis of various alternative investment capital, (4) selection stage, choosing one capital investments based on financial analysis by the method: discounted cash flow ( net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR)), payback and accrual accounting rate or return, (5) financing stage and (6) implementation and control stage. Those all concepts shall be directly apply to initial investment concept, including Public Private Partnership Risk Allocation in Public Private Partnership Definition of Risk In term definition, risk is unpredictable variation in value. It includes the possibility of unexpectedly good or unexpectedly bad, outcomes. The risk of a project is unpredictable variation in the total value of the project, taking account not only of the value of the project company but also of the value accruing to customers, the government, and other stakeholders. A stakeholders risk in a project is unpredictable variation in the value of the stakeholders interest in the project. Each risk should be allocated, along with rights to make related decisions, so as to maximize total project value, taking account of each partys ability to(Irwin 2007): 1. Influence the corresponding risk factor. 2. Influence the sensitivity of total project value to the corresponding risk factor, for example, by anticipating or responding to the risk factor. 3. Absorb the risk. Risk in Public Private Partnership The purpose of the risk identification stage on toll road project is to define as extensively as possible, a list with all types and sources of risks and uncertainties that might have an impact on the project. It is a crucial stage for the risk management process, because if a risk cannot be identified, it cannot consequently be evaluated and managed. (Tanaka, et al. 2005) Toll Road project risks should be assigned to the public or private entity that is best at controlling and managing them. In most of the cases, the private sector has taken on risk associated with the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of facilities, general regulatory risks as well as cover for insurable force majeure events. On the other hand, the public sector has been responsible for environmental license approvals and other planning permits, right-of-way land acquisition, discriminatory regulatory risk, and uninsurable force majeure events and political risks. Risk Allocation Principles in Public Private Partnership Determination of the Concession obligations in a PPP Agreement need to conform with the risk allocation principles understood by every party . An optimal risk allocation is vital in maximizing the value for money. The common principle for risk allocation is that a risk should be allocated to party which is relatively able to manage the risk, or having the least cost of absorbing such risk. If this principle is implemented properly, it is expected that the risk premium and the project cost would be lower leading to positive impact to the project stakeholders. The implementation examples of such principle in the market are as follow: Risks which have not been managed well in the past, or those which the agency has little experience in managing, should be transferred if cost-effective, particularly where the risk can be influenced by the controlling party; Risks which are outside the control of either party, or are equally influenced by both parties (e.g. certain force majeure events) should be shared; Risks that the government can manage well, or is in a more informed position to control than the private sector (e.g. planning approvals, legislation risks) should be retained; and There may also be some risks that, while transferred, may possibly remain an exposure for the public sector (e.g. risk of sponsor default). If an event cannot be resolved satisfactorily, the government steps in and assumes full responsibility for the risk (or the project as a whole). This is appropriate where the project is delivering critical social infrastructure and associated services. Models of Risk Allocation of Public Private Partnerships One of PPPs benefits is there is possibility to share the possible risk of the project between private sector and government. On one hand, the private sector has the capability to deal with commercial risk, but on the other hand, they need to relief from non-commercial risk that beyond their control (Soedjito 2009). Models of risk allocation in public private partnership is depicted in The common models for public private partnerships are BOT and concession and the difference between these two depends on the level of support provided by the government. Risk Assessment Approaches From a review on the existing methodologies used for the evaluation and assessment of risk in the financial appraisal of projects, two main categories of approaches were identified: qualitative techniques and quantitative techniques. Qualitative Techniques Qualitative techniques have been used for compiling a list of the main risk sources and describing their likely consequences, without entering in details about the quantification of their probability of occurrence. (Merna and Njiru 2002). The next step after all sources of risk are identified is to define some kind of order of priority. On the limited time, risk assessment may be biased towards the use of relatively simple procedures such as qualitative and semi-quantitative techniques (Ward, 1999). Quantitative Techniques Quantitative techniques aim to represent the likelihood and impact of risks in terms of the usual planning measures, such as time and money (Grey, 1995). Two of the most widely used quantitative risk analysis techniques in the financial appraisal of projects are: deterministic analysis techniques and probabilistic analysis techniques (Merna and Njiru, 2002). Sensitivity analysis, as part of deterministic techniques, is probably the most representative approach among the quantitative techniques. Sensitivity analysis examines the effect of changes in the value of the models dependent variable resulting from the changes in the value of one or more of the input variables to the model. The most popular form of sensitivity analysis is the one-factor-at-the time approach, wherein the main advantage is that it allows interpretation of the results in an easily understandable way. Another form of sensitivity analysis is the scenario analysis, which recalculates the model for a combination of simultaneous changes in the input variables (Van Groenendaal and Kleijnen, 1997). Frequently, three types of scenarios are distinguished: an optimistic case, a base case, and a pessimistic case. Some of the major shortcomings of using sensitivity analysis are: 1. Equal probability of occurrence is given to all scenarios (despite the likelihood of getting some scenarios with extreme values is lower); 2. Possible inter-dependencies between the variables are ignored; 3. In big projects with many items/activities, a combination of all variables can create a too large set of scenarios. Implementation of Public Private Partnership (PPP) in Indonesia Indonesian government through Ministry of Public Works based on Decree of Minister of Public Work number 567/KPTS/M/2010 operated 757.47 km and plans 4618 km of toll roads as part of the national road network divided in 5 major islands in Indonesia (see ) In the implementation of toll road development in Indonesia, there were some periods due to regulations and legislation in valid at that period of time as follows: First Period (1978 1983), Fully financed by Government funds (Government Equity). Second Period (1983 1990), Subsidiary Loan Agreement (SLA) to PT Jasa Marga (two step loan), State Own Enterprise for toll road development. Third Period (1990 1994), Cooperation with private sector using BOT scheme. Fourth Period (1994 2005), Modified BOT scheme (i.e., revenue sharing concept, land acquisition cost is part of investment cost borned by the investor). Fifth Period (2005 present), using Build Operate Transfer (BOT)/ PPP Scheme Law and Regulation for Public Private Partnership of Toll Road in Indonesia After regulatory reform with the Road Law No.38/2004 and Toll Road Government Regulation No.15/2005 allow the development of toll roads through public private partnership, including domestic and international investor. Main regulatory framework for toll roads includes law, regulations, and decrees are presented as follows: Law No. 38 of 2004 concerning Road Government Regulation of the Republic of Indonesia No.15 of 2005 concerning Toll Road Regulation of Minister of Public Works No. 295/PRT/M/2005 Concerning Indonesia Toll Road Authority Public Work Ministerial Decree No. 369/KPTS/M/2005 on National Road Network Master Plan to include toll road network master plan Presidential Decree No. 36/2005 on Land Acquisition for Public Purpose Presidential Decree No.67/2005 on PPP Between Government and Enterprises on Infrastructure Provision Finance Ministerial Decree No.518/KMK.01/2005 on Risk Management Unit Decree of Minister of Public Work number 567/KPTS/M/2010 on Status of Toll Road in Indonesia Implementation Framework on Toll Road Project in Indonesia According to the Road Law No.38 of 2004 concerning Road and the Government Regulation No.15 of 2005 concerning Toll Road, roles and institutional framework of toll road project are defined as showed in and Figure 2.. Government of Indonesia set up Indonesia Toll Road Authority (BPJT) which has authority for preparing feasibility study, Environmental Impact Analysis (EIA), bidding documents and selecting private concessionaires. Indonesia Toll Road Authority also has duty to implement a part of toll road management in Indonesia such as set toll road concession, commercialization of toll roads, supervision of toll roads including monitoring and evaluation in Indonesia. This authority is also to deliver Public Private Partnership scheme in toll road investment. Toll Road Investment Procedure in Indonesia Procedure of toll road investment, from project preparation through sign of concession agreement, is shown in . The whole process take approximately 24 months (2 years). Then, it is followed by implementing the agreement through the whole period in accordance with the concession period agreed which vary 30 to 40 years depend on the project condition and project by project basis. AGREEMENT IMPLEMENTATION (ÂÂ ± 14 months) (ÂÂ ± 4-6 months) PREPARE PQ DOCUMENT SUBMIT PQ DOCUMENT PREPARE BID PROPOSAL SUBMIT BID PROPOSAL BID BOND RECEIVE NOTICE AWARD PRIVATE SECTOR SIGN CONTRACT PERFORMANCE BOND, LAND ACQUISITION COST, FINANCIAL CLOSURE BID CONFERENCE-BID PREPARATION PQ AND BID INVITATION PREQUALIFICATION OF BIDDER RECEIPT AND OPENING BID PROJECT PREPARATION EVALUATION OF BID APOINTMENT OF SUCCESFUL BIDDER CONSESSION AGREEMENT BPJT/GOVERMENT PREPARE SPECIAL PURPOSE VEHICLE Figure 2. Toll Road Investment Procedure (source: BPJT 2010) Existing PPP Model of Toll Road Project in Indonesia There are 3 (three) models that can be applied under the PPP scheme in Indonesia, depend on the economic and financial viability of the projects (Karsaman 2008). These models are shown in Figure 2. Scheme 1, where the economic viability of the toll road is good but its financial viability poor, the government take over the finance and construction of the toll road, but when it has been finished, then it will tendering for its operating maintaining to private sector. This has been applied in Tanjung Priok Access Road, Jakarta and Suramadu Bridge, East Java. Scheme 2, where the economic viability of the toll road is good but its financial viability is marginal, the Government can support Land Acquisition and partly construction cost and the private sector has to finance and constructing other part and then operate and maintain the toll road. This scheme is applied in Solo-Ngawi-Kertosono Toll Road (Central Java and East Java) case and might be applied in other links. Scheme 3, where the economic and financial viabilities of the toll road are good, the private sector has to finance and constructing all of the road and then operate and maintain it through the concession period. This scheme is applied in most of the toll road development in general. Financial Feasibility of Toll Road Investment Indikator Kelayakan yang akan dipergunakan dalam studi ini, adalah : 1. Net Present Value (NPV) Net Present Value adalah selisih antara Present Value Benefit dikurangi dengan Present Value Cost. Hasil NPV dari suatu proyek yang dikatakan layak secara finansial adalah yang menghasilkan nilai NPV bernilai positif. Dalam hal ini semua rencana akan dilaksanakan apabila NPV > 0, atau persamaan di atas memenuhi : Net Present Value (NPV) = PVBenefit PVCost = positif Hal tersebut berarti bahwa pembangunan konstruksi jalan akan memberikan keuntungan, dimana benefit/ cash flow positif akan lebih besar dari pada cost/ cash flow negatif. 2. Internal Rate of Return (IRR) 3. Payback Ratio Rasio DSCR Public private partnership (PPP) are a generic term for the relationships formed between the private sector and public bodies often with the aim of introducing private sector resources and/or expertise in order to help provide and deliver public sector assets and services. The term PPP is used to describe a wide variety of working arrangements from loose, informal and strategic partnerships to design-build finance- operate (Private Sector) type service contracts and formal joint venture companies. (4Ps, UK local government procurement agency) In general, the basic concept of toll road development and management are as follows.1 The Government establishes Master Plan of Toll Road Network as a guidance of toll road development, while the toll road links will be determined by the Minister. Government holds authority of toll road development, where as parts of the authority concerning toll road business are being executed by Indonesia Toll Road Authority BPJT (Task and authorities of BPJT are described in Minister of Public Works Regulation No.295/PRT/M/2005.) Toll road business can be financed by the Government and/or qualified business entity. Financing by Government is for the toll road links that economically feasible, but not financially feasible. Financing by business entity is for toll road links which are both economically and financially feasible. Under particular conditions, where the toll road can not be developed by business entities, the Government will take proper action in accordance with the authorities. Initial tariff will be established by Minister as stated in concession agreement. The tariff will be adjusted every two years based on inflation index, an determined by the Minister. Procurement of either part of all aspects of toll road operation will be done through an open and transparent tender process. Land acquisition is responsibility of the Government, however its budget can be provided by Government and/or business entity.

Analysing Of The Riba Work Stages

Analysing Of The Riba Work Stages On each of the initial work stages of a project the architect is involved in many ways and uses many skills. Before the architect begins any work they must be appointed under the RIBA concise conditions agreement or SW 99. The following is a brief outline of what an architect does in a RIBA standard agreement between architect and client. The first two RIBA work stages come under term Preparation in the RIBA, Outline Plan of Work 2007. The first stage is stage A, Appraisal; this mainly involves establishing the needs of the client. Three main tasks are carried out. Throughout the initial stages of the project constant communication between the architect and client takes place. Firstly, the architect must carry out studies to determine the feasibility of the Clients requirements. The architect may also review the alternative design and construction approaches and the cost implications of each with the client. At this stage the architect may also provide information for reports on the cost implications. During stage B (Design Brief) the initial Statement of Requirements is developed into the Design Brief. Although this is the responsibility of the client the architect often contributes to its development additionally. Stages C, D and E come under the heading Design. This begins with Stage C (Concept), where the architect would usually be required to prepare outline proposals for things, such as, the building structure and building services. The architects also develop concept designs for project. Throughout this stage the architect will be leasing with other members of the team, such as, engineers, quantity surveyors and planning supervisors. This communication helps the architect to provide the client with information on approximate construction costs and cost planning which must then be assessed by the client in the stage report. Stage D (Design Development) involves the completion of the project brief and the further development of the concept designs. At this stage a cost estimate, or information for a cost estimate, must be provided and the architect will be working closely with statutory planning authorities, for instance, local planning departments. The architect must also prepare a detailed planning application, including drawings and an Access and Design Statement. At the end of stage D the architect must obtain signed approval by the client of a stage D report (this is broadly outlined in Task 3). The Shirebrook Academy has just seen the completion of this stage and has now been submitted to planning. b) Involvement by the architectural technologist in the science and technology of the building, rather than the creative and artistic side, is the main difference between the work of the architect and the architectural technologist. Many of the tasks undertaken overlap with the work of the architect and a strong collaboration exists. For example, when working on stages C and D both architect and architectural technologist may work together on developing the project brief and design programme, each contributing specific skills to the project. The architectural technologist may contribute by evaluating and advising upon environmental strategies and material specification, while the architect may work on spatial relationships and movement path diagrams. c) CIAT is a non-profit organization which aims to further the profession and the interests of people working within it. Being a member of CIAT gives many benefits. Firstly, CIAT is the only professional and chartered body that represents architectural technologists and technicians. The different grades of membership/qualification represent a persons competence in an area and this is recognised across the industry. As a student the main benefits of membership may be though the prospect of increased career opportunities. Potential employers recognise the body and that you have a professional attitude and commitment to developing. Membership also brings more direct benefits to a student, such as the vast access to current up to date information on policies and practices. This is available digitally online or though seminars and lectures. For instance, if up to date information on a certain material is needed for the Shirebrook school project, being a member of CIAT would give access to information sheets and technical guidance on the material. Being a member also provides the opportunity to network with other members allowing knowledge to be shared. Other benefits of membership include several free gifts and discounts. Members get free subscriptions to the Building Products magazine and discounts on other magazines and books, such as, the Architects Journal and books at the RIBA bookshop. Membership allows you to apply for scholarships and awards run by the body, in particular the Student Award for Technical Excellence in Architectural Technology, which again helps to show your ability to employers. Finally, as a member free professional indemnity insurance and legal support are available to you if needed. Few reasons for not joining CIAT exist so I would strongly advise you to join. The only perceivable drawback is the membership fee, although as a student this would not apply to you. Task 3 a) There are many reasons why the design team have chosen to procure much of the Shirebrook project off-site. Several drivers for change have made prefabrication the best choice. The political driver for off-site construction can be traced back to two documents published in1994 and 1998: Constructing the Team by Sir Michael Latham and Rethinking Construction by Sir John Egan. These reports were designed to drive the industry forward. The Latham report suggested partnering (between suppliers and clients) and both reports suggest that prefabrication can offer greater on-site quality and efficiency and less time spent on site. Other driving forces towards off-site construction are the shortage of skilled onsite workers and more rigorous building regulations being put in place. Using off-site construction techniques can also has a more direct impact on the project in terms of cost savings and quality improvements. Firstly, costs can be cut due to the several factors. The nature of off-site construction means than building can be erected quickly on site. This means that skilled workers spend less time on site, so do not need to be paid for long time periods. Secondly, off-site construction can lead to less wastage of materials because more components can be ordered and cut to size, thus, reducing cost of materials as well as the embodied carbon in the building. Spending less time on site also means that the risk of accidents occurring is reduced. Quality and performance of the construction can be improved greatly as manufacturing components in factories means that they can be precision machined to high levels of accuracy within a controlled climate. Consequently, less of the construction process is subject to the risks associated with adverse weather which can lead to less defects and a greater quality finished product. With the use of off-site prefabrication the building regulations for such things as thermal and acoustic performance can be met more easily; a good example of this is SIPs panels. In conclusion, both the Latham and Egan reports suggest off-site manufacture and the associated benefits of cost-effectiveness, safety and speed are the main reasons why the Shirebrook School is being procured in this way. Also, the current government BSF (Building Schools for the Future) initiative aims to replace or rebuild all secondary schools in England by 2020; this means that projects need to follow fast routs of procurement. The Shirebrook School will hopefully reach completion on time (aim for doors open to students in Sept 2010). This will be made more achievable through the use of off-site construction and prefabrication methods. b) The main drawbacks of off-site construction involve transport and logistics: with transport being one area where prefabricated buildings are frequently criticised. Large units need to be transported usually by road this means more fuel is used contributing to greater emissions. The use and size of prefabricated components is also limited by the condition of the site transport and access. The maximum width for an unaccompanied load in the UK is 2.9 m (this can be increased to 4.3 m with a police escort). BRE output 209291 Another drawback of off-site construction may be the longer lead in time for design and manufacture which may be required as a consequence of the involvement of additional parties. Effective coordination of component manufacture lines is required. If one component is late then there is a knock on effect on the whole construction time. Also, on conventional sites substituting a product is not usually a problems, whereas, substituting or changing materials and products during the design of a building procured off-site may create problems in the factory. Some aesthetic limitations do exist especially in modular off-site construction techniques, however, in my opinion the benefits of off-site construction far outweigh the drawbacks. Task 4 a) The main reason for work stage reports are because they provide an effective means of managing the project and maintaining control of the project. At the end of each of the RIBA work stage a reports is submitted to the client. Work stage reports combine information from different groups into one document. This allows the client to monitor the performance and progress of the entire project on a regular basis. After each stage the client can then give approval so that the project can continue to the next stage: usually by signing off the work stage report, particularly at stages D and E. The initial work stage reports help by stating clear objectives of the project. Work stage reports can be used to identify changes to the project or project brief and allow subsequent changes and action to be taken. They allow clients to see things such as the resources and finance required to complete the project. For example at the end of each stage reports on costs can be analysed by the client to check the project remains viable and affordable. The report ensures that the design meets the needs of the client. The work stage system allows progression of the project. After each stage a new set of objectives or instructions can be laid out by the client for the following stage if required. Work stage reports may also be useful as they can be used to fulfil legal and authoritative obligations. For example, they can be used in the event of legal problems to show that proper procedures have been followed at each stage. Reports also ensure that safety procedures are followed and recorded and ensure that projects meet the required safety standards and requirements. In addition, work stage reports provide a comprehensive documentation of the construction process from start to finish. A work stage report at the end of stage D can be used to help obtain planning permission by submission to the relevant planning board. At the conclusion of Stage D, the satisfied client must sign off the Design and the Project Brief. After stage D any changes made by the client will mean additional expenses. b) Contents of Stage D report: The following Stage D report outline contents page shows outputs associated with the Architects office. The report would usually also contain information from structural, electrical, environmental and mechanical engineers (depending on the design). 1. Finalised Project Brief developed from the Strategic Brief 2. Detailed Proposals Design intentions Site layout Planning and spatial arrangements Build and construction information Environmental systems information 2.6 Environmental impact assessment Schedule of Accommodation, showing areas, gross areas and percentages Outline Specifications Risk Assessment 6. Full Planning application, application for listed building consent or application for conservation area consent, including: 6.1. Prototypes mock-ups and model images, in context with site 6.2. Development proposals (drawings at 1:200 for Comprehensive Design Project) 6.3 Design and Access Statement 6.4 Developments and changes to existing buildings 7. A full set of project drawings. (The scope of which is shown below). 8. Cost information Projected cost estimate An elemental cost plan Firm cost plan c) Accompanying drawing for stage D (all scales will depend on the nature and size of the project) Flow diagrams showing layouts and relationships. (Varying scales depending on nature of drawing up to around 1:50) Site plan, showing hard and soft landscaping (1:500 for Shirebrook School Development) All building floor plans in context with the surrounding landscape and buildings. (Scale 1:200 for Shirebrook School Development). All key elevations in context with the surrounding landscape and buildings. (Scale 1:200 for Shirebrook School Development). Key Sections, annotated and showing materials and integration of services and systems (1:200 and 1:100 for Shirebrook School Development but up to 1:50 depending on nature of the drawing)

Final Paper on Social Theory -- idelologies, communist, democratic

I guess you quite remember the thoughts you strongly developed when you were in college? I still believe that smart brains of yours even though they are old. I hear you recently gave a public speech at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Centre and Kobby Graham, your Social Theory Lecturer at Ashesi was your guest speaker. How is he then? Guess what? Kobby is a strong advocate of anarchism. He believes in a stateless society. I do not know what you`ve grown to believe but I’ve always known you to be a strong fan of Socialism when you were young. I remember you constantly told us we were living in a situation you termed slavery in freedom for you think capitalism was unfair to the middle class. I guess his talk hasn`t influence your thoughts on socialism. Never mind! I know you are not that pliant. Well, I would like to emphasize on the ideology I think can provide the needed equality you always wanted for I think I also relates to the principles of socialism social democrac y for I believe in cooperation and relative equality unlike conservatives, social and common ownership unlike liberals (Heywood, 2012). I hope you are aware socialism isn’t only an ideology? If you care to know, remember when you were in college, your mum constantly told you to move to your village for your own share of the village land. Aside, the government of Ghana implemented a policy four years ago called the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) which seeks to bring equity in the mode of payment of government workers. This is basically the idea of socialism especially the social democrats. Apart from being an ideology, it`s also seen as an economic system which seeks to allocate resources through a centralized system of government where mos... ...im I will be more than happy to see his anarchism work on planet earth. I hope you will say hi to the children, Wunnam, Maltiti and tell Radia I wish her a happy birthday in advance. See you! Your friend, Husein Shahadu. Works Cited Heywood, A. (2012). Polticial Ideologies: An Introduction (5th Edition). New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Ken, M. (2006). Formation of Modern Social Thought. California: Sage Publication Inc. Nyerere, J. (1968). Freedom and Socialism. Dar es Salaam and New York: Oxford University Press. Schumpeter, J. (1947). Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. Toronto: Rougledge.

Stephen Hawking :: essays research papers

Stephen Hawking was born on January 8, 1942, in Oxford, England. His father, Frank, was a specialist in tropical medicine, his profession often kept him away from home and family. Hawking’s mother, Isabelle, was a very politically active person, which kept her away from home too. Even though his parents were gone a lot, they had a big influence on his life. Hawking always wanted to study mathematics and physics, but his Dad said that mathematics did not have many job opportunities. He ended up majoring in physics and chemistry. Another reason he did not take mathematics was because it was not available at Oxford University, his local college. When he was growing up, he was a â€Å"self-learner†. His friends did not know how smart he was until his second year of college. He and his friends were assigned thirteen honors questions in the area of electricity and magnetism. It took his friends, Derek, Gordan, and Richard, a week to complete two and a half of the problems. Ha wking did the first ten in three hours, he did not complete the others because he said he did not have enough time. Once, in college, he fell down a flight of stairs. After he fell down, he could not remember anything, gradually he began remembering, until he remembered it all, which took all of two hours. Stephen Hawking graduated from Oxford University at the age of twenty in 1962. He then took a trip to Prussia with a friend. During the visit, he became ill. Upon returning to England, he had a series of tests to identify his health problem. He moved to Cambridge to attend graduate school, which is where he learned that he had Lou Gehrig’s disease. This disease destroys the voluntary muscles, making normal tasks become impossible, such as walking and eating. Doctors predicted that he had to and a half years to live. He became depressed at stopped working and going to school. During this time, he met his future wife, Jane Wilde. They had three children: Robert (1967), Lucy ( 1970), and Timothy (1979). Meeting Jane, lifted Hawking’s spirits so much that he disregarded his illness, returned to work and school. He did research at Caisus College and studied theoretical physics. He did this partly because he found elementary particles unattractive and he wanted to study with Fred Hoyle, who was a British astronomer and also a science fiction novelist.

Amy Tan: The Joy Luck Club

The novel, The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan takes place in a couple of different places. All of Suyuan Woo’s childhood memories take place in China. After coming to America the setting takes place in San Francisco California in 1949. Also there are few different time frames. The time frames consist of the 1920’s to 1980’s. I have to give this timeframes because of the flashbacks that are given in the book. The characters that I believed are most fully developed are Jing-ming â€Å"June† Woo, Suyuan Woo, An-mei Hsu, Lindo Jong and Ying-ying St Clair. Jing-ming has taken her mother’s Suyuan place in the Joy Luck Club after she died. The members of the Joy Luck Club are planning to send June off to China so she can meet her twin sister her mother was trying to find before she died. When she reunites with her twin sisters, she gains a profound understanding of who her mother was. Suyuan Woo started the Joy Luck Club in China. She is the mother of June. Suyuan had to leave Kweilin because of a war. Suyuan was unable to continue her journey because she became weak. As a result she left her twin daughter on the side of the road in China. Despite her struggles she creates happiness and success where it lacking. An-mei Hsu, Lindo Jong, Ying-ying St Clair are all member of the Joy Luck Club. They all go through trail and tribulation. Trails, tribulation and life lessons that the mothers go through are past down to the children. The character that is most interesting to me is Suyuan. I chose Suyuan because she is a strong woman who refuses to focus on her hardships. She seems like a character who tries to find hope in time of despair. This quality is what I admire about Suyuan. I also believe I am most like Suyuan because I can relate to her fierce love for her child. She fears being estranged from her daughter for some reason such as different upbringings. I believe most parent can relate. Since I am parent I to worry about these things and do want the best for my children as well. Just like Suyuan I can be a little critical as well. The mood of this novel is perplexed, distressed, regretful and deferential. First the mothers all speaking in turn, remember clear memories with their relationships with their own mothers, and they worry that their daughters’ memories of them will never possess the same potency. Secondly when the daughters recall their childhood memories with their mother also supports my idea of the mood. And last when the daughter tell about their delimas in the adult life as they search for an answer which adventually bring them back to their mothers and their relationships begin to heal. The major conflict in this novel is the mothers are trying to instill in their daughter a part of their hertige. The daught take this a medley or their mother lack of american culture. But all the mother want to do is save their daughter from the pain and grief they felt as children. Both the mother and daughter struggles with their identies. The mothers try and reconcile the past is their present and the daughter are trying to find a positive balance between their loyaty to their heritage and some sort of independance. This is resolved when the bridge is gapped between two countries, two generation and two cultures. The ending to the story was very satisfying because June was able to find her inner Chinese identity. And doing that she built a bridge to her mother. June gives hope to all the other characters struggling for a stronger mother and daughter bond despite the culture, age and language differences. I think the author message has to do with finding your true identity and keep your family roots strong. I think despite language barriers, culture and generation gaps people should try even harder to understand each other. But I guess sometimes it take a lose to find something else. I would recommend this story to other people. But most to my daughter when she gets holder. I would hope that the story touches her heart like it touched mine and learn that we could recognize the gaps and bridge it up sooner than later.

City of Bones Essay

The novel City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare follows the main character 15 year-old Clary Fray in her journey to find her missing mother. Clare takes the typical Fairy Tail and turns it upside down. The main ideas that stick out to me in this film is Love, Jealousy and prejudice. An important idea for me in the novel City Of Bones is the idea of love. In the book Clary falls the handsome Shadowhunter (half angel, half human) Jace Wayland. In the middle of all the chaos and fight they find time to fall for each other and form a powerful bond. I found it interesting how Clare wrote about love. She perceived it to be very powerful and absolute. Which i don’t disagree with, but for teenagers its very different. When she wrote of their love with such power it confused me, it also made the writing more captivating as the story unraveled and left me wanting to know what happened next. This idea made me think of societies view on young love, how society thinks young relationships don’t last and aren’t serious. It also challenged my view on the subject and made me think that it’s possible to find the one you love when you are young. â€Å"The most terrible things men do, they do in the name of love. – I think this quote shows the power that love has in this novel. I found the idea of love important because it is a clear motivator throughout the novel. An aspect I found intriguing in this novel was the requiring theme of jealously. As Clary and Jace are falling for each other Clary’s childhood best friend, Simon, gets extremely jealous. â€Å"I was trying to make you jealous! † Simon screamed at one point when he couldn’t hold it in any longer. â€Å"You’re so stupid, Clary. You’re so stupid, can’t you see anything? † Clary is oblivious to Simon’s feeling towards her. This theme made me reconsider famous love stories that also had themes of jealously, for example Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, Darcy was jealous of Mr Wickham. Also in Jane Eyre where Jane was Jealous of Rochester’s wife. It made me think of the writing and how jealously contributes to the love in the story. I found this requiring theme intriguing because it showed the unrequited love between Clary and Simon which I found really contributed to the novel and gave it that extra plot twist. Another aspect in the novel that I found important was the idea of prejudice. In the novel prejudice is shown against Downworlders (half demon, half human for example vampires, werewolves, warlocks etc), women and gay people. The Shadowhunters see Downworlders as scum because they are half demon, which are their natural enemy, but not all of them are bad. Prejudice is seen against women because it was only recently that women were aloud to fight against demons and even now they are seen not to be as good as the men. Being gay in the shadow world is also frowned because Shadowhunters are very proud of family and the family name so being gay won’t carry on the bloodline. So they’re good enough to let live, good enough to make your food for you, good enough to flirt with—but not really good enough? I mean, not as good as people? † – This quote is referring to Downworlders and how they are only good for somethings. I think this idea links to our society today and also parts in history because women use to not be aloud to vote and were seen as housewives just like in City of Bones. Also in the novel Downworlders are kind of treated like coloured people were in the early 18-century, expect not to the extend that the coloured people were treated. The idea of prejudice against gay people links to our society because our society is prejudice against gays. I found this idea important because it helped me see the links between the novel and real-life situations. The novel City of Bones by Cassandra Clare challenged my thinking about love, jealously and prejudice and helped me understand more about them and how they like to other novels and our society. I would definitely recommend this novel to other people so they can enjoy it as much as i did.

Piping

Introduction: The term fabrication applies to the cutting, bending, forming, and welding of Individual pipe components to each other and their subsequent heat treatment and nondestructive examination (N DE) to form a unit (piping subassembly) for installation. The term installation refers to the physical placement of piping subassembly, valves, and other specialty items in their required final location relative to pumps, heat exchangers, turbines, boilers, and other equipment; assembly thereto by welding or mechanical methods; final NEED; heat treatment; leak testing; ND cleaning and flushing of the completed Installation.Depending on the economics of the particular situation, fabrication may be accomplished in a commercial pipe fabrication shop, or a site fabrication shop, where portions of the piping system are fabricated into subassembly or modules for transfer to the location of the final installation. As a general rule piping NAPS 21/2 (DNA 65) and larger for nuclear and fossil power plants, chemical plants, refineries, industrial plants, resource recovery, and generation units are most often shop fabricated.Piping NAPS 2 (DNA 50) and smaller Is often shop fabricated where special heat treatment or cleaning practices may be required: otherwise it is field fabricated. Pipelines and other systems involving long runs of essentially straight pipe sections welded together is usually field assembled. In recent years, the infusion of new bending technologies, new welding processes, new alloys, fracture toughness limitations, and mandatory quality assurance (QUA) programs have made piping fabrication and Installation much more complex than In the past.Greater emphasis Is being placed on written procedures for QUA and quality intro (ICQ) programs, special processes, and qualification and certification of procedures and personnel. Improper selection of fabrication or installation practices can result in a system, which will not function properly or will fail before its expected life span. Accordingly, fabrication and installation contractors must work closely with the designer and be aware of the mandatory requirements of the applicable codes, the unique requirements and limitations of the materials, and those of the fabrication and installation techniques being applied.Codes and Standards Considerations: A great many codes and standards apply to piping. It is incumbent on the fabricator and/or Installer to be familiar with the details of these codes and standards since some codes have the force of law, As an example, the SAME 331. 1 Power Piping Coded is referenced by SAME Section I Power Boilers: for piping classed as Boiler External Piping. The latter that is law in most states, contains rules for code stamping, data reports, and third-party inspection. Piping under SAME Section 1113 also has legal standing. Most other piping codes are used for contractual agreements.Most codes preference SAME Section for nondestructive examination methodol ogy and SAME Section XIX for welding requirements. Each of the codes covers a deferent piping practices, some have mandatory requirements, while others only have recommendations. Heat treatment requirements may vary from one to another. The manner in which the code-writing bodies have perceived the hazardous nature of different applications has led to differing NEED requirements. Generally, the codes are reasonably similar, but the owner, designer, fabricator, and installer must meet the specifics of the applicable code to ensure a satisfactory installation.It is essential that the designer be very familiar with the code being used and that purchasing specifications for material, fabrication, and installation be very specific. Reference to the code alone is not sufficient. In the design, a particular allowable stress for a specific material, grade, type, product form, and/or heat-treated condition was selected. The specifications issued for material purchase and fabrication must ref lect these specify to assure that the proper materials and fabrication practices are used. It is also incumbent upon the fabricator and/or installer to be very familiar with the applicable code.Each project should be reviewed in detail. â€Å"Standard shop practices† may not always produce the desired result. Communication between the designer, fabricator, and installer is essential. All should be familiar with the various standards used in piping design. Most piping systems are composed of items, which conform to some dimensional standards such as SAME 836. MM and SAME 836. MM for Pipe, 816. 57 for flanges, etc. The Manufacturers Standardization Society (MS) and the American Petroleum Institute (API) issue other dimensional standards.The Pipe Fabrication Institute (IF) publishes a series of Engineering Standards, which outline suggested practices for various fabrication processes. These standards give excellent guidance for many aspects of piping fabrication not covered by t he codes. The American Welding Society (SAWS) publishes a number of recommended practices for welding of pipe in various materials. Materials Considerations: Piping systems are fabricated from a great variety of metals and nonmetals, material selection being a function of the environment and service conditions. Materials must inform to the standards and specifications outlined in the governing code.Some codes such as SAME Section Ill impose additional requirements on materials beyond those in the material specifications. All fabrication and installation practices applied to these materials must be conducted so as to assure that the final installation exhibits all of the properties implicit in the design. For example, hot bending of certain austenite stainless steels in the assassination range will reduce their corrosion resistance if they are not subsequently heat-treated. Accordingly, a heat treatment to restore these properties should be specified.

The Da Vinci Code Chapter 60-62

CHAPTER 60 Sangreal†¦ Sang Real†¦ San Greal†¦ Royal Blood†¦ Holy Grail. It was all intertwined. The Holy Grail is Mary Magdalene†¦the mother of the royal bloodline of Jesus Christ.Sophie felt a new wave of disorientation as she stood in the silence of the ballroom and stared at Robert Langdon. The more pieces Langdon and Teabing laid on the table tonight, the more unpredictable this puzzle became. â€Å"As you can see, my dear,† Teabing said, hobbling toward a bookshelf,† Leonardo is not the only one who has been trying to tell the world the truth about the Holy Grail. The royal bloodline of Jesus Christ has been chronicled in exhaustive detail by scores of historians.† He ran a finger down a row of several dozen books. Sophie tilted her head and scanned the list of titles: THE TEMPLAR REVELATION:Secret Guardians of the True Identity of Christ THE WOMAN WITH THE ALABASTER JAR: Mary Magdalene and the Holy Grail THE GODDESS IN THE GOSPELS Reclaiming the Sacred Feminine â€Å"Here is perhaps the best-known tome,† Teabing said, pulling a tattered hardcover from the stack and handing it to her. The cover read: HOLY BLOOD, HOLY GRAIL The Acclaimed International Bestseller Sophie glanced up. â€Å"An international bestseller? I've never heard of it.† â€Å"You were young. This caused quite a stir back in the nineteen eighties. To my taste, the authors made some dubious leaps of faith in their analysis, but their fundamental premise is sound, and to their credit, they finally brought the idea of Christ's bloodline into the mainstream.† â€Å"What was the Church's reaction to the book?† â€Å"Outrage, of course. But that was to be expected. After all, this was a secret the Vatican had tried to bury in the fourth century. That's part of what the Crusades were about. Gathering and destroying information. The threat Mary Magdalene posed to the men of the early Church was potentially ruinous. Not only was she the woman to whom Jesus had assigned the task of founding the Church, but she also had physical proof that the Church's newly proclaimed deity had spawned a mortal bloodline. The Church, in order to defend itself against the Magdalene's power, perpetuated her image as a whore and buried evidence of Christ's marriage to her, thereby defusing any potential claims that Christ had a surviving bloodline and was a mortal prophet.† Sophie glanced at Langdon, who nodded. â€Å"Sophie, the historical evidence supporting this is substantial.† â€Å"I admit,† Teabing said,† the assertions are dire, but you must understand the Church's powerful motivations to conduct such a cover-up. They could never have survived public knowledge of a bloodline. A child of Jesus would undermine the critical notion of Christ's divinity and therefore the Christian Church, which declared itself the sole vessel through which humanity could access the divine and gain entrance to the kingdom of heaven.† â€Å"The five-petal rose,† Sophie said, pointing suddenly to the spine of one of Teabing's books. The same exact design inlaid on the rosewood box. Teabing glanced at Langdon and grinned. â€Å"She has a good eye.† He turned back to Sophie. â€Å"That is the Priory symbol for the Grail. Mary Magdalene. Because her name was forbidden by the Church, Mary Magdalene became secretly known by many pseudonyms – the Chalice, the Holy Grail, and the Rose.† He paused. â€Å"The Rose has ties to the five-pointed pentacle of Venus and the guiding Compass Rose. By the way, the word rose is identical in English, French, German, and many other languages.† â€Å"Rose,† Langdon added,† is also an anagram of Eros, the Greek god of sexual love.† Sophie gave him a surprised look as Teabing plowed on.† The Rose has always been the premiere symbol of female sexuality. In primitive goddess cults, the five petals represented the five stations of female life – birth, menstruation, motherhood, menopause, and death. And in modern times, the flowering rose's ties to womanhood are considered more visual.† He glanced at Robert. â€Å"Perhaps the symbologist could explain?† Robert hesitated. A moment too long. â€Å"Oh, heavens!† Teabing huffed. â€Å"You Americans are such prudes.† He looked back at Sophie. â€Å"What Robert is fumbling with is the fact that the blossoming flower resembles the female genitalia, the sublime blossom from which all mankind enters the world. And if you've ever seen any paintings by Georgia O'Keeffe, you'll know exactly what I mean.† â€Å"The point here,† Langdon said, motioning back to the bookshelf,† is that all of these books substantiate the same historical claim.† â€Å"That Jesus was a father.† Sophie was still uncertain. â€Å"Yes,† Teabing said. â€Å"And that Mary Magdalene was the womb that carried His royal lineage. The Priory of Sion, to this day, still worships Mary Magdalene as the Goddess, the Holy Grail, the Rose, and the Divine Mother.† Sophie again flashed on the ritual in the basement. â€Å"According to the Priory,† Teabing continued,† Mary Magdalene was pregnant at the time of the crucifixion. For the safety of Christ's unborn child, she had no choice but to flee the Holy Land. With the help of Jesus' trusted uncle, Joseph of Arimathea, Mary Magdalene secretly traveled to France, then known as Gaul. There she found safe refuge in the Jewish community. It was here in France that she gave birth to a daughter. Her name was Sarah.† Sophie glanced up. â€Å"They actually know the child's name?† â€Å"Far more than that. Magdalene's and Sarah's lives were scrutinously chronicled by their Jewish protectors. Remember that Magdalene's child belonged to the lineage of Jewish kings – David and Solomon. For this reason, the Jews in France considered Magdalene sacred royalty and revered her as the progenitor of the royal line of kings. Countless scholars of that era chronicled Mary Magdalene's days in France, including the birth of Sarah and the subsequent family tree.† Sophie was startled. â€Å"There exists a family tree of Jesus Christ?† â€Å"Indeed. And it is purportedly one of the cornerstones of the Sangreal documents. A complete genealogy of the early descendants of Christ.† â€Å"But what good is a documented genealogy of Christ's bloodline?† Sophie asked. â€Å"It's not proof. Historians could not possibly confirm its authenticity.† Teabing chuckled. â€Å"No more so than they can confirm the authenticity of the Bible.† â€Å"Meaning?† â€Å"Meaning that history is always written by the winners. When two cultures clash, the loser is obliterated, and the winner writes the history books – books which glorify their own cause and disparage the conquered foe. As Napoleon once said, ‘What is history, but a fable agreed upon?'†He smiled. â€Å"By its very nature, history is always a one-sided account.† Sophie had never thought of it that way.† The Sangreal documents simply tell the other side of the Christ story. In the end, which side of the story you believe becomes a matter of faith and personal exploration, but at least the information has survived. The Sangreal documents include tens of thousands of pages of information. Eyewitness accounts of the Sangreal treasure describe it as being carried in four enormous trunks. In those trunks are reputed to be the Purist Docum ents – thousands of pages of unaltered, pre- Constantine documents, written by the early followers of Jesus, revering Him as a wholly human teacher and prophet. Also rumored to be part of the treasure is the legendary† Q† Document – a manuscript that even the Vatican admits they believe exists. Allegedly, it is a book of Jesus' teachings, possibly written in His own hand.† â€Å"Writings by Christ Himself?† â€Å"Of course,† Teabing said. â€Å"Why wouldn't Jesus have kept a chronicle of His ministry? Most people did in those days. Another explosive document believed to be in the treasure is a manuscript called The Magdalene Diaries – Mary Magdalene's personal account of her relationship with Christ, His crucifixion, and her time in France.† Sophie was silent for a long moment. â€Å"And these four chests of documents were the treasure that the Knights Templar found under Solomon's Temple?† â€Å"Exactly. The documents that made the Knights so powerful. The documents that have been the object of countless Grail quests throughout history.† â€Å"But you said the Holy Grail was Mary Magdalene.If people are searching for documents, why would you call it a search for the Holy Grail?† Teabing eyed her, his expression softening. â€Å"Because the hiding place of the Holy Grail includes a sarcophagus.† Outside, the wind howled in the trees. Teabing spoke more quietly now. â€Å"The quest for the Holy Grail is literally the quest to kneel before the bones of Mary Magdalene. A journey to pray at the feet of the outcast one, the lost sacred feminine.† Sophie felt an unexpected wonder. â€Å"The hiding place of the Holy Grail is actually†¦ a tomb?† Teabing's hazel eyes got misty. â€Å"It is. A tomb containing the body of Mary Magdalene and the documents that tell the true story of her life. At its heart, the quest for the Holy Grail has always been a quest for the Magdalene – the wronged Queen, entombed with proof of her family's rightful claim to power.† Sophie waited a moment as Teabing gathered himself. So much about her grandfather was still not making sense. â€Å"Members of the Priory,† she finally said,† all these years have answered the charge of protecting the Sangreal documents and the tomb of Mary Magdalene?† â€Å"Yes, but the brotherhood had another, more important duty as well – to protect the bloodline itself. Christ's lineage was in perpetual danger. The early Church feared that if the lineage were permitted to grow, the secret of Jesus and Magdalene would eventually surface and challenge the fundamental Catholic doctrine – that of a divine Messiah who did not consort with women or engage in sexual union.† He paused. â€Å"Nonetheless, Christ's line grew quietly under cover in France until making a bold move in the fifth century, when it intermarried with French royal blood and created a lineage known as the Merovingian bloodline.† This news surprised Sophie. Merovingian was a term learned by every student in France. â€Å"The Merovingians founded Paris.† â€Å"Yes. That's one of the reasons the Grail legend is so rich in France. Many of the Vatican's Grail quests here were in fact stealth missions to erase members of the royal bloodline. Have you heard of King Dagobert?† Sophie vaguely recalled the name from a grisly tale in history class. â€Å"Dagobert was a Merovingian king, wasn't he? Stabbed in the eye while sleeping?† â€Å"Exactly. Assassinated by the Vatican in collusion with Pepin d'Heristal. Late seventh century. With Dagobert's murder, the Merovingian bloodline was almost exterminated. Fortunately, Dagobert's son, Sigisbert, secretly escaped the attack and carried on the lineage, which later included Godefroi de Bouillon – founder of the Priory of Sion.† â€Å"The same man,† Langdon said,† who ordered the Knights Templar to recover the Sangreal documents from beneath Solomon's Temple and thus provide the Merovingians proof of their hereditary ties to Jesus Christ.† Teabing nodded, heaving a ponderous sigh. â€Å"The modern Priory of Sion has a momentous duty. Theirs is a threefold charge. The brotherhood must protect the Sangreal documents. They must protect the tomb of Mary Magdalene. And, of course, they must nurture and protect the bloodline of Christ – those few members of the royal Merovingian bloodline who have survived into modern times.† The words hung in the huge space, and Sophie felt an odd vibration, as if her bones were reverberating with some new kind of truth. Descendants of Jesus who survived into modern times. Her grandfather's voice again was whispering in her ear. Princess, I must tell you the truth about your family. A chill raked her flesh. Royal blood. She could not imagine. Princess Sophie. â€Å"Sir Leigh?† The manservant's words crackled through the intercom on the wall, and Sophie jumped. â€Å"If you could join me in the kitchen a moment?† Teabing scowled at the ill-timed intrusion. He went over to the intercom and pressed the button. â€Å"Remy, as you know, I am busy with my guests. If we need anything else from the kitchen tonight, we will help ourselves. Thank you and good night.† â€Å"A word with you before I retire, sir. If you would.† Teabing grunted and pressed the button. â€Å"Make it quick, Remy.† â€Å"It is a household matter, sir, hardly fare for guests to endure.† Teabing looked incredulous. â€Å"And it cannot wait until morning?† â€Å"No, sir. My question won't take a minute.† Teabing rolled his eyes and looked at Langdon and Sophie. â€Å"Sometimes I wonder who is serving whom?† He pressed the button again. â€Å"I'll be right there, Remy. Can I bring you anything when I come?† â€Å"Only freedom from oppression, sir.† â€Å"Remy, you realize your steak au poivre is the only reason you still work for me.† â€Å"So you tell me, sir. So you tell me.† CHAPTER 61 Princess Sophie. Sophie felt hollow as she listened to the clicking of Teabing's crutches fade down the hallway. Numb, she turned and faced Langdon in the deserted ballroom. He was already shaking his head as if reading her mind. â€Å"No, Sophie,† he whispered, his eyes reassuring. â€Å"The same thought crossed my mind when I realized your grandfather was in the Priory, and you said he wanted to tell you a secret about your family. But it's impossible.† Langdon paused. â€Å"Sauniere is not a Merovingian name.† Sophie wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or disappointed. Earlier, Langdon had asked an unusual passing question about Sophie's mother's maiden name. Chauvel. The question now made sense.† And Chauvel?† she asked, anxious. Again he shook his head. â€Å"I'm sorry. I know that would have answered some questions for you. Only two direct lines of Merovingians remain. Their family names are Plantard and Saint-Clair. Both families live in hiding, probably protected by the Priory.† Sophie repeated the names silently in her mind and then shook her head. There was no one in her family named Plantard or Saint-Clair. A weary undertow was pulling at her now. She realized she was no closer than she had been at the Louvre to understanding what truth her grandfather had wanted to reveal to her. Sophie wished her grandfather had never mentioned her family this afternoon. He had torn open old wounds that felt as painful now as ever. They are dead, Sophie.They are not coming back.She thought of her mother singing her to sleep at night, of her father giving her rides on his shoulders, and of her grandmother and younger brother smiling at her with their fervent green eyes. All that was stolen. And all she had left was her grandfather. And now he is gone too. I am alone. Sophie turned quietly back to The Last Supper and gazed at Mary Magdalene's long red hair and quiet eyes. There was something in the woman's expression that echoed the loss of a loved one. Sophie could feel it too. â€Å"Robert?† she said softly. He stepped closer.† I know Leigh said the Grail story is all around us, but tonight is the first time I've ever heard any of this.† Langdon looked as if he wanted to put a comforting hand on her shoulder, but he refrained.† You've heard her story before, Sophie. Everyone has. We just don't realize it when we hear it.† â€Å"I don't understand.† â€Å"The Grail story is everywhere, but it is hidden. When the Church outlawed speaking of the shunned Mary Magdalene, her story and importance had to be passed on through more discreet channels†¦ channels that supported metaphor and symbolism.† â€Å"Of course. The arts.† Langdon motioned to The Last Supper. â€Å"A perfect example. Some of today's most enduring art, literature, and music secretly tell the history of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.† Langdon quickly told her about works by Da Vinci, Botticelli, Poussin, Bernini, Mozart, and Victor Hugo that all whispered of the quest to restore the banished sacred feminine. Enduring legends like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, King Arthur, and Sleeping Beauty were Grail allegories. Victor Hugo's Hunchback of Notre Dame and Mozart's Magic Flute were filled with Masonic symbolism and Grail secrets. â€Å"Once you open your eyes to the Holy Grail,† Langdon said,† you see her everywhere. Paintings. Music. Books. Even in cartoons, theme parks, and popular movies.† Langdon held up his Mickey Mouse watch and told her that Walt Disney had made it his quiet life's work to pass on the Grail story to future generations. Throughout his entire life, Disney had been hailed as† the Modern-Day Leonardo Da Vinci.† Both men were generations ahead of their times, uniquely gifted artists, members of secret societies, and, most notably, avid pranksters. Like Leonardo, Walt Disney loved infusing hidden messages and symbolism in his art. For the trained symbologist, watching an early Disney movie was like being barraged by an avalanche of allusion and metaphor. Most of Disney's hidden messages dealt with religion, pagan myth, and stories of the subjugated goddess. It was no mistake that Disney retold tales like Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White – all of which dealt with the incarceration of the sacred feminine. Nor did one need a background in symbolism to understand that Snow White – a princess who fell from grace after partaking of a poisoned apple – was a clear allusion to the downfall of Eve in the Garden of Eden. Or that Sleeping Beauty's Princess Aurora – code-named† Rose† and hidden deep in the forest to protect her from the clutches of the evil witch – was the Grail story for children. Despite its corporate image, Disney still had a savvy, playful element among its employees, and their artists still amused themselves by inserting hidden symbolism in Disney products. Langdon would never forget one of his students bringing in a DVD of The Lion King and pausing the film to reveal a freeze-frame in which the word SEX was clearly visible, spelled out by floating dust particles over Simba's head. Although Langdon suspected this was more of a cartoonist's sophomoric prank than any kind of enlightened allusion to pagan human sexuality, he had learned not to underestimate Disney's grasp of symbolism. The Little Mermaid was a spellbinding tapestry of spiritual symbols so specifically goddess-related that they could not be coincidence. When Langdon had first seen The Little Mermaid, he had actually gasped aloud when he noticed that the painting in Ariel's underwater home was none other than seventeenth-century artist Georges de la Tour's The Penitent Magdalene – a famous homage to the banished Mary Magdalene – fitting decor considering the movie turned out to be a ninety-minute collage of blatant symbolic references to the lost sanctity of Isis, Eve, Pisces the fish goddess, and, repeatedly, Mary Magdalene. The Little Mermaid's name, Ariel, possessed powerful ties to the sacred feminine and, in the Book of Isaiah, was synonymous with† the Holy City besieged.† Of course, the Little Mermaid's flowing red hair was certainly no coincidence either. The clicking of Teabing's crutches approached in the hallway, his pace unusually brisk. When their host entered the study, his expression was stern. â€Å"You'd better explain yourself, Robert,† he said coldly. â€Å"You have not been honest with me.† CHAPTER 62 â€Å"I'm being framed, Leigh,† Langdon said, trying to stay calm. You know me.I wouldn't kill anyone. Teabing's tone did not soften. â€Å"Robert, you're on television, for Christ's sake. Did you know you were wanted by the authorities?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Then you abused my trust. I'm astonished you would put me at risk by coming here and asking me to ramble on about the Grail so you could hide out in my home.† â€Å"I didn't kill anyone.† â€Å"Jacques Sauniere is dead, and the police say you did it.† Teabing looked saddened. â€Å"Such a contributor to the arts†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Sir?† The manservant had appeared now, standing behind Teabing in the study doorway, his arms crossed. â€Å"Shall I show them out?† â€Å"Allow me.† Teabing hobbled across the study, unlocked a set of wide glass doors, and swung them open onto a side lawn. â€Å"Please find your car, and leave.† Sophie did not move. â€Å"We have information about the clef de voute.The Priory keystone.† Teabing stared at her for several seconds and scoffed derisively. â€Å"A desperate ploy. Robert knows how I've sought it.† â€Å"She's telling the truth,† Langdon said. â€Å"That's why we came to you tonight. To talk to you about the keystone.† The manservant intervened now. â€Å"Leave, or I shall call the authorities.† â€Å"Leigh,† Langdon whispered,† we know where it is.† Teabing's balance seemed to falter a bit. Remy now marched stiffly across the room. â€Å"Leave at once! Or I will forcibly – â€Å"Remy!† Teabing spun, snapping at his servant. â€Å"Excuse us for a moment.† The servant's jaw dropped. â€Å"Sir? I must protest. These people are – â€Å"I'll handle this.† Teabing pointed to the hallway. After a moment of stunned silence, Remy skulked out like a banished dog. In the cool night breeze coming through the open doors, Teabing turned back to Sophie and Langdon, his expression still wary. â€Å"This better be good. What do you know of the keystone?† In the thick brush outside Teabing's study, Silas clutched his pistol and gazed through the glass doors. Only moments ago, he had circled the house and seen Langdon and the woman talking in the large study. Before he could move in, a man on crutches entered, yelled at Langdon, threw open the doors, and demanded his guests leave. Then the woman mentioned the keystone, and everything changed.Shouts turned to whispers. Moods softened. And the glass doors were quickly closed. Now, as he huddled in the shadows, Silas peered through the glass. The keystone is somewhere inside the house.Silas could feel it. Staying in the shadows, he inched closer to the glass, eager to hear what was being said. He would give them five minutes. If they did not reveal where they had placed the keystone, Silas would have to enter and persuade them with force. Inside the study, Langdon could sense their host's bewilderment. â€Å"Grand Master?† Teabing choked, eyeing Sophie. â€Å"Jacques Sauniere?† Sophie nodded, seeing the shock in his eyes.† But you could not possibly know that!† â€Å"Jacques Sauniere was my grandfather.† Teabing staggered back on his crutches, shooting a glance at Langdon, who nodded. Teabing turned back to Sophie. â€Å"Miss Neveu, I am speechless. If this is true, then I am truly sorry for your loss. I should admit, for my research, I have kept lists of men in Paris whom I thought might be good candidates for involvement in the Priory. Jacques Sauniere was on that list along with many others. But Grand Master, you say? It's hard to fathom.† Teabing was silent a moment and then shook his head. â€Å"But it still makes no sense. Even if your grandfather were the Priory Grand Master and created the keystone himself, he would never tell you how to find it. The keystone reveals the pathway to the brotherhood's ultimate treasure. Granddaughter o r not, you are not eligible to receive such knowledge.† â€Å"Mr. Sauniere was dying when he passed on the information,† Langdon said. â€Å"He had limited options.† â€Å"He didn't need options,† Teabing argued. â€Å"There exist three senechaux who also know the secret. That is the beauty of their system. One will rise to Grand Master and they will induct a new senechal and share the secret of the keystone.† â€Å"I guess you didn't see the entire news broadcast,† Sophie said. â€Å"In addition to my grandfather, three other prominent Parisians were murdered today. All in similar ways. All looked like they had been interrogated.† Teabing's jaw fell. â€Å"And you think they were†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"The senechaux,†Langdon said.† But how? A murderer could not possibly learn the identities of all four top members of the Priory of Sion! Look at me, I have been researching them for decades, and I can't even name one Priory member. It seems inconceivable that all three senechaux and the Grand Master could be discovered and killed in one day.† â€Å"I doubt the information was gathered in a single day,† Sophie said. â€Å"It sounds like a well-planned decapiter.It's a technique we use to fight organized crime syndicates. If DCPJ wants to move on a certain group, they will silently listen and watch for months, identify all the main players, and then move in and take them all at the same moment. Decapitation. With no leadership, the group falls into chaos and divulges other information. It's possible someone patiently watched the Priory and then attacked, hoping the top people would reveal the location of the keystone.† Teabing looked unconvinced. â€Å"But the brothers would never talk. They are sworn to secrecy. Even in the face of death.† â€Å"Exactly,† Langdon said. â€Å"Meaning, if they never divulged the secret, and they were killed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Teabing gasped. â€Å"Then the location of the keystone would be lost forever!† â€Å"And with it,† Langdon said,† the location of the Holy Grail.† Teabing's body seemed to sway with the weight of Langdon's words. Then, as if too tired to stand another moment, he flopped in a chair and stared out the window. Sophie walked over, her voice soft. â€Å"Considering my grandfather's predicament, it seems possible that in total desperation he tried to pass the secret on to someone outside the brotherhood. Someone he thought he could trust. Someone in his family.† Teabing was pale. â€Å"But someone capable of such an attack†¦ of discovering so much about the brotherhood†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He paused, radiating a new fear. â€Å"It could only be one force. This kind of infiltration could only have come from the Priory's oldest enemy.† Langdon glanced up. â€Å"The Church.† â€Å"Who else? Rome has been seeking the Grail for centuries.† Sophie was skeptical. â€Å"You think the Church killed my grandfather?† Teabing replied,† It would not be the first time in history the Church has killed to protect itself. The documents that accompany the Holy Grail are explosive, and the Church has wanted to destroy them for years.† Langdon was having trouble buying Teabing's premise that the Church would blatantly murder people to obtain these documents. Having met the new Pope and many of the cardinals, Langdon knew they were deeply spiritual men who would never condone assassination. Regardless of the stakes. Sophie seemed to be having similar thoughts. â€Å"Isn't it possible that these Priory members were murdered by someone outside the Church? Someone who didn't understand what the Grail really is? The Cup of Christ, after all, would be quite an enticing treasure. Certainly treasure hunters have killed for less.† â€Å"In my experience,† Teabing said,† men go to far greater lengths to avoid what they fear than to obtain what they desire. I sense a desperation in this assault on the Priory.† â€Å"Leigh,† Langdon said,† the argument is paradoxical. Why would members of the Catholic clergy murder Priory members in an effort to find and destroy documents they believe are false testimony anyway?† Teabing chuckled. â€Å"The ivory towers of Harvard have made you soft, Robert. Yes, the clergy in Rome are blessed with potent faith, and because of this, their beliefs can weather any storm, including documents that contradict everything they hold dear. But what about the rest of the world? What about those who are not blessed with absolute certainty? What about those who look at the cruelty in the world and say, where is God today? Those who look at Church scandals and ask, who are these men who claim to speak the truth about Christ and yet lie to cover up the sexual abuse of children by their own priests?† Teabing paused. â€Å"What happens to those people, Robert, if persuasive scientific evidence comes out that the Church's version of the Christ story is inaccurate, and that the greatest story ever told is, in fact, the greatest story ever sold† Langdon did not respond. â€Å"I'll tell you what happens if the documents get out,† Teabing said. â€Å"The Vatican faces a crisis of faith unprecedented in its two-millennia history.† After a long silence, Sophie said,† But if it is the Church who is responsible for this attack, why would they act now? After all these years? The Priory keeps the Sangreal documents hidden. They pose no immediate threat to the Church.† Teabing heaved an ominous sigh and glanced at Langdon. â€Å"Robert, I assume you are familiar with the Priory's final charge?† Langdon felt his breath catch at the thought. â€Å"I am.† â€Å"Miss Neveu,† Teabing said,† the Church and the Priory have had a tacit understanding for years. That is, the Church does not attack the Priory, and the Priory keeps the Sangreal documents hidden.† He paused. â€Å"However, part of the Priory history has always included a plan to unveil the secret. With the arrival of a specific date in history, the brotherhood plans to break the silence and carry out its ultimate triumph by unveiling the Sangreal documents to the world and shouting the true story of Jesus Christ from the mountaintops.† Sophie stared at Teabing in silence. Finally, she too sat down. â€Å"And you think that date is approaching? And the Church knows it?† â€Å"A speculation,† Teabing said,† but it would certainly provide the Church motivation for an all-out attack to find the documents before it was too late.† Langdon had the uneasy feeling that Teabing was making good sense. â€Å"Do you think the Church would actually be capable of uncovering hard evidence of the Priory's date?† â€Å"Why not – if we're assuming the Church was able to uncover the identities of the Priory members, then certainly they could have learned of their plans. And even if they don't have the exact date, their superstitions may be getting the best of them.† â€Å"Superstitions?† Sophie asked.† In terms of prophecy,† Teabing said,† we are currently in an epoch of enormous change. The millennium has recently passed, and with it has ended the two-thousand-year-long astrological Age of Pisces – the fish, which is also the sign of Jesus. As any astrological symbologist will tell you, the Piscean ideal believes that man must be told what to do by higher powers because man is incapable of thinking for himself. Hence it has been a time of fervent religion. Now, however, we are entering the Age of Aquarius – the water bearer – whose ideals claim that man will learn the truth and be able to think for himself. The ideological shift is en ormous, and it is occurring right now.† Langdon felt a shiver. Astrological prophecy never held much interest or credibility for him, but he knew there were those in the Church who followed it very closely. â€Å"The Church calls this transitional period the End of Days.† Sophie looked skeptical. â€Å"As in the end of the world? The Apocalypse?† â€Å"No.† Langdon replied. â€Å"That's a common misconception. Many religions speak of the End of Days. It refers not to the end of the world, but rather the end of our current age – Pisces, which began at the time of Christ's birth, spanned two thousand years, and waned with the passing of the millennium. Now that we've passed into the Age of Aquarius, the End of Days has arrived.† â€Å"Many Grail historians,† Teabing added,† believe that if the Priory is indeed planning to release this truth, this point in history would be a symbolically apt time. Most Priory academics, myself included, anticipated the brotherhood's release would coincide precisely with the millennium. Obviously, it did not. Admittedly, the Roman calendar does not mesh perfectly with astrological markers, so there is some gray area in the prediction. Whether the Church now has inside information that an exact date is looming, or whether they are just getting nervous on account of astrological prophecy, I don't know. Anyway, it's immaterial. Either scenario explains how the Church might be motivated to launch a preemptive attack against the Priory.† Teabing frowned. â€Å"And believe me, if the Church finds the Holy Grail, they will destroy it. The documents and the relics of the blessed Mary Magdalene as well.† His eyes grew heavy. â€Å"Then, my dear, with the Sang real documents gone, all evidence will be lost. The Church will have won their age-old war to rewrite history. The past will be erased forever.† Slowly, Sophie pulled the cruciform key from her sweater pocket and held it out to Teabing. Teabing took the key and studied it. â€Å"My goodness. The Priory seal. Where did you get this?† â€Å"My grandfather gave it to me tonight before he died.† Teabing ran his fingers across the cruciform. â€Å"A key to a church?† She drew a deep breath. â€Å"This key provides access to the keystone.† Teabing's head snapped up, his face wild with disbelief. â€Å"Impossible! What church did I miss? I've searched every church in France!† â€Å"It's not in a church,† Sophie said. â€Å"It's in a Swiss depository bank.† Teabing's look of excitement waned. â€Å"The keystone is in a bank?† â€Å"A vault,† Langdon offered. â€Å"A bank vault?† Teabing shook his head violently. â€Å"That's impossible. The keystone is supposed to be hidden beneath the sign of the Rose.† â€Å"It is,† Langdon said. â€Å"It was stored in a rosewood box inlaid with a five-petal Rose.† Teabing looked thunderstruck. â€Å"You've seen the keystone?† Sophie nodded. â€Å"We visited the bank.† Teabing came over to them, his eyes wild with fear. â€Å"My friends, we must do something. The keystone is in danger! We have a duty to protect it. What if there are other keys? Perhaps stolen from the murdered senechaux? If the Church can gain access to the bank as you have – â€Å" â€Å"Then they will be too late,† Sophie said. â€Å"We removed the keystone.† â€Å"What! You removed the keystone from its hiding place?† â€Å"Don't worry,† Langdon said. â€Å"The keystone is well hidden.† â€Å"Extremely well hidden, I hope!† â€Å"Actually,† Langdon said, unable to hide his grin,† that depends on how often you dust under your couch.† The wind outside Chateau Villette had picked up, and Silas's robe danced in the breeze as he crouched near the window. Although he had been unable to hear much of the conversation, the word keystone had sifted through the glass on numerous occasions. It is inside. The Teacher's words were fresh in his mind. Enter Chateau Villette. Take the keystone. Hun no one. Now, Langdon and the others had adjourned suddenly to another room, extinguishing the study lights as they went. Feeling like a panther stalking prey, Silas crept to the glass doors. Finding them unlocked, he slipped inside and closed the doors silently behind him. He could hear muffled voices from another room. Silas pulled the pistol from his pocket, turned off the safety, and inched down the hallway.