Internet Gambling: The Rationale and Reasons Behind Its Existence Essay

The internet has brought a lot of changes in the society today. It makes life much easier to deal with, makes transactions faster and makes communication easier to reach. The internet has contributed to the development of a country. It has contributed to the success of many business establishments. It has brought many high-tech gadgets and applications. However, the internet also brought disadvantages to mankind. It has made so many illegal acts hi-tech as well. Stealing for one is very rampant in the internet. Hacking website information and databases is another. Software piracy increases through time. Time and again, this technology has been both an advantage and a disadvantage to mankind. In the 21st century, the internet has become the an easy tool for disseminating information of all sorts, a means of interaction between individuals and their computers wherever they are located and regardless of their wealth and stature. Businesses slowly emerge through the use of internet for users find it comfortable. One of the most common and old businesses in history is gambling, and with internet, gambling seemed to appear appealing to some internet users. It is known that the first online casino was founded on August 18, 1995 where it had eighteen various casino games, online access to National Indian Lottery and an Internet Sports Book. (Basu, 2006) Internet gambling has had its effects on the society. It increases gambling addiction, gambling by minors, crimes and several threats on sporting contests.   Moreover, cheating is very rampant in online casinos which includes the site owner failed to pay the winners, the site owner failed to return the money paid to them which were never gambled and the site just disappear bringing with them the money from the investors. (Basu, 2006) d.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is of importance that the government and every parent must pay attention to this problem. Not only does it increase crime rate and dishonesty but it also attracts minor internet users. Since internet now is just within reach, most families have acquired it at home which means children, as early as their young age, have access to the internet. With this, everything is possible – even internet gambling. II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Internet Gambling: The Problem in the 21st Century a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Internet gambling is very prevalent in today’s modern world. As mentioned in the previous item, this illegal activity is no longer restricted to adult internet users but to minors as well. Parents, having the full responsibility over their children, must be able to explain to them how and when the internet is used. Parents must be more attentive now to what the children do. Parents must restrict their children on opening websites which might lead them to knowing internet gambling and other illegal activities done over the web. b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Internet gamblers help to create obsessive gamblers. There are those who have a hard time restricting themselves from playing at a casino. And it is even harder for them to resist stopping playing when it is done online. There are internet gamblers who always say â€Å"I will play one more time, and then I’ll stop†. But this statement has already been abused for it has never applied. On the other hand, internet gambling sites give internet gamblers the opportunity to gamble as much money as they want since comfort of playing is on their side. (Berkovich, 2006) c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Generally, online gamblers now are younger than those personally gambling at casinos since younger people are more computer savvy than the older ones. In a research done by American Psychological Association in March 2002, it was found out that every one of the 389 respondents had tried gambling at some point in their lives. 90% gambled the previous year, 42% gambled the previous week, 8% gambled online in their lifetime and 4% gambled weekly. In addition, it was found out that the younger respondents were more likely to gamble online compared to the older respondents. Online gamblers’ age average at 31.7 years than 43.5 years for traditional gamblers. (http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/1620/Internet-Gambling-EFFECTS-ONLINE-GAMBLING.html)

Fine Art Critique Paper

Germaine Armstrong Professor Hale MU2313 Critique Paper When I went home last weekend I attempted to go to the Arlington Museum of Art. Unfortunately the museum was closed due to the fact that they where changing exhibits and would not reopen until the following week. I returned back to San Marcos and decided I would go to The Wittliff Collections here on campus. To my surprise it was a lot bigger than I thought it would be. Being on just one floor of a building I thought it would be a pretty limited museum but it is way bigger than expected. There are four exhibits on display in the museum.One is a permanent display in the museum. There are also a couple of smaller displays in an area in the museum. I couldn’t take any pictures in the museum due to the many signs up saying not to. The exhibit that is on permanent display is The Lonesome Dove Collection. Arguably the greatest western made is based on the Larry McMurtry’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. On display there ar e many things from scripts from the TV show to trail maps used to show the geography of the land on the show. The collection is pretty amazing to me and I am not really a fan of lonesome dove.There are so many small details of the show that you get to see. It really catches your attention. You get to see so many of the props from guns to the saddles they used on horses. Though this is the only permanent exhibit the other exhibits are equally as great. Another Exhibit on display is called Face to Face Portraits. This exhibit shows the work of over 30 photographers. From photos that included Willie Nelson and Texas State alumni George Strait to homeless men, women, and children from across the world. Two pieces from this exhibit really caught my attention.One of the pictures I found very interesting being that of an older gentlemen sitting in a chair that I thought to be pretty unique. The chair he is sitting in caught my eye as soon as I looked at the photo. The arms of the chair hav e been carved to look like the head of a cougar, with the legs the chair being cougar legs. The wood of the chair has many different shades of color. The man sitting in the chair is actually dressed cleanly but you can clearly see that he is a man of lower class. He has on old sneakers and looks like he is out in the sun for a good majority of his time.This one photograph made me ask myself many questions such as â€Å"is he wealthy or poor? † and â€Å"is that his chair or just used for the picture? † or maybe â€Å"did he make the chair and wants to sell it? † The photo really made me think more than any other in exhibit. The other photo or photos in the exhibit that caught my eye were those of Willie Nelson. He had several photos as well as other notable things such as one of his songbooks on display. Nelson had his very on little display case of many notable pictures and accomplishments of his. The reason I really like this is because I am a fan of Willieâ⠂¬â„¢s music.Not only am I a fan but also Willie actually owned a gas station and a house not even ten miles away from where I grew up. So I have gone and seen many notable things that have happened in his career as he put many things on display in his gas station. The most unique thing in the display was a songbook that Willie Nelson wrote when he was ten years old. Seeing more of his accomplishments was awesome. A third exhibit was Global Odyssey: From Texas to the world and back. It showcased many stories of Texas writers as they traveled the world. There are stories form men who severed in Vietnam.This was my least favorite exhibit of any not to say it was a bad one but it just did not catch my attention like the other exhibits. The final exhibit was Las Sombras The Shadows. This exhibit I thought was the coolest of them all. The Photograms by Kate Breakey are amazing. This was my most favorite because I am an animal lover. Many of the photos captured wild animals in their natur al environment. There are several rooms with pictures from this exhibit. One room had most of my attention. The room was all pictures taken from a video that was filmed by a camera left in the woods.Other photos where actually like the outline of many animals. The most intriguing photo to me was a picture of a wolf. The Wolf is actually walking right toward the camera and looking directly in to the lens with its head tilted a little to one side. I like this photo because it shows the wolf checking out its surroundings and actually examining something odd. It looks as if the wolf knows that the camera is not suppose to be there. In all the other photos the animals are either running or walking right by the camera. I am actually glad I went to the museum on campus and it’s the museum I choose to write about.If I did not have to do this critique and the museum in Arlington was not closed I probably would have never visited the museum on campus. Having went I really enjoyed mysel f. I thought it was worth every minute of my time and I could see myself visiting it many more times before I am don at Texas State. I went to the Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth Texas to watch the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. I was sitting pretty high up but still had a great seat and could hear perfectly. Before going to watch the performance I read a couple of reviews online.Most of the reviews praised the orchestra for there performance in concerts earlier this year. The concert I attended would include pieces from three composers John B Hedges, Schumann, and Rimsky-Korsakov. I arrived to the concert pretty early and after I walked around for a little bit I found my seat, which turned out to be way better than, I expected when I first got there. When I first got to my seat I could see the stage fine but thought I might not be able to hear very well being so high up. Boy was I wrong when the members of the orchestra began to warm up I could hear everything crystal clear.Hav ing never being at one of these big concerts before I found it weird how everyone warmed up separately. With them warming up like that it sounded like a bunch of senseless noise. As it got closer to show time the senseless noise became certain people warming up together to whole sections warming up together and was pretty cool. The concert started out with a piece by John B Hedges called Slapdance. This piece of music was filled with a lot of life and energy. One of the reasons I really enjoyed this piece was because of the many percussion instruments used.I was in my high school band and my favorite pieces would always be the fast paced exciting music filled with percussion. This piece had me on the edge of my seat and really excited for the rest of the concert. The piece following Slapdance was a piece by Schumann by the name of Cello Concerto in A Minor, Op. 129. This piece though not as exciting as the first piece was pretty good. It started out slow but it picked up as the song continued. This piece had a solo for a cello. The solo was played by a guest cellist Alban Gerhardt which I learned later is considered one of the great cellist of our time.Though this was my least favorite piece it was not because I did not like it but because I really liked the other two more. After the first two pieces there was an intermission. Most people got up and left the performance room but I stayed just to observe and see what the orchestra would be doing. To my surprise many of them got up and went backstage but a few of them stayed on the stage and seemed to practice he up coming piece. Seeing professional musicians stay on stage and continue to practice up to right before they played was pretty cool to see. After the 15 minute intermission every on returned to their seats.The entire orchestra came back to the stage for the final piece Scheherazade, Op. 35 written by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov. Being the final piece it was the longest of the three selections. I really enj oyed this piece because it had many parts some parts where very slow but it had plenty of exciting parts. This piece actually tells many Indian-Arabian tales called A Thousand and One Nights. This piece even though written hundreds of years later is as well known as the stories. The performance hall where the concert was held was an amazing place to see. When I first arrived and saw the building I thought â€Å"this is the building. Not knowing that I actually wasn’t at the front of the building but the side. Once I got inside everything was extremely incredible. The building didn’t look nearly as large from the outside. When I walked into where the performance would be held I was in awe. The stage was set down at the bottom from where I was with four different levels of seats. Having never been to a place like it I thought it would be awesome to play music in a place like that. The Bass Performance is an amazing place. By attending this classical music concert I lear ned that I could actually enjoy this type of music.The cost for the concert was actually pretty cheap and the seat I had I think was pretty good. I feel like the concert was worth my money and my time. My high school football coach use to always tell me that going outside your comfort zone makes you broaden your mind on what you think is good and bad. Before going to the concert I would have never thought that I would enjoy the music as much as I did. Even though I enjoyed it I probably will not go to another one just to go. After going and my brother and I being the only two younger people there it felt a little uncomfortable.It is something I could see myself going to when I get older. For right now though I would rather go to something with more excitement and people my age. Picking a movie to critique for this paper was a lot harder than I thought it would be. I could not decide if I wanted to pick a movie I had never seen or one I have seen many times. Did I want to pick a movi e that I liked or one that I hated? I decide that I would pick a movie I did not like to see if me critiquing the movie would change how I viewed it or would my opinion stay the same.The movie I choose to critique was the movie Clueless written and directed by Amy Heckerling. The movie is based on a very popular girl in high school who along with her best friend helps the new nerdy kid that arrives at their school to fit in. By changing how the new kid dresses, talks, and trying to get her a boyfriend. Cher Horowitz the main character of the movie is at the top of her schools social scene. Her father is a rich lawyer so she has everything she has ever wanted. Going to high school in Beverly Hills she is obsessed with her fashion.She likes to think she is just as normal as a regular girl but has a closet that puts her outfits together. She is the typical example of â€Å"daddy’s little girl†. Even when given rules to follow she somehow always manages to find a loophole and does what she wants. She is your typical â€Å"brat†. The one thing she cannot seem to get is a boy. The movie is told from Cher’s point of view as she tries to help friends and ultimately help herself before the movie ends. Cher’s best friend is Dionne. Dionne understands Cher because she faces all the same popular girl problems.Dionne helps Cher with her fashion and trying to give the new kid a makeover. At first Cher is against Dionne and her boyfriend’s relationship but after a near accident Cher realizes that the two are in love and ends up envying their relationship. Tai Frasier is the ugly unpopular nerd that transfers to Cher and Dionne’s school. As soon as she arrives Cher makes it a point of hers to transfer the goofy nerd into one of the popular girls. Dionne is uneasy with the idea at first but Cher uses her charming ways to convince her to do it. Tai immediately falls behind Cher and Dionne and listens to everything the two says.Sh e is attracted to an unpopular boy but ignores him because Cher and Dionne says she should be dating one of the most popular boys at school. Mel Horowitz is the father of Cher. He is a very successful litigator who pays more attention to his work than to his daughter. He tries to discipline Cher throughout the movie but she manages to always find a way to get off easy. Josh Lucas is Cher’s ex-stepbrother. Her father used to be married to Josh’s mother. Josh has ambitions to be a lawyer and tries to learn many things from Mel. Josh and Cher flirt throughout the movie but when she sees josh and Tai flirting she becomes jealous.However Josh and Cher ends up falling for each other at the very end of the movie. When Cher realizes she cannot connect with any other boy because she loves him. Christian Stovitz is one of Cher’s main love interests in the movie until she finds out that he is gay. Christian arrives at midway trough the school year and immediately gets Cher ’s attention. She goes out with him several times and even tries to seduce him. When it does not work she thinks it as something to with herself. After complaining about it to Dionne and her boyfriend Cher is told he is gay and she now understands him more.Throughout the film Cher refers to herself as clueless many times. Even though she had many answers for others problems she often found herself clueless to her own. She helps many of her friends with fashion and boys. She is not able to get any boy she wants. She becomes aware of this and becomes depressed. Shopping helps her depression for a little while but she still finds herself down. She finally overcomes her depression when admits to herself that she loves Josh. After reading reviews on this movie it was actually a pretty big hit in 1995. The movie was much more popular than most expected.It is still a very popular movie because many girls can relate to the things that happen in it. This movie is not based on a true s tory but the events that happen I am sure are possible. Even though I went to a small high school I have seen many girls freak out over many silly things. All of the things Cher goes through sounds like typical girl problems. After seeing this movie several times and now critiquing it I still think that it is overly hyped and I do not think it is a movie I would watch just to watch. There would have to be a reason I would watch it. I think my opinion is like this because I cannot relate to the movie.

Assignment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Assignment 2 - Essay Example However, the study results from Wald Testing methodology and actual juvenile court records indicated there was not a considerable difference between neglectful parenting and authoritative parenting. This is identified in Table 2 in the study, however this was based on quantitative multi-variate testing and not only the self-report inventories returned by the chosen sample group of youths. The study conducted by Simons & Conger also predicted, based on previous literature, that authoritative parenting would breed better adjusted adolescents in relation to academics or the broader social environment. However, this article predicted that having two authoritative parents would be rare considering the dimensions of adult-based control needs that would negate both parents taking an authoritative role. The article identifies neglectful parenting styles versus authoritarian styles, with modifications for a variety of combinations of both styles. This study’s methodology differed and i nvolved questionnaires filled out by key sample participants and then a follow-up observational approach using videotape as documentation. Important dimensions of this sample’s self-reporting dealt with perceptions of hostility in the home, monitoring and parenting style.

The individual, society and culture. ( tripartite system of Essay

The individual, society and culture. ( tripartite system of domination) - Essay Example Black women were a little better and suffered to a lesser degree psychologically. They were allowed relative freedom of movement within the boundaries of the racist system (p.21) With this sort of treatment from a section of a society to another section of society, any individual of the subjugated class would turn cynical, rebellious and will try to strike back at the earliest opportunity. Also religious discrimination of the worst order was practiced by the Church. The dominance of the white race and the repressive measured used by it, evoked strong resistance from the blacks on all fronts. Students took the lead in organizing the protest marches. Street-fights became order of the day. Radical visions came to the fore and took over the leadership. In the early part of the 20th century, African Americans launched direct protests against racial inequality. Jim Crow streetcars were challenged between 1900 and 1906 in important cities of the South. During the same period, black women organized local and national clubs to overthrow Jim Crow. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was founded in 1909-1910. It initiated national level protests against racial inequality and challenged its legal basis and won cases in relation to segregated schools. In 1920 fundamental aspect of racial segregation were put to inquiry. This related to the practice since time immemorial, ideas of white supremacy and black inferiority. The Garvey movement of the 1920s turned into a mass movement. According to Blauner the combustible black younger generation admired the strength in the arguments of Marcus Garvey. His teachings and leadership fulfilled their aspirations and his fighting qualities of head and heart were appreciated and followed by them.(p.85) Western civilization was challenged and great presentations about Black people, Black Culture, and Black history were made and the glory of Africa was highlighted. Garvey advocated

Film assignment Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Film assignment - Movie Review Example All the couples find their means and the logistics of getting to the mountains. As the movie depicts each couple’s journey, the audience realizes that all the couples are having rough patches in their marriage. This justifies the purpose intended for the retreat. On arrival in the house, activities of the week were expected to be spontaneous since they did not have a stringent schedule. Mike, Sheila’s husband preferred to take along Trina to the retreat, although she was single. Mike and Trina took a flight while Sheila faces the compulsion of driving to the mountains and faced a serious snow storm, a factor that made her arrive the following morning. On the night she was away, her husband cheated with the single lady he had brought along (Telsch n.p). The first morning in the mountains was marked by serious arguments by all the couples. In the days that follow, serious revelations are made about each couple a factor that makes them plan their journey back. However, Sheila and Mike chose to divorce because of the infidelity while the other couples leave the mountains for home. The rest of the movie depicts the actions taken by the three remaining couples to reconcile at a point whereby they were tempted to separate. In the end, the three couples reconcile while Mike and Sheila remain separated. Sheila moves on with Troy, whom she met on her journey to the mountains (Telsch n.p). The four couples face a dilemma of either separating from their partners or making the efforts to save their marriages. Some of the characters are struggling with infidelity or the loss of interest in their partners while others have focused on careers forgetting their marriage. Through the four couples, the audiences identify different causes of tensions in their marriages (Telsch n.p). Who were the most significant characters in the movie?

Principles of Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Principles of Business - Assignment Example The result might have been conflicts of interest that had negative effects on the financial health of the company. According to the company’s federal tax returns, financial dealings with companies that were owned by board members cost UPMC $10 million. $5 million worth of transactions between businesses connected to the board members were reported in the tax records (Roche Jr., 2010). In reviewing the financial activity, the concept of corporate governance becomes relevant. It is defined as the standards which are deemed as appropriate in the running of the company. Because the management of UPMC engaged in cozy business deals with insiders, costing the company $10 million, it clearly was not recommended by the corporate governance system. The concept of fair market value is also relevant. Because the transactions were affected by the board members’ relationships as reported by the press, the financial activity might not have been conducted at fair market value. A finan cial transaction is conducted at fair market value when the transaction happens at the rate that is set by the market mechanism. Because UPMC awarded contracts to the board members’ companies at favored rates, it cost the company $10 million, resulting in $489 million losses in 2009.

Discussion Question Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 13

Discussion Question - Essay Example In some occasions, family and friends who visited these patients would participate in the prayer sessions. The three patients, who were all Christians, engaged in prayer to get the necessary spiritual strength to deal with the pain and other limitations caused by the disease. These prayers attracted other Christians within the ward, who were suffering from different diseases. These prayers usually helped the patients deal with the pain, and trust God for their healing. The activity was well-received by other Christians in the ward, but there was some resistance from the Muslims. This came from the different beliefs and praying times followed by the Muslim believers. The Christians would pray in the morning and evening, while Muslims pray three times in a day. The Muslim prayers follow a predefined format whereas Christians do not follow given prayer format. This forced the Muslims to engage in their prayers separately from Christians. However, they were free to join the Christians, and some were involved in the Christian prayer. Patients require spiritual support from nurses, who can participate in their spiritual practices or reinforce their spiritual

Economic Development of Greece Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Economic Development of Greece - Essay Example Economic development attempts to find the reasons behind the labour differences between countries or it may analyse why certain countries have higher levels of foreign investments compare to others. (Gills, 1996) Government policies normally involve efforts made by the government of the day to improve overall economic indicators. Governments can do this with the aim of reducing high unemployment rates, increasing their tax rates, instituting stable prices within the economy or expanding the tax rates. Governments can achieve this through tax policy adjustments, regulating their financial institutions and changing their fiscal policies for the better. Infrastructural policies on the other hand normally involve the use of programs aimed at making public services and infrastructure better. This is done through building affordable houses, introducing better educational facilities, reducing crime rates, building roads and many others measures./ Lastly, economic development can also be achieved through employment creation. Governments normally need to direct their efforts towards specific industries in any of the following areas; marketing, business expansion, business retention, real estate development, finance, technology transferred among other things. (Todaro, 1997) During the decade 70s, The Greek government em... They started with the introduction of uranium exploitation efforts in the northern part of their country. Their mission was to develop this sector so that they could reduce their inflation rates. Additionally, the Greek government wanted to improve their financial status through this project. By developing their natural resources, the country would curb the need to import some of these minerals and they would also get an outlet for generating more revenue. Greece was endowed with a number of resources. First of all, the country had oil reserves; secondly, it was rich in lignite. But before the seventies, Greece was not taking full advantages of these two mineral resources. The government passed laws that would facilitate greater exploitation of those minerals. These aggressive measures caused decreased balance of payments and inflation rates. This is because the country minimised its dependence on imports and substitute these with its own products. In relation to this, Greece decided that their currency would not be measured against the United States dollar. Proponents of this change claimed that they were trying to make their local currency stronger. On top of this, it was also supposed to include other development partners in the Greek currency. The decision to de-link the US dollar from their currency was made in the year 1975. (Embassy of the United States, 2007) In the next decades (1980s and 90s), the Greek government decided to move towards privatisation. In the early nineties, these efforts paid off, the country recorded a Gross Domestic Product of thirteen and fifteen percent. That period of time saw the transformation of twenty eight companies from public to private institutions. At that time, the government tried to

The future of unions in the United States Research Paper

The future of unions in the United States - Research Paper Example The Future of Labor Unions in United States Labor unions are legal and recognized representatives of the workers in different industries. Throughout the history of United States, there are different labor unions formed for the workers of different industries and sectors however, the labor unions found among the public sector employees like the police and the teachers are most prominent among all the labor unions.Historically the labor unions have played important role for the protection of the employee rights and right from the beginning people used to favor as well as oppose the labor unions in the companies. However, recently they have been experiencing major decline in their membership due to which there is high level of uncertainty in the country regarding the future of the labor unions in United States. The labor Unions in America have seen many difficulties in terms of the membership however despite all difficulties the labor union never faced such a fall in the membership afte r the year 1932 that these are facing in the recent years especially in the private service sector. According to the estimates the membership of the US labor Unions in the private sector has dropped almost 9 percent in the recent years that shows that the workers are now less interested in joining the labor unions or taking any active part in the strike activities organized by the labor unions. Currently only 11.9% of the wages and salary workers are member of the labor union that shows massive decline in the membership of these unions. ... Hence, the actual people for whom the organizations are meant for are not interested in the labor unions that how the existence of these organizations could be justified. The twenty first century has brought new challenges for the people and organizations all over the world and just like all other sectors, the corporate sector is also in the phase of restructuring. There are some inevitable changes that must be adopted by the people associated with the corporate sector. The advancement in the technology paves many new ways for the companies. In order to conduct their operation the business owners now have many more options ad compared with the past. In the emerging situation the companies are able to perform a variety of their business activities with the help of the technological devices and as a result they don’t need that much human work force as they required in past. The introduction of advanced machinery and other advanced tool not only saves them time but also cost of p roduction. In this context, the work force availability has become easy for the employers because more people look for jobs and the employers can pick from the interested candidates on their own terms and conditions (Goldfield, 92). The advancement in the technology has significantly contributed towards the diversion of the attention of the employees towards the other issues. At present, the employees of USA are more concerned towards getting high education and technology based knowledge and skills. The workers focus on these things so that they can keep them update with the advancements occurring around them and can acquire better working conditions through their performance and skills. This thought reflect

Strategy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategy - Research Paper Example It has a special program for its employees through which they can benefit. Exclusive health care plans and retirements plans are examples of such programs which are being implemented by JPMorgan Chase. These programs are the ones which are helping JPMorgan Chase to attract employees in their bank and lower the chances of competitiveness in the industry. Regardless of the ease of entry for competitors and new businesses in the industry, JP Morgan has competitive advantage over them due to its strategies and reward systems. Competitive Rivalry :- It is seen that the industry in which JPMorgan Chase exists is a market in which many of the organizations exist together. This is a reason because of which JP Morgan Chase has to face immense competition. But in order to tackle this rivalry it is seen that JPMorgan is continuously implementing new strategies so that the rivals do not get a chance to affect their position in the market. These innovative techniques are unique in the industry be cause of which the customers are being attracted towards it. A new innovative feature launched by the company is related to mobile deposition through which people who own I-phone can directly deposit funds into their account through their mobile phones.

Facing Harsh Realities Essay Example for Free

Facing Harsh Realities Essay The recognition and acceptance of truth and reality is a recurring theme in Literature because it is such an enigmatic issue in human life. A highly discussed subject of human experience, our perception and acceptance of reality defines and determines how we see our life, and how we choose to live our life. This very subject is revealed and discussed in the novel written by Ralph Ellison entitled, â€Å"Invisible Man. †Ellison introduces the protagonist as an unnamed character who insists calling himself an â€Å"invisible man,† (page ) struggling to discover truths and realities about his life as an African-American. In the beginning of the story, he is portrayed as a naive young man who believes that being meek and submissive are the key characteristics needed by an African-American to better his life. His first struggle with this dilemma is illustrated in the cruel scene when the protagonist is forced to take part in a game called â€Å"battle royal† wherein he is pitted against other young African-Americans in a boxing match. The game is imposed upon the boys, who are degraded into being fighting beasts eager to please their master, the dominant white man. Despite the circumstances, the protagonist moves on to please the white men. At the end of the cruel event, the reward of a scholarship makes the protagonist feel content and happy on the surface; and yet, his mind struggles with the moral and racial injustice done to him by the white men, as revealed in his dream of his grandfather’s mockery and warning. This is the first instance that the protagonist is struggling with the reality that the seeming kindness of white men is actually a masked transgression against the African-American race, and against his very own person. His encounter with this harsh piece of reality is just the beginning of his awakening, because as the novel unfolds from this â€Å"battle royal† scene, the struggle for recognizing and accepting the truth may be surely won, but from this very point, it is a long way off.

Kappa Agonists in Management of Pain and Opioid Addiction

Kappa Agonists in Management of Pain and Opioid Addiction Joseph Nguyen Abstract Hypothesis: Opiates mediate pain via opioid receptors, which consist of several subtypes. One subtype, the kappa opioid receptors (KOR), has also been shown to prevent addictive behaviour. Potential novel therapeutic compounds acting on KOR include U50488, CR665, and CR845. It is hypothesized that selective kappa opioid receptor agonists are effective at controlling pain while managing opioid addiction. Methods: Studies for this review were obtained through the PubMed database using a keyword search strategy. Only articles in English published from December 2006 until December 2016 were considered. Results: Kappa agonists are able to decrease inflammatory, visceral, and surgical pain, but are unable to inhibit behaviour-depressing aspects of pain. Kappa agonists also decrease field potential and long-term potentiation in the basolateral amygdala. Additive anti-nociception with mu opioids has been observed as well as decreased fentanyl use, morphine tolerance development, and morphine withdrawal symptoms. Conclusions: Kappa agonists can be effective analgesics while also preventing abuse and addiction to mu opioids. Some evidence also suggests kappa agonist activity in the basolateral amygdala can inhibit affective components of pain. Abstract Word Count: 175 Keywords: kappa agonist, pain, analgesia, anti-nociception, tolerance, dependence, withdrawal, addiction Ultramini Abstract: This study reviewed current research on the analgesic and anti-addictive properties of selective kappa agonists for their use in pain management while preventing addiction. Introduction Opioids are one of the most powerful analgesics available with an increasing trend of prescription in the United States. Prescriptions per capita increased 7.3% from 2007-2012 with 259 million prescriptions in 2012, enough for one bottle of opioids per adult (Dowell et al., 2016). On the other hand, use of opioids presents risks including dependence, abuse, addiction, and overdose which lead to negative health, social and economically impacts. From 1999 to 2014, over 165,000 people have died from opioid overdose and in 2013; an estimated 1.9 million people abused or were dependent on prescribed opioids (Dowell, Haegerich Chou, 2016). However, pain treatment should not be ignored as there are clinical, psychological, and social consequences associated with chronic pain including limitations in complex activities, lost work productivity, reduced quality of life, and stigma, emphasizing the importance of appropriate and compassionate patient care (Dowell et al., 2016). The CDC has recently released a guideline, aimed at primary care settings, suggesting prescriptive protocols as well as methods to evaluate risk of patient substance abuse and addiction. However, the majority of evidence reviewed by the guideline had significant limitations. Although the CDC guideline still has value in preventing exacerbation of pre-existing risk of abuse, results and implementation remain to be seen. Efforts have been made to deter abuse through novel drug formulations, barriers, and pharmacokinetics. Nevertheless, nothing can prevent an addicted person from taking multiple doses at once. This may be a result of the inherent nature of the drugs to activate reward pathways in the brain along with its analgesic effects though mu receptors. Another opioid receptor, kappa-opioid receptor (KOR), has been shown to limit motivational properties of drug abuse (Lalanne, Ayranci, Keiffer Lutz, 2014). This has sparked interest in development of kappa agonists as novel analgesics with low abuse potential. Examples of known selective kappa agonists include U50488, CR665, and CR845 among many others including those continuing to be developed. However, questions still remain about analgesic efficacy and complications for patients already addicted to mu opioids transitioning to kappa agonists. This literature review explores the anti-nociceptive efficacy of kappa agonists and their ability to m anage opioid addicted patients. Balancing adequate pain control with risk of future abuse has been a difficult endeavour for physicians as well as patients. This topic was chosen to investigate the possibility of a potent pain medication without addictive properties as an alternative to traditional mu opioids. Surely, this would be a major instrument in the treatment of chronic pain. This study will be done under the hypothesis that kappa agonists are effective in management of pain and opioid addiction. Methods A search was performed for published literature on PubMed. Search terms were selected to assess analgesic properties and anti-addiction properties of kappa agonists on opiate use (Table 1). The search terms used included: pain, chronic pain, kappa opioid, kappa agonist, pain control, anti-nociception, withdrawal, dependence, addiction, and tolerance. This study looked at articles in English published between December 2006 and December 2016. Articles of all levels of evidence were considered and included review, preclinical, and clinical data. The initial search produced 574 results. These resources were then screened with the following exclusion criteria: articles not involving kappa agonists/receptors, articles on opioids without kappa receptor selectivity, articles on opioids with dual agonist activity, articles on kappa agonist interaction with drugs that were not analgesics. Abstract reviews of the remaining articles were performed to select for articles on analgesic efficacy or anti-addictive properties of selective kappa agonists. The resulting collection of evidence was organized into an evidence table (Appendix). Table 1-Keyword Search Strategy Population Intervention Comparison Outcome Pain OR Chronic Pain Kappa opioid OR Kappa agonist Analgesia OR Analgesic OR Pain control OR Antinociception OR Anti-nociception OR Withdrawal OR Dependence OR Addiction OR Tolerance Results A final total of 11 articles were included in this study, the majority being animal studies on mice or rats. One study involved rhesus monkeys. There was one study that involved a human clinical trial. Also, there was one review using human clinical trials focused only on peripherally selective kappa agonists. Table 2-Summary of Study Designs Reviewed Study Design # of Studies Animal Models 9 Clinical Trials 1 Review 1 Analgesic Efficacy An animal study by Auh and Ro (2012) induced inflammation in rat hindpaws with injections of complete Freunds adjuvant. After 3 days, when mechanical hyperalgesia was well developed, local injections of kappa agonist U50488 were given at different doses and mechanical threshold for hindpaw withdraw response was measured. The results showed dose-dependent increase in mechanical threshold by local injections of U50488 (Auh Ro, 2012). A time effect was also observed where increasing doses of U50488 prolonged the anti-hyperalgesia effect. The role of kappa opioids in inflammatory pain was also studied by Moon et al. (2016) in a research on the effects of peripheral kappa opioid receptors and arthritic pain. Arthritis was induced in rats using 1% ÃŽÂ »-carrageenan injected into the knee. After nociceptive behaviour was maximally expressed (reduced weight-bearing in ipsilateral joint), U50488 was injected into affected joints. A two-way repeated-measure ANOVA showed significant recovery of reduced weight-bearing in the affected limb in comparison to saline. In addition to inhibited nociceptive behaviour, U50488 was also found to reduce mechanosensitive afferent nerve fibre activity in the carrageenan-induced inflamed knee using nerve recording techniques. Aside from inflammatory pain relief by U50488, the peripheral kappa opioid CR665 was found to significantly increase pain threshold to esophageal distension in a study by Arendt-Nielsen et al. (2009). This randomized, double blinded, controlled study compared the effects of CR665 against oxycodone on skin, muscle, and visceral pain stimulation in healthy males. Although CR665 increased pain threshold to esophageal distension, oxycodone had the same effect with addition to increased pain threshold to cutaneous pinch pain, cuff pressure pain, and thermal stimulation. A number of other clinical trials, on peripheral kappa agonist CR845, were reviewed by Albert-Vartanian et al. (2016). A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study was conducted on elective hysterectomy patients for analgesic efficacy before and after the procedure, using a 10 cm visual analog scale for measurement of pain intensity. If pain persisted after 24 hours, rescue medication (IV morphine) was given. Significant differences were observed in comparison to patients who only received placebo. Less use of rescue medication as well as a 2-fold decrease in pain intensity was found in patients that received CR845 before and after the surgery. Albert-Vartanian et al. (2016) also discussed a phase 2, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial in patients electing bunionectomy surgery with fentanyl as rescue medication. Over a 48 hour period, pain was measured regularly using a visual analog scale. The study used a sum of pain intensity difference from baseline levels over 24 hours (SPID ­0-24) as a measurement for efficacy along with SPID0-36 and SPID0-48. In patients who completed the study, there was a statistically significant reduction in SPID0-24 and SPID0-48 in those treated with CR845 compared to placebo. However, there was no significant difference in the modified intent-to-treat group. In another phase 2 trial, patients with moderate to severe osteoarthritis pain (>4 out of an 11 point scale) were given an oral form of CR845 with acetaminophen as a rescue drug over 2 weeks (Albert-Vartanian, 2016). A dose-dependent reduction in average pain score of 25-34% was observed. Among patients receiving the highest dose of CR845, 50% had a reduction of †°Ã‚ ¥30% in their reported pain score at the end of the 2 weeks with an 80% reduction in requirement for acetaminophen. Analgesic Efficacy with Other Measures of Pain Aside from sensory components of pain, there are affective and behavioural components of pain as well. An electrophysiological experiment conducted by Huge, Rammes, Beyer, Zieglgansberger, Azad (2009) looked at the effects of kappa opioid receptors activation on mice basolateral amygdala, an area of the brain that is involved in pain processing and pain memory formation. The field potential amplitudes were measured at baseline and under induced long-term potentiation using high frequency stimulation and the effects of kappa agonist U50488H were studied.   The experiment found that U50488H decreased baseline levels of field potential amplitude as seen in Figure 1, while these effects were inhibited by kappa receptor antagonist norbinaltorphimine (nor-BNI). Figure 1. Effects of Kappa Agonist and Antagonist on Field Potential Amplitude of Mice Amygdala. Baseline (BL): 100 ±0.5%; U50488H: 86.3 ±2.4%, nor-BNI: 100 ±4.2%. Data points show average field potential (FP)  ± Standard Error. Reproduced from Huge et al., 2009, p. 125. Prior application of U50488H before high frequency stimulation was also found to inhibit induction of long term potentiation (Figure 2) in comparison to long term potentiation induction with no drug (Figure 3). Figure 2. Effect of Kappa Agonist Pre-treatment on High Frequency Stimulated Long Term Potentiation of Mice Amygdala. U50488H: 100 ±4.1%; High Frequency Stimulation (HFS): 102.6 ±7%. Data points show average field potential (FP)  ± Standard Error. Reproduced from Huge et al., 2009, p. 126. Figure 3. Long Term Potentiation Produced by High Frequency Stimulation. Baseline (BL): 100 ±2%, High Frequency Stimulation (HFS): 119 ±4%. Data points show average field potential (FP)  ± Standard Error. Reproduced from Huge et al., 2009, p. 126. Although pain-stimulated behaviours are often used as a measure of pain, such as a withdrawal or writhing response, complementary measures are behaviours that diminish in the presence of pain stimuli (Negus, OConnell, Morrissey, Cheng Rice, 2011, p. 506-507). An experiment by Negus et al. (2011) studied the effects of peripheral and central kappa agonists compared to ketoprofen on rats trained to evoke intracranial self-stimulation using a lever, a behaviour that is depressed by pain. Intraperitoneal lactic acid injection acted as a pain-inducing stimulus, with a stretch response being a pain-stimulated behaviour to contrast with the pain-depressed behaviour of intracranial self-stimulation. It was found that the central kappa agonist (salvinorin A), peripheral kappa agonists (ffir and ICI204448), and ketoprofen all inhibited lactic acid induced stretching. However, only ketoprofen inhibited lactic acid induced depression of intracranial self-stimulation. Salvinorin A had actually i ncreased depression of intracranial self-stimulation while ffir and ICI204448 had no appreciable effect. Similar results were found when Negus et al. used depression of nesting in mice as a measure of pain (2015). Kappa agonist U69593 failed to both inhibit and reverse depression of nesting induced by intraperitoneal lactic acid and intraplantar complete Freunds adjuvant (Figure 4A 4B). However, 1-way ANOVA analysis (pFigure 4A 4B). U69593 was shown to actually depress nesting when administered independently (Figure 4C) and this effect was not able to be reversed by neither ketoprofen nor morphine (Figure 4D). Figure 4. Effects of Ketoprofen, Morphine, and U69593 on Nesting under Different Conditions. Panel A: Nesting depressed by intraperitoneal administration of 0.32% lactic acid. Panel B: Nesting depressed by intraplantar administration of complete Freunds adjuvant. Panel C: Nesting under no treatment. Panel D: Nesting depressed by U69593. Nesting represented as the number of zones cleared of nesting material. V represents drug vehicle only. Darkened points represent significant difference from drug vehicle under given condition. Reproduced from Negus et al., 2015, p. 18.       Interactions with Mu Opioids There is evidence suggesting kappa agonists have anti-addictive effects (Lalanne et al., 2014). However, it is important to evaluate the effects of kappa opioids in concurrent use with mu opioids. A study on interactions of fentanyl and U69593 in rhesus monkeys showed a decrease in the rate of drug self-administration when the kappa agonist was added to fentanyl compared to fentanyl alone (Negus, Schrode Stevenson, 2008). This effect increased with greater proportions of U69593 in the mixture (Figure 5). Using a conditioned response for food as a measurement for activity, both fentanyl and U69593 alone depressed the behaviour while mixtures showed a less than additive effect. Furthermore, at the lowest proportion tested (0.22:1 U69593/fentanyl), U69593 reduced the behaviour depressing effects of fentanyl. Figure 5. Rate of Self-Administration of Fentanyl vs. Dose of Fentanyl, U69593, or Mixture. Reproduced from Negus et al., 2008. Negus et al. also demonstrated additive thermal anti-nociception, using tail withdrawal threshold from heated water, with the fentanyl/U69593 mixtures at all proportions tested (2008). More evidence of additive effects of kappa and mu opioids was shown by Sakakihara, Imamachi, Saito using a similar method in mice (2016). Intrathecal injection of kappa agonist TRK-820 combined with morphine resulted in a stronger anti-nociceptive effect compared to morphine alone. Compared to morphine alone, kappa agonists also have benefits regarding the development of tolerance. It is well known that repeated use of mu opioids quickly develops tolerance. The addition of a kappa agonist has been shown to inhibit the development of tolerance to morphine (Hamabe, Yamane, Harada Tokuyama, 2008). Mice treated daily with subcutaneous morphine for 5 days developed reduced analgesia from morphine from days 3 to 5. However, daily administration of kappa agonist U50488H 5 minutes after injection of morphine attenuated the onset of tolerance (Figure 6). Additionally, pre-treatment of kappa receptor antagonist nor-BNI inhibited the tolerance-blocking activity of U50488H. Figure 6. Effect of Kappa Agonist U50488H on Morphine Tolerance. Each point show means  ± standard error. AUC: Area under curve. #: P Although U50488H inhibited the development of tolerance it was unable to inhibit morphine withdrawal (Tao et al., 2008). However, Tao et al. demonstrated that another kappa agonist, LPK-26, may be able to. Chronic doses of morphine, kappa agonist (LPK-26 or U50488H), or both were administered to mice over 5 days and induction of withdrawal was achieved by subcutaneous injection of naloxone 2 hours after the final dose of morphine. Chronic treatment with LPK-26 did not produce a withdrawal response. However, chronic treatment with morphine produced a strong withdrawal response in the form of withdrawal jumping. Furthermore, chronic treatment with morphine along with pre-treatment with LPK-26 had a significant reduction in withdrawal response in a dose dependent manner (Figure 7A). Body weight was also measured before and after naloxone withdrawal induction (Figure 7B). Only LPK-26 showed significant reduction of morphine-induced weight loss. Figure 7. Effects of LPK-26 and U50488H on Withdrawal Jumping and Weight Loss. Data set shown as mean  ± standard error. Reproduced from Tao et al., 2008, p.310. Discussion Analgesic Efficacy of Kappa Opioids Side effects of selective kappa agonists mainly stem from its activity in the central nervous system. These side effects are the main hindrance for pharmacologic use of kappa opioids and include dizziness, dysphoria, confusion, sedation, hallucinations, diuresis, and even psychotic symptoms at high doses (Walsh, Strain, Abreu, Bigelow, 2001). Strategies to minimize these unwanted effects revolve around limiting the activity of kappa agonists to peripheral sites of action. Local injections have been shown to reduce inflammatory pain in animal models through reduced activity of afferent nerve fibres (Auh Ro, 2012; Moon et al., 2016). Although the analgesic results mentioned were limited to animal models, in humans, intravenous administration of peripherally selective formulation CR665 also shows evidence of analgesia for visceral and surgical pain (Arendt-Nielsen et al., 2009; Albert-Vartanian et al., 2016). Furthermore, oral formulations CR665 have been shown to reduce inflammatory osteoarthritic pain in humans (Albert-Vartanian et al., 2016). Continued pain treatment is required if kappa opioids are to be considered as an alternative to mu opioids and research shows viability of kappa opioids in different formulations and routes of administration for the treatment of pain in traditional measures. The components of pain include affective elements as well, which is especially important in chronic pain. Pain affect is comprised of the unpleasant emotions associated with pain as well the emotions towards future implications of having chronic pain. The latter is based on reflections of pain memory and is known as secondary pain affect. As a consequence, chronic pain states can lead to depression and anxiety, which lowers well-being and quality of life (Price, 2000). The amygdala is a crucial structure in the brain involved in emotional learning, pain processing, and constructing of pain memories (Huge et al., 2009). Kappa opioids are able to reduce the activity and inhibit long-term potentiation in the basolateral amygdala. As long-term potentiation is considered a cellular model for learning and memory formation, kappa opioids may be able to prevent or extinguish pain memory and treat affective components of pain. However, this experiment, at the moment, is limited to mice and fu rther study is required to assess whether the results can be translated to human.   Furthermore, these results may be due to structurally specific central actions on the amygdala as other studies show evidence of dysphoric effects from central kappa opioid receptor activation (Lalanne et al., 2014). Although kappa agonists have regularly been shown to provide analgesia in assays using pain-stimulated behaviours as measurements of pain, there is contrast when pain-depressed behaviours are observed instead. Pain-depressed behaviours are behaviours that are decreased due to pain. Some examples that have been tested in animal models are feeding, movement, and reinforced behaviours. In humans, it is analogous to mood or functionality. When pain-depressed behaviours are studied, not only do centrally active kappa agonists fail to relieve pain of this aspect, they may worsen it (Negus et al., 2012; Negus et al., 2015). It should be noted that peripherally active kappa agonists relieve pain in pain-stimulated assays without affecting pain in pain-depressed assays and may be safer than centrally active kappa agonists (Negus et al., 2011). In comparison to kappa opioids, conventional analgesics such as mu opioids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs do relieve such components of pain in addition to pain-stimulated behaviours (Negus et al., 2011; Negus et al., 2015). Even so, kappa agonist still have value as they have been shown to reduce pain in human trials as discussed previously. The studies on pain-depressed behaviours have limitations to animal models and further studies are needed to understand how clinically relevant the effects may be for humans. Managing Addiction Some of the major problems of using mu opioids for pain control are the development of tolerance, dependence, and drug abuse, which may all contribute to addiction. Although there are many other drugs that also relieve pain, the difficulty lies in managing addiction at the same time. Kappa agonists, aside from having low abuse potential, have been shown to decrease self-administration of fentanyl in animal models (Negus et al., 2008). These results are promising evidence for kappa agonists being agents to prevent opioid abuse. Also, kappa agonists have additive analgesic effects with mu opioids (Negus et al., 2008; Sakakihara et al., 2016). This possibly reduces the amount of mu opioid required for effective pain management while also reducing addiction and abuse liability due to less use. Increased usage of mu opioids may be due to the development of tolerance, requiring increased dosage to maintain analgesia. The high addictive potential of mu opioids makes this a concerning issue. However, addition of kappa agonists during administration of mu opioids may be able to significantly inhibit the development of tolerance (Hamabe et al., 2008). It may be possible to prevent the development of physical dependence and addiction to mu opioids by adding kappa agonists to drug regimens of chronic pain patients. As for those who are already affected by physical dependence on mu opioids, there is evidence that kappa opioids can inhibit withdrawal symptoms and reduce dependence (Tao et al., 2008). However, some kappa agonists, such as U50488H, do not have any significant effect. It has been suggested that the inconsistency may be due to varying affinities for different subtypes of kappa opioid receptors. Nonetheless, this study demonstrates potential for kappa agonists in managing opioid addiction through modulating dependence and withdrawal. Future studies may provide better understanding on subtype functions and improve designs for desired effects while minimize side effects. Also, as the studies regarding kappa agonist interaction with mu opioids are mainly done on animal models, further investigation is required to see whether results can be extended to humans. One important point to distinguish is non-selective versus peripherally selective kappa agonists. As mentioned previously, activation of kappa receptors in the central nervous system can lead to many side effects. Peripherally selective kappa agonists still produces analgesia, but it is uncertain whether the effects of the kappa agonists on abuse, tolerance, and dependence are due to central or peripheral activity. If these effects are due to central activity, the benefits of kappa agonists for addiction management will be limited by their undesired side effects. Still, in a study involving a peripherally selective kappa agonist and its effects on nicotine, there is some evidence suggesting that activation of peripheral kappa receptors do inhibit symptoms of withdrawal and dependence by inhibiting activity of central kappa receptors. Conclusion In conclusion, this study found that selective kappa agonists provide analgesia to inflammatory, visceral, and surgical pain. In contrast, they were not effective inhibitors of behaviour-depressing effects of pain. Specific activities of kappa receptors in the basolateral amygdala, however, may inhibit affective components of pain.   In managing addiction, kappa agonists may able to prevent mu opioid abuse, prevent the development of tolerance, inhibit the symptoms of withdrawal, and reduce physical dependence. The additive effect with mu opioids and the inhibition of tolerance development can reduce the required amount of mu opioids for effective analgesia, thus reducing abuse and addiction likelihood. Overall, selective kappa agonists are a good prospect for managing pain while combating opioid abuse and addiction. Appendix Evidence Table First Author Date of Publication Study Design Level of Evidence Study Population Therapy or Exposure Outcome/Results Albert-Vartanian 2016 Review 1 Human CR845 CR845 reduced pain with less abuse potential Arendt-Nielsen 2009 Clinical trial 1 Healthy males CR665, Oxycodone CR665 is effective on visceral pain Auh 2012 Animal model 0 Rats U-50488 Local kappa agonist attenuated inflammatory mechanical hyperalgesia Hamabe 2008 Animal model 0 Mice Morphine, U-50488H Analgesic tolerance to morphine is prevented by U-50488H through suppression of PKC Huge 2009 Animal model 0 Mice U-50488H Activation of kappa receptors decrease synaptic transmission and long term potentiation in the amygdala Moon 2016 Animal model 0 Rats U-50488, Nor-BNI U-50488 inhibits nociception in arthritic knee joints of rats Negus 2008 Animal Model 0 Rhesus Monkey Fentanyl, U69593 Addition of kappa agonist to fentanyl demonstrated additive anti-nociception and decreased drug self administration Negus 2011 Animal Model 0 Rats Ffir, ICI204448, Salvinorin A Kappa agonists do not inhibit pain-depressed behaviours Negus 2015 Animal model 0 Mice Morphine, Ketoprofen, U69593 Morphine/Ketoprofen inhibited pain-depressed behaviours whereas U69593 failed to do so Sakakihara 2016 Animal Model 0 Mice Morphine, TRK-820, Nor-BNI Addition of kappa agonist to morphine may have additive anti-nociceptive effects Tao 2008 Animal Model 0 Mice Morphine, LPK-26, U50488H LPK-26 is a potent analgesic with low dependence and inhibits morphine withdrawal

Organizational Culture And Change Management

Organizational Culture And Change Management The world has become a global village and so do the businesses. Competition among industries is becoming more and more global and businesses are facing ever climbing pressure to compete at this level. The market needs are changing rapidly and continuously and to cope with this, organizations have to keep on changing themselves to meet the new demands. The change can be a change in product or service, marketing strategies, change in management or IT system etc. but the most difficult thing to change is the values and beliefs of the people because its natural that people resist change. Cultural change is a difficult thing to do as there are people involved in it. British Airways had gone through a cultural change which started in early 80s when the company was in bad condition and was about to go bank corrupt. The newly appointed CEO Colin Marshall lead the change and took the company out of the crises and made it one the most respectable airlines of the world in less than 10 years time. This paper will talk about the problems with BAs leadership and organizational culture which lead the company to those crises and its affects on performance and this paper will also talk about the successful implementation of the change. The paper will demonstrate the analysis of the change process and flaws in the change which could have lead to better results if managed properly. Organizational Culture: Culture is the beliefs and values of people. The collective programming of the mind which differentiates the one group of people from another, culture in this sense includes system of values. Culture comprises of language, religion, customs, manners and education (Bode 2008). Language is the most important way of understanding cultures as this is the way information flows. Many scholars have been trying to define culture and they have defined it but it is always said that it is difficult. Culture is a very complex a phenomenon and cannot be captured in a few dimensions (Bode 2008). Organizations do have a culture and in simple words it was defined by Deal and Kennedy (1996) that the culture is the way things get done around here. Organizational cultural is influenced mainly by the leaders of the organization and also by the personal values and beliefs of the people. It is basically the system of mutually shared beliefs and values by the people of the organization. Organizational culture is a key component in achieving the organizational goals and strategies, improving the organizations competitiveness and effectiveness and management of change (Adeyoyin, 2006). BAs History: British Airways came into existence in result of a merger of two British carriers, BOAC (British Overseas Airways Corporation) and BEA (British European Airways) in 1970s (Marriott 1998). British Airways is one of the most respectable and preferred airlines in the world today. British Airways won the Airline of the year award in 2007 on 25th OAG awards (BBC news). This success of the airline is the outcome of a successful cultural change started in early 80s. Before 1980s BA was doing good as there was little competition in the market and BA controlled 60% of the UK domestic markets and faced competition on only 9% of the routes in and out of the UK (Redman Wilkinson 2009). Due to little or no competition BA didnt focused on customer satisfaction and other issues and carried on the traditional way of doing things which lead them to disastrous situations when they felt the need for change. In 80s the rivalry among the airlines was limited in concerned to BA because BA was controlling 60% of the routes (Business Economics 1982). The threats of the substitutes was also limited for BA because BA has covered most of the routes and had large number of destinations and left the customers some times with no other choice. BA didnt have the focus on customer satisfaction and profit maximization and this caused major customer dissatisfaction. Lack of punctuality and uncomfortable flights were the reasons for this dissatisfaction (Warhurst 1995). BA recorded financial losses of  £140m and this leaves a threat for the new entrant in the market. So the threat for the new entrant was there. Drivers for change: Humans change with the passage of time as per the requirement and situation at hand. Similarly organisations need to change as well to adapt to the changing internal and external environment. A need of change can arise from two kinds of factors i.e. Internal and External factors. External factors include the competition, technological advancements, innovation, and deregulation of industry, labour costs, and access to resources, international economic changes, and government policies. Internal change factors tend to follow on from the external ones, and include adapting to shifts in corporate missions, changes in technological equipment and processes, shifts in employee attitudes and behaviour and corporate culture. In BAs case the initiating factors were both internal and external. The external factors were the competition, the governments threat of privatization, and access to cheaper resources and increasing prices of oil. The internal factors involved in pushing BA towards going f or a change were the internal rigid culture, Change of equipments and staff related issues. How the culture was formed? BAs cultural change was a success and still it is being used as a reference or a guide for the firms who go for cultural change (Mills et al 2008). There were four major companies who went through cultural change and some of the reasons among them were common, e.g. threat of privatization. Those companies were Jaguar, British Airport Authority (BAA), British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL), and British Airways (BA). The founders of a company or the forefathers have a significant influence on the culture formation of a business. The way they do things leave a long lasting impact on the followers thus become the part of the culture (Poole et al 2004). Jaguar and BAA for example have always had charismatic leaders. Sir William Lyons and Sir Norman Payne were both charismatic leaders and autocratic in style (Salama 1995). This leaves the impression on the follower managers and showed its effects in their decision making styles. BNFL and BA till 1984 didnt have any charismatic leader like Jaguar and BAA (Salama 1995). There was variation in departments which shows the values of each of the departmental head. Christopher Harding was appointed as the chairman in 1984 and before him there wasnt a single dominant character at the top management level. Because BA had its origin from the ministry of defence, there was a strong civil service influence in the company. BA had a strong and close contact with Royal Air Force and both pilots and managers were recruited from RAF frequently. These militants left a very operational flavour to the organizations culture. In a survey a manager said that we couldnt get away from the fact that we are on a mission and that mission is everything to us and the customer are just an unfortunate add on. The management and leadership style was not participative as the CEO and the former chairman personally were very distant from the staff. The technical knowledge was considered to be very vital and the managers were recruited and promoted on the basis of their technical abilities instead of managerial abilities. All these factors made the culture of BA very rigid and a critical cultural change became the only solution for the company to survive. The Change Scope: Background: Other than the increasing competition and fuel costs, old fleets, and high staff costs in 80s, BAs management had to tackle these issues in order to avoid going bank corrupt, Improving the companys financial performance fundamentally, pre-tax losses were showing a figure of  £240m in 81 and 82 (Annual report 1st April 1983). CEO of BA said in 1982 that their money is draining at the rate of  £200 every minute (Mills et al 2006). Convincing the workforce of the supreme importance of customer services for the success of the company. Improving the perceptions about BA in the market. Maintaining momentum and regaining the focus which will allow them to meet new challenges. The main reasons for this crisis on BA were its culture and history. BEA and BOAC came together to form BA in 1981 (Staniland 2003). They remained sovereign till 1976 when the group division was changed to a structure based on functional divisions. Still a distinctive split within BA persisted until the mid 1980s. This improper assimilation disallowed BA to achieve the desired benefits of the merger, could not attain a common focus, created management segregation squabbles and resulted in a lack of a unifying corporate culture (Doganis 2002). The funny side of the merger was that most of the BEA and BOAC employees were war veterans who used to fly military aircrafts and they had a great influence on shaping the culture of BA. BAs culture was influenced by military mentality with a purely operational focus. The employees believe that their job is only to fly the plan safely and land it on time. Customer satisfaction and customer care, profit maximization and productivity were not considered as top priorities (Bowhill 2008). BA had financial support from the government and was doing a profitable business in the 70s (Parker 2009). These were the reasons which made it easier for BA to neglect its increasing inefficiencies over time. It was getting even more difficult to persuade the workforce and the management towards the need of a fundamental change. The competition was rising in the market and customer dissatisfaction plus the employees absenteeism were on the rise and the need for change was critical. The 1981 survival plan: The merger in 1981 leaves the company overstaffed and the staff expenses were unaffordable. The survival plan involves downsizing and the staff was reduced from 52000 to 43000 through voluntary measures. A 20% decrease in workforce in 9 months was a major downsizing (Thompson Martin 2009). Freezing pay was increased for a year which caused more volunteers leaving the job than was required. 16 routed were closed, 8 online stations and 2 engineering bases were shut down (Carleton Lineberry 2004). The survival plan was all about minimizing the costs and expenses as the company was heading towards bankruptcy. The activities involved in minimizing the costs also includes the halting of cargo service and selling the fleets and massive cuts in number of offices, administrative services and staff clubs etc (Jones and Lockwood 2002). Things were not going right and the survival plan was amended and staff was reduced by another 7000 and the total number than was appro ximately 35000. The voluntary laying off schemes cost the company around  £150 million and the company ended up with more volunteers than necessary because of no job security and sinking conditions of the company (Carleton Lineberry 2004). Changing image of the Airline: British airways had a bad image in the customers mind dew to unsatisfactory services and relatively higher prices. A survey by the International Airline Passengers Association put BA at the top of a list of the airlines to be avoided. (Redman Wilkinson). To improve the image of the organization BA launched its Manhattan Landing and The worlds favourite Airline campaigns and raised the advertising budget which was  £19m to  £31m for the year 1983-1984 in order to signal a clear commitment to changing the corporate image (Leban et al 2005). Building its turnaround team: 30% of the old employees had left the organization voluntarily which involved senior mangers as well (Barsoux Manzoni 1997). Culture is formed by leaders and now these leaders were not there which helped the cultural change process. Newly appointed CEO Sir Collin Marshall was a very charismatic leader. He brought in some new blood to give the company a fresh perspective and to regain focus. In 1983, Colin Marshall made customer service a personal crusade (Reichheld 1996). Customer services were something absent in the BAs culture which was very rigid and he wanted to achieve a shift from a strongly British, engineering, and operationally driven culture to one that emphasized productivity and profits while increasing the value placed on customer service. Support from top management: To make a change successful the leaders need to play the role model. Leader needs to be the one, who actually put the change terms in practice, supports his team and give them freedom of expression (Cameron 2004). Collin Marshall in this regard was very concerned and he used to spend lot of his time in terminals with staff communicating and reinforcing the desired culture for the organization and its mutual and individual advantages. Employees were given the freedom to share their ideas and thoughts and give their suggestions about helping the change to carry forward. Employees feel listened to and feels themselves as part of the companys success. Education and Training: Change needs to be reinforced and communicated regularly to make it feel happening. A continuous training needs to be done to help employees adapting to the new culture. BA in this regard conducted a training program named PPF (Putting People First). This training program was aimed at the people to examine their interactions with other people. The main focus of the training was to build positive relationships and customer services. Nearly 40000 of BAs employees attended the training program (Leban et al 2005). Another training program conducted by BA was MPF (Managing People First). This training program was aimed at other issues like culture and its importance, the leadership, trust, vision and feedback. These behaviour moulding programs resulted in good and BA was able to move on towards cultural change. After one year of training with TMI (training consultants), BA moved into profit (Senior Fleming 2006). Make the Change visible: Change needs to visible to the outside world. British Airways unveiled their new planes at Heathrow Airport and their new uniforms to give the world an impression that they have gone through a change and now they are a better organization (Leban et al 2005). With in 10 years the cultural change program succeeded in creating a strong commitment to productivity, profits and customer services. The morale was higher and the companys image in the market was better and this change lift the company out of bankruptcy to become one the worlds most respected airline. British Airways have launched a new campaign in 2009 named ONE DESTINATION. The CEO said at the time of launch that we started our journey towards responsible air travel in 1984 and we have discovered that our customers love to fly with us but are concerned about their impact on the environment (BBC news). Getting over the resistance with the help of suitable change models: Kurt Lewins change model comprises of three steps, i.e. Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze. The first stage in Lewins change model is unfreezing that is when manager develops a felt or need for the change which can be because of declining profits or shrinking market shares etc. In BAs case both profits and market shares were declining. This is where the CEO Collin Marshall felt the need for the change. The unfreezing stage is very crucial as this is when managers are making the workforce ready for the change. This is the advertising phase where the vision and content of the change is communicated which inspires the workforce and gains their commitment. Brirish Airways in this regard conducted the behaviour moulding conferences named PPF and MPF to change the behaviours and make the people ready for the change. The next stage in Lewins model is the change it self. This is the stage where the terms of the change are practically implied and practiced. The survival plan discussed above aimed at cost reduction and than the activities like increasing the advertising budget, hiring new blood and educating and training the people was the change process which was very well lead by the CEO. At this stage continuous feedback and reinforcement is required to make the change feel happening. Collin Marshall himself used to talk with the employees in small groups and spent his most of time reinforcing his vision and desired culture. Refreezing is the stage when people start to embrace the change and the organization has moved to the new culture. This is the stage where the change should be visible and BA made the change visible by inaugurating their new fleets and uniforms. John P. Kotter in his 8 step change model says that a strong enough team is required to carry the change process forward. BA did create a team of new blood managers who gave the company a fresh ad current perspective of business. Kotters model emphasize on communicating the vision of the change and BA was up to the task and had a great support from the senior management as the employees had the freedom of sharing their ideas and thoughts. Leadership Styles: As mentioned above that leadership of BA was heavily influenced by the retired army officers and co ordination and co operation was missing and leaders were like dictators. When the new CEO took over he changed the way of leading as in the process of downsizing, some senior managers were also removed from their positions because of the out dated leadership techniques. The success of the change was because of the new leadership who acted as mentors, and by adopting the democratic, consultive and persuasive, and transformational styles of leadership. Analysis of the Change at BA: The Thatcher Governments announcement of privatizing British Airways was the initial trigger which started the whole process of change (Staniland 2003). The need for the cultural change in BA arises in the transitional phase of the economic environment. The airline industry in UK was facing a severe competition which was an outcome of the privatization. Airline industry in UK was put to work under highly deregulated market which historically used to work in highly regulated market. The privatization decision changed the historic values and beliefs of BA dramatically as the organizations mission in the past was to make sure that planes fly safely and land safely. Profit maximization and competition were not much of an issue. Changing the culture is an ongoing process (Schabracq 2007) and even it is fully achieved, it still goes on in the form of monitoring and continuous inspection. British Airways since 1984 is in the transition phase and is replacing some of its main historical values and beliefs to be consistent with the new mission (Salama 1995). Collin Marshall was appointed as the CEO in order to accomplish this required cultural change. Training and behaviour changing programmes and evaluation systems have been introduced to motivate and stimulate changes. But in some areas other managerial career subsystems such as selection and promotion, had experienced minor modifications. Despite BA had put great deal of effort into encouraging certain behaviours, staff did not collate its employment policies and practices around the new culture (Coles et al 2000). BA failed to institutionalize the change through their stabilisation action plans. Management techniques were certainly impressive, but not everyo ne benefited from them. In areas such as marketing, the criteria for choosing Managers had changed from technical to managerial skills. However, some managers still preferred the old fashioned recruitment procedure based on promoting and selecting people who were good technical individuals, therefore BA had difficulties maintaining the change. At the corporate level, the managers were now rewarded based on performance. The new appraisal system varies across functions as the criteria for good performance was different among different departments. This issue arises from the HR departments ignorance towards the different subculture. The HR department had been trying to impose its own values and beliefs on the rest of the organization and this was identified by Marshall and a new structure for HR was developed later on in order to give the department units more autonomy. This conflicting situation reflects a lack of consensus regarding the desired organizational culture as viewed by top management. Recent Issues: BA had won awards for Best Airline and Best Business Class, a total of 7 awards (Investors Report BA.co.uk). However, BA was also on top of the list of the companies that had complaints, made by the AUC (Air Transport Users Council), totalling 117. Air France came second with 110 and Ryanair third with 77, EasyJet had 42 total complaints (BBCnews.co.uk 20 Aug 2002). If BA adopt a strategy for focus differentiation, tighter controls on the safe handling of baggage, more effective booking services would require to be implemented in order to provide this quality service, thus gaining customer satisfaction and justification of price differentiation. This would inevitably enhance its image and reputation (Johnson et al 2008). CONCLUSION/RECOMMENDATION: British Airways had gone through many changes in order to promote this cultural change. British Airways lacked a holistic approach while implementing the change because despite of the HR departments attempts towards forming policies and procedures around the new culture, there was evidently a gap between HR and middle management. Some managers were still using the traditional approaches of reward system and recruiting people. British Airways needed to adopt a partnership model within HR. This model is about establishing a common interest in order to secure the competitiveness, viability and prosperity of an organisation. Economic tensions appreciated within this model, are fitting to British Airways unstable environment. The Partnership model talks about getting a commitment from employees to improve quality and efficiency and the acceptance by the employers as stakeholders with interest to be considered when decisions are made. In the beginning it will require a top to bottom approa ch in order to promote and advertise the change. However promoting good strategies which are suitable for all the departments and areas of the organization, as opposed to some areas, is the key to its success. British Airways need to adopt this model to promote teambuilding and working together kind of environment. This model will help in identifying the organizational goal by mutually sharing the values and beliefs of the people and they will start moving in same direction and the outcome of the change can be seen in the whole organization. British Airways is once again in crisis at the current time and is showing record  £401 million pre tax losses (BBC news). Flights are late and customers are facing some sort of the same issues as there were in 1980s. British Airways has a good history and current image in the consumer market. They might need another change in the organization. The change started in 1984 and still things need to be done. Therefore it can be said that changing culture is a complex and long term undertaking (Thomas 2005). It involves coordinated efforts by the top management to change its own values and behaviour and communicates it to the followers and others in the organization. Such changes must be reinforced by shifts in management education, selection and promotion. Culture cannot be managed on its own or as separate from the rest of the organization.

Mind Sports :: essays research papers

It seems almost like an oxymoron to combine the words mind and sport especially when the "sport" under consideration is chess. It is difficult to picture the game as a sport when the most physical activity it seems to require is moving the pieces across the board. Recently, though, the Olympic committee voted chess legal for competition in "The Games." This acknowledgment of chess as a sport by such a high council requires us to rethink our view of chess and athletics. Although chess does not appear to require as much activity as most recognizable sports, it does require as much, if not more, preparation and time. A study done at Temple University found that chess drains energy at a rate that compares to football. Some of the best chess players in history regarded athletic training as an essential part of success in the game. Both Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov lifted weights. They used other physical conditioning techniques as well, not necessarily for their health, but because of the amount of stamina the game requires at high levels of competition. It is not uncommon for a professional player to lose 10 to 15 pounds during the course of a match. Matches can last as long as a month, with one game every day, eight hours each. Over 120 countries officially consider chess a sport. The Unites States is not one of them. That may be because we seem to have a very narrow-minded view of what exactly a sport is. Ask any random person if chess should be considered a sport, and the most likely response will be hysterical laughter, yet more people play chess competitively than any other game in the world, and more books have been published on chess than any other subject. Most of those players and authors firmly believe that chess is harder to be good at than any other game or sport. The thought of chess as a sport probably just never occurred to most people. Playing in a chess tournament is akin to taking a test that has not been studied for but that will decide something important, except that chess also has the added problem of time. Imagine taking that test with a time limit, like the SAT’s for example, but that the clock that is keeping the time gives off a faint ticking sound. In a large room that is completely silent the only thing audible will be that noise, it is extremely nerve-racking for any inexperienced tournament player.

Living with Depression, Mania, and Medication Essay -- Personal Narrat

Living with Depression, Mania, and Medication Depression joined my life shortly after I entered middle school and tagged on persistently through my adolescent years. At first, my sullen moods were brushed off as mere hormonal changes, but I quickly became aware there was something more behind them. The severity of depression is difficult to explain without personal thoughts and examples. I know that my depression is coming long before it sets in. There is a cloud of forewarning that starts to move in on the vibrancy of my thoughts and vision; the world becomes distorted and negative. Slowly, this bleakness moves in from the outside world down to the pit of my stomach where it creates a dark, menacing feeling that makes me want to cry, scream, and vomit all at the same time. The feeling beckons me to a state of hopelessness and complete despair. Lingering thoughts of paranoia become prominent which leaves friends as foes out to abandon me and complete strangers as agents out to destroy me. The thoughts of negativity drag me deepe r and deeper until I am convinced there is no bottom; they separate me from the outside world. It is in this lowest state that one of two things happens: either I am persuaded by suicidal tendencies or the blackness lifts without a trace. Without medication, death was always a daunting possibility of ending this horrid affair. The cycling of depression became a constant part of my life leaving me always afraid of what was around the corner. The other side of that corner did not appear in my life until the end of high school. Around the time of my eighteenth birthday, my mania began its cycle. The brutality of mania may set in as mere normalcy, but, in time, that same "normalcy" can end worse than d... ...nia, and medication are all part of the bipolar disorder that will be with me for the rest of my life. The cruelty of depression and ruthlessness of mania are something that no person should have to bear. They force a person to doubt society, reject friends, and lose sanity while the disease slowly starts killing the victim from the inside out. However difficult my past has been made by depression and mania, my life has come to look brighter with the advancement of medication. Bipolar disorder is a life- long disease that will always have its setbacks; however, it is a disease that, with the proper medication, will not keep me locked in a cage separate from the outside world. With the diagnoses of bipolarity, I know that I will have to deal with depression and mania, but I also know that I was not born crazy. I was born with a disease, but I was meant to live as me. Living with Depression, Mania, and Medication Essay -- Personal Narrat Living with Depression, Mania, and Medication Depression joined my life shortly after I entered middle school and tagged on persistently through my adolescent years. At first, my sullen moods were brushed off as mere hormonal changes, but I quickly became aware there was something more behind them. The severity of depression is difficult to explain without personal thoughts and examples. I know that my depression is coming long before it sets in. There is a cloud of forewarning that starts to move in on the vibrancy of my thoughts and vision; the world becomes distorted and negative. Slowly, this bleakness moves in from the outside world down to the pit of my stomach where it creates a dark, menacing feeling that makes me want to cry, scream, and vomit all at the same time. The feeling beckons me to a state of hopelessness and complete despair. Lingering thoughts of paranoia become prominent which leaves friends as foes out to abandon me and complete strangers as agents out to destroy me. The thoughts of negativity drag me deepe r and deeper until I am convinced there is no bottom; they separate me from the outside world. It is in this lowest state that one of two things happens: either I am persuaded by suicidal tendencies or the blackness lifts without a trace. Without medication, death was always a daunting possibility of ending this horrid affair. The cycling of depression became a constant part of my life leaving me always afraid of what was around the corner. The other side of that corner did not appear in my life until the end of high school. Around the time of my eighteenth birthday, my mania began its cycle. The brutality of mania may set in as mere normalcy, but, in time, that same "normalcy" can end worse than d... ...nia, and medication are all part of the bipolar disorder that will be with me for the rest of my life. The cruelty of depression and ruthlessness of mania are something that no person should have to bear. They force a person to doubt society, reject friends, and lose sanity while the disease slowly starts killing the victim from the inside out. However difficult my past has been made by depression and mania, my life has come to look brighter with the advancement of medication. Bipolar disorder is a life- long disease that will always have its setbacks; however, it is a disease that, with the proper medication, will not keep me locked in a cage separate from the outside world. With the diagnoses of bipolarity, I know that I will have to deal with depression and mania, but I also know that I was not born crazy. I was born with a disease, but I was meant to live as me.

Five-Year Career Development Plan Essay -- Career Ambition

The term career plan is the broad-based exploration associated with the career or profession expansion or growth and gives a clear explanation concerning the people who administer his or her careers within the corporations along with what aspects corporations use in formulating his or her career improvement among his or her associates. Expanding or enlarging a career or professional preparation is not an easy task for the reason behind the expansion plan assists in planning the upcoming period; throughout the whole life period people continually alter or change his or her careers frequently. Therefore, totally based upon victorious evolution or changeovers is the arrangement a person has infect made in favor of unexpected changes or alterations. Imagination relating to the career planning seems to be a crucial factor in favor of a person’s present career to the subsequent one, devoid of the connection, one may easily hesitate or unable to find the right target, subsequently if a person has an association or connection a person must be secure and know proper course of action, which a person has to follow (Hansen, n.d, Para. 2). Further mentioned details below give a clear understanding concerning a person’s career or future expansion program based upon five-year duration. Career Goals and Objectives Career targets or aims seem to be the reasonable or rationale upcoming results relating to somewhat a person has thought in his or her mind. Goals or objectives need to be SMART or elegant, where SMART depicts specific or precise, measurable or considerable, attainable or achievable, realistic or down-to-earth and finally it must be within periods (LoveToKnow, 2010). Ahead of gradation the next target is to acquire a ma... ... Career Vision. (2004). What is career management? Retrieved from http://www.careervision.org/About/CareerManagement.htm Hanse, Randall S. (n.d.). Quintessential careers. Developing a strategic vision of your career plan. Retrieved from http://www.quintcareers.com/career_plan.html LoveToKnow. (2006-2010). Business. Examples of SMART goals and objectives. Retrieved from http://business.lovetoknow.com/ wiki/Examples_of_SMART_ Goals_and_Objectives State of the Service Report. (2006-2007). Employee engagement and job satisfaction. Employee survey. Retrieved from http://www.apsc.gov.au/stateoftheservice/0607/partthreesatisfactionattributes.htm The World Bank Group. (2010). Education. Human development network. Retrieved from http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/ EXTEDUCATION/0,menuPK:282391~pagePK:149018~piPK:149093~theSitePK:2823 86,00.html

Da Vinci Code Reaction paper

The movie intro led in a murder scene inside the Louvre museum and clues in Da Vinci paintings lead to the discovery of a religious mystery protected by a secret society for two thousand years which could shake the foundations of Christianity. The Novel itself received both positive and negative reviews from critics, and it has been the subject of negative appraisals concerning its portrayal of history. It’s writing and historical accuracy were reviewed negatively by â€Å"The New Yorker† When I first saw it in 2006 I was amazed how the movie made so much sense specially the scene where they talk about the secret of the Holy Grail.In the novel Leigh Teabing explains to Sophie Neveu that the figure at the right hand of Jesus in Leonardo da Vinci's painting of â€Å"The Last Supper† is not the apostle John, but actually Mary Magdalene. Leigh Teabing says that the absence of a chalice in Leonardo's painting means Leonardo knew that Mary Magdalene was the actual Holy Grail and the bearer of Jesus' blood. Leigh Teabing goes on to explain that this idea is supported by the shape of the letter â€Å"V† that is formed by the bodily positions of Jesus and Mary, as â€Å"V† is the symbol for the sacred feminine.The absence of the Apostle John in the painting is explained by knowing that John is also referred to as â€Å"the Disciple Jesus loved†, code for Mary Magdalene. The book also notes that the color scheme of their garments are inverted: Jesus wears a red tunic with royal blue cloak; Mary Magdalene wears the opposite. In my personal opinion as a believer of God, I think Dan Brown is a genius. The Da Vinci Code is one of the greatest stories ever told. The real draw for Brown’s novel is how his highly polemical basis†¦ that Christianity is not what it is purported to be, little more than an age-old instrument of oppression.