Why is the Walt Disney Company so successful Essay Example for Free

Why is the Walt Disney Company so successful Essay As the process of globalization develops continuously, multinational corporations are much more common nowadays which means intercultural communication has become an important part of daily work in thousands of millions of cross-cultural offices. This thesis will mainly concentrate on discussing and analyzing the Walt Disney Company’s experience of intercultural communication and the useful information we can learn from it so that some misunderstandings and problems can be avoided in some business activities. This thesis will discuss and answer the following questions: 1. What is the Walt Disney Company? 2. What is a cross-cultural working environment like in the Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando, Florida? How do the coordinators deal with different employers from different cultures? 3. What happened when Disney first entered French market? What happened when it first entered Japan? What are the cultural reasons behind these different phenomena? 4. Comparing to other multinational corporations like Starbucks and Ikea, what is the advantage of Disney and what can we use for reference from its experience? Some researches have already been done on related subjects such as intercultural communication management, the importance of cross-cultural communication in business, and the effectiveness of intercultural communication in Human Resource area, etc. Based on these researches, however, my view point as a cast member of the Walt Disney World Resort can be creative and objective. Chapter I What is the Walt Disney Company? In this session, a brief introduction of the Walt Disney Company will be given especially the history of its process of globalization when it tried to get into France, Japan and Hongkong China. Chapter â… ¡ College Exchange Program in the Walt Disney World Resort After providing some information of College Exchange Program, I will concentrate on analyzing Disney’s methods of dealing with foreign Cast Members’ culture shock, cultural conflicts, and coordinators’ different training ways according to their different cultural backgrounds. Besides, a survey will be made to collect CPs’ opinions on how to improve the program or how will their future application affect intercultural communication. Chapter â… ¢ How to Deal with the Frustration in France? In this part, I will introduce the history of Disney first entering France and the cultural crisis it came across there. I will illustrate both the efforts and mistakes made by Disney as well. Comparing to the process it first entering Japan, I will try to engage the different cultural backgrounds with these different phenomena. Chapter â… £ Useful References of Disney’s Experience Comparison will be made in this part between Disney and other multinational corporations and some useful references we can get so as to use them to avoid misunderstandings, sometimes even serious problems in business field.

Development Of A Digital Diary Project

Development Of A Digital Diary Project Maintaining information about the person has been troublesome business for mankind lately as he was being introduced to hundred of new persons in his day to day life. Compiling information about the students in a school and college might be really a rarely willing job. Our project aims to those jobs for maintaining information of the people so we named it as a Digital Diary project. As soon as the program is being executed user just need to follow the instruction and have the information entered to the software then software manage the information being entered and save them for the future reference of the user. Though lots of information management software is presently available in market, this is the initial step and would be updated in the days to come. Introduction: Computer is an advanced/modern electronic device, which takes raw data as input then processes these data as per given instruction then gives output (result) and store in for the future references. It is also a problem-solving machine, which can processes both numerical and non numerical information. It is a totally user dependent device. It has no its own brain. So it cannot think its own. C is the general purpose, structured programming language of computer consisting of terms that resemble algebraic expressions. Designed as other high level structured programming languages such as Pascal and Fortran, C has got additional features that allows it to be used at a lower level computer languages. This flexibility let the C be featured as system programmer or applications programmer. C is characterized by the ability to write very concise source programs which are virus free in nature so the programmed designed in C language has got purity and perfection. Though with the help of small instruction and extensive library functions enhance the basic instruction and encourage its user to write additional library function on their own. Such A programming language code has been adapted for the effectual running of our program, Digital Diary. Digital Diary aims for the storage of the personnel details. This Diary helps as the remainder of person name his/her home address, phone number, email address etc. People gives propriety to looks now a days so a bit of graphics has been added to the content rather than making old fashioned black n white look. Every single effort has been done to add aura to the program and to attract lots of users as possible. As been discussed this program is being build in C laboratory or C program so it doesnt consist of any viruses that may effect the computer but is 100% free from those harming worms and bugs. With the help of this program people can save all his/her friends group and contact for the future references. Objectives and Scopes The few objectives of this program are listed as follows: Main objectives of this program is to aid users from memorizing all those names of owns contact address. Users can easily add the contact detail in the program so have increase efficiency in the user working procedure. To minimize the work loads of office personnel in school, colleges and offices by letting them get rid of the problem of memorizing the piles name of students or coustomers. To convey message to software developing companies about the potential of software developers in Nepal. As Loads of software are present currently for managing the database system but those software are bulky and occupies large amount of storage disk size and are tedious and need trained man power for effective use but the Digital Dairy designed by us is very much simple and cost low disk space and unskilled man power with nominal knowledge of English can accomplish thorough the program. So the office needing customized type software can easily have these software installed for their management. Methodology: Preliminarily we have done survey through out the Kathmandu valley to know about the colleges and schools who might required our software being installed and found lots of colleges having their own MS Access designed management software and for the database management. But some school near remote areas till this date have been using the old fashioned database management so we aim our project to those remote schools and have planned to develop this software. Then we started making basic workflow plan for effective completion of the project. We made the system analysis and designed basic framework to aid in our work. We then started the job of coding of the program for overall management of database of persons which include name of the person, address of the person, his/her email id and telephone number, roll no or reference number. Options like searching the required database by strings were made into effect in the program for easy location of the database of the person. Option like adding and deleting record along with modification option were present in the program for effective availability. Though the coding was done, there were lots of errors in the program, so for the tracking of the bugs in the program debugging were done and then tested for multiple times till the desired output is obtained. When testing and debugging were done the program was finally ready to be used or being distributed. Task to be completed Duration System Analysis 2 days Designing 1 week Coding 1 week Testing and Debugging 3 days Expected Output As for the title suggest, this Digital Diary supports for the proper maintaining of the database. It helps the user to have full record of the people he has been with along with their contact address, phone numbers, email id and reference number. This program also helps in inbuilt search for the required data base. The expected output here is being discussed along with some screenshots of the program. Initially after the program is being executed it shows the name of the institution using it along with the address of the institution. Below the Name of the institution it publishes the name of the publishers followed by list of software developers. When we enter any key the page would be executed to the second page where option are being given using switch system. Option for add remove, modify, search, list are being executed here. The database management page would appear as follows. Here name, roll no, Faculty, telephone number, address email id would be printed. Through which we have to pass the value. Every time after adding contact the confirmation dialogue will be appeared asking for continuing or else. Conclusion This project is based upon C programming so we had add our best effort to implement all the knowledge we have gained so far in C programming. Working on this project had enhanced our knowledge and skills in C and will surely help us in future. Thus, we hope Digital Diary be a great success.

Science Curriculum in New York :: Education School Essays

Science Curriculum in New York Researching the US National Standards of Science Education and the New York State Science Standards gave our group valuable information about any science curriculum in New York State. We searched the Web and the New York State Standards for Mathematics, Science, and Technology booklet. Conducting an interview with both Ethanie Holl, kindergarten teacher, and Dr. LaChance, professor, were also very helpful. To start with here is a list of principles that guided the National Science Education Standards (NSES). #1 Science is for all students. #2 Learning science is an active process. #3 School science reflects the intellectual and cultural tradition that characterize the practice of contemporary science. #4 Improving science education is part of sysemic education reform. Following is a list of the seven New York State Standards for Mathematics, Science, and Technology. #1 Students will use mathematical analysis, scientific inquiry, engineering design, as appropriate, to pose questions, seek answers, and develop solutions. #2 Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technologies. #3 Students will understand mathematics and become mathematically confident by communicating and reasoning mathematically, by applying math in real-world settings, and by solving problems through the integrated study of number systems, geometry, algebra, data analysis, probability, and trigonometry. #4 Students will understand and apply scientific concepts, principles, and theories pertaining to the physical setting and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in science. #5 Students will apply technological knowledge and skills to design, construct, use and evaluate products and systems to satisfy human and environmental needs. #6 Students will understand the relationships and common themes that connect math, science, and technology and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning. #7 Students will apply the knowlege and thinking skills of math, science, and technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions. From our research on the Web and in the booklet, we found that the State standards were derived from the national standards. In other words the National Standards were set with the idea of state and local officials creating the curriculum, assessment programs, and staff development activities that are appropriate for that state/district. The National standards encourage policies that will bring coordination, consistency, and coherence to the improvement of science education.

Science :: essays research papers

LAW, SOCIAL SCIENCE, LITERATURE, LAW SCHOOL, AND PERSONAL STATEMENTS Law School Admissions: Why Bother? Stately and plump, Harvard Law School admits just 850 to yield a class of 550; for Yale, fewer than 400 admitted brings a svelte class of 170. Ever battling its late entry and the suspectness of a West Coast address -- â€Å"newness† coupled with the perception that sunshine vitiates seriousness -- Stanford Law School admitted 435 to make a class of 180 for the class of 1998. For the most part, students admitted to Stanford either go to Stanford, go to Harvard, go to Yale, or don’t go to law school. Five-hundred fifty plus 150 plus 180 equals 880. Eight-hundred eighty is just 30 more than 850, which implies that Harvard, which was first, still is first when it comes to circumscribing the legal elite. In other words, if Harvard effectively locates the 850 students who will be divided among itself, Stanford, and Yale, why bother worrying about what Stanford does, who it admits? As this reasoning goes, Harvard has taken care of things. Harvard defines the 850 students, implying that the admissions procedures of the latter two are superfluous -- like so much, parasitic on Harvard. Not so. First, it matters, year to year, for as long as Stanford’s and Yale’s classes are small and Harvard’s is big, who Stanford and Yale reject. Stanford rejects contribute importantly to the School’s reputation. Stanford admits 400 compared to Harvard’s 800. Assuming considerable overlap in application patterns, many of Harvard’s last 400 admitees were likely rejected by Stanford. The perception, widely held, that attendance at Harvard means one could have gone anywhere is false; rejection by Stanford serves as a reminder of the proposition’s falseness. The presence of Stanford rejects at Harvard is another way of saying Stanford is good because, as everyone knows, Harvard is good. More broadly, it is possible to play renegade in this game as Stanford apparently did several years ago by admitting â€Å"older† students and reaching outside the 850. Thus it does, or can, matter who Stanford admits in the sense of Stanford making an original contribution to the 850 who will compose the first year classes at Harvard, Yale, and Stanford. What is being rewarded or predicted when an applicant is considered -- particularly something that differs from the competing schools -- can materially alter, for good or for bad, the profession by deliberately attempting to send a different sort of person into the law.

telecommuting :: essays research papers

Telecommuting Telecommuting starts with the lower level of the working class workers but with the success it has had it’s rapidly moving towards the executive level. There are two form of telecommuting the employers use today, one is home telecommuting which is a work arrangement the most people do this is working from home with a computer terminal utilizing today’s current technology by transmitting data and documents while working from home and maintaining a close contact with co-workers, managers, through the use of email, internet (instant messenger), and telephone and fax machines as well. Video conferencing using web cameras can also be an effective tool for telecommuting in order to help enhance for its employees and executives. The other form of telecommuting is center based telecommuting that involves the use of office space close to home where employees works without direct supervision, commute travel is still reduced and some of the disadvantages of home offices are remove d. Home telecommuting plugs into everything that is happening at the office just as if they were at the office. By opening your networks to the public and allowing your information available to the internet Co-works will have to access your information available with many different types of home equipment needed for home telecommuting that can be a little expensive at first to get started. Some of the different equipment that is needed is a computer with fax and scanner so proper communications are available, phone, high speed internet connection, a desk, file cabinets, and a web camera with an internet messenger along with video conferencing software. There are many advantages for companies today to use telecommuters in their day to day business operations. This allows business’s to cut corners and save money so that way more money can be spent on other projects which will make more of a profit, and help reduce the costs for gas and travel expense for employees who travel a lot. They also have a larger audience of applicants to choose from which allows them to sort out the for specific skill or education for jobs they are trying fill which later will help contribute to an increase productivity and promoting a happier staff giving more time to workers for family time at home. By using telecommuters who will be actually working at the office perhaps once a weak or so helps save on realistic costs because employees who work at home do not need offices and when they are at the office they can share cubicles with other telecommuters promoting less space needed to lease.

Angels Demons Chapter 113-117

113 Something was wrong. Lieutenant Chartrand stood outside the Pope's office and sensed in the uneasy stance of the soldier standing with him that they shared the same anxiety. The private meeting they were shielding, Rocher had said, could save the Vatican from destruction. So Chartrand wondered why his protective instincts were tingling. And why was Rocher acting so strangely? Something definitely was awry. Captain Rocher stood to Chartrand's right, staring dead ahead, his sharp gaze uncharacteristically distant. Chartrand barely recognized the captain. Rocher had not been himself in the last hour. His decisions made no sense. Someone should be present inside this meeting! Chartrand thought. He had heard Maximilian Kohler bolt the door after he entered. Why had Rocher permitted this? But there was so much more bothering Chartrand. The cardinals. The cardinals were still locked in the Sistine Chapel. This was absolute insanity. The camerlegno had wanted them evacuated fifteen minutes ago! Rocher had overruled the decision and not informed the camerlegno. Chartrand had expressed concern, and Rocher had almost taken off his head. Chain of command was never questioned in the Swiss Guard, and Rocher was now top dog. Half an hour, Rocher thought, discreetly checking his Swiss chronometer in the dim light of the candelabra lighting the hall. Please hurry. Chartrand wished he could hear what was happening on the other side of the doors. Still, he knew there was no one he would rather have handling this crisis than the camerlegno. The man had been tested beyond reason tonight, and he had not flinched. He had confronted the problem head-on†¦ truthful, candid, shining like an example to all. Chartrand felt proud right now to be a Catholic. The Illuminati had made a mistake when they challenged Camerlegno Ventresca. At that moment, however, Chartrand's thoughts were jolted by an unexpected sound. A banging. It was coming from down the hall. The pounding was distant and muffled, but incessant. Rocher looked up. The captain turned to Chartrand and motioned down the hall. Chartrand understood. He turned on his flashlight and took off to investigate. The banging was more desperate now. Chartrand ran thirty yards down the corridor to an intersection. The noise seemed to be coming from around the corner, beyond the Sala Clementina. Chartrand felt perplexed. There was only one room back there – the Pope's private library. His Holiness's private library had been locked since the Pope's death. Nobody could possibly be in there! Chartrand hurried down the second corridor, turned another corner, and rushed to the library door. The wooden portico was diminutive, but it stood in the dark like a dour sentinel. The banging was coming from somewhere inside. Chartrand hesitated. He had never been inside the private library. Few had. No one was allowed in without an escort by the Pope himself. Tentatively, Chartrand reached for the doorknob and turned. As he had imagined, the door was locked. He put his ear to the door. The banging was louder. Then he heard something else. Voices! Someone calling out! He could not make out the words, but he could hear the panic in their shouts. Was someone trapped in the library? Had the Swiss Guard not properly evacuated the building? Chartrand hesitated, wondering if he should go back and consult Rocher. The hell with that. Chartrand had been trained to make decisions, and he would make one now. He pulled out his side arm and fired a single shot into the door latch. The wood exploded, and the door swung open. Beyond the threshold Chartrand saw nothing but blackness. He shone his flashlight. The room was rectangular – oriental carpets, high oak shelves packed with books, a stitched leather couch, and a marble fireplace. Chartrand had heard stories of this place – three thousand ancient volumes side by side with hundreds of current magazines and periodicals, anything His Holiness requested. The coffee table was covered with journals of science and politics. The banging was clearer now. Chartrand shone his light across the room toward the sound. On the far wall, beyond the sitting area, was a huge door made of iron. It looked impenetrable as a vault. It had four mammoth locks. The tiny etched letters dead center of the door took Chartrand's breath away. IL PASSETTO Chartrand stared. The Pope's secret escape route! Chartrand had certainly heard of Il Passetto, and he had even heard rumors that it had once had an entrance here in the library, but the tunnel had not been used in ages! Who could be banging on the other side? Chartrand took his flashlight and rapped on the door. There was a muffled exultation from the other side. The banging stopped, and the voices yelled louder. Chartrand could barely make out their words through the barricade. â€Å"†¦ Kohler†¦ lie†¦ camerlegno†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Who is that?† Chartrand yelled. â€Å"†¦ ert Langdon†¦ Vittoria Ve†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Chartrand understood enough to be confused. I thought you were dead! â€Å"†¦ the door,† the voices yelled. â€Å"Open†¦!† Chartrand looked at the iron barrier and knew he would need dynamite to get through there. â€Å"Impossible!† he yelled. â€Å"Too thick!† â€Å"†¦ meeting†¦ stop†¦ erlegno†¦ danger†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Despite his training on the hazards of panic, Chartrand felt a sudden rush of fear at the last few words. Had he understood correctly? Heart pounding, he turned to run back to the office. As he turned, though, he stalled. His gaze had fallen to something on the door†¦ something more shocking even than the message coming from beyond it. Emerging from the keyholes of each of the door's massive locks were keys. Chartrand stared. The keys were here? He blinked in disbelief. The keys to this door were supposed to be in a vault someplace! This passage was never used – not for centuries! Chartrand dropped his flashlight on the floor. He grabbed the first key and turned. The mechanism was rusted and stiff, but it still worked. Someone had opened it recently. Chartrand worked the next lock. And the next. When the last bolt slid aside, Chartrand pulled. The slab of iron creaked open. He grabbed his light and shone it into the passage. Robert Langdon and Vittoria Vetra looked like apparitions as they staggered into the library. Both were ragged and tired, but they were very much alive. â€Å"What is this!† Chartrand demanded. â€Å"What's going on! Where did you come from?† â€Å"Where's Max Kohler?† Langdon demanded. Chartrand pointed. â€Å"In a private meeting with the camer – â€Å" Langdon and Vittoria pushed past him and ran down the darkened hall. Chartrand turned, instinctively raising his gun at their backs. He quickly lowered it and ran after them. Rocher apparently heard them coming, because as they arrived outside the Pope's office, Rocher had spread his legs in a protective stance and was leveling his gun at them. â€Å"Alt!† â€Å"The camerlegno is in danger!† Langdon yelled, raising his arms in surrender as he slid to a stop. â€Å"Open the door! Max Kohler is going to kill the camerlegno!† Rocher looked angry. â€Å"Open the door!† Vittoria said. â€Å"Hurry!† But it was too late. From inside the Pope's office came a bloodcurdling scream. It was the camerlegno. 114 The confrontation lasted only seconds. Camerlegno Ventresca was still screaming when Chartrand stepped past Rocher and blew open the door of the Pope's office. The guards dashed in. Langdon and Vittoria ran in behind them. The scene before them was staggering. The chamber was lit only by candlelight and a dying fire. Kohler was near the fireplace, standing awkwardly in front of his wheelchair. He brandished a pistol, aimed at the camerlegno, who lay on the floor at his feet, writhing in agony. The camerlegno's cassock was torn open, and his bare chest was seared black. Langdon could not make out the symbol from across the room, but a large, square brand lay on the floor near Kohler. The metal still glowed red. Two of the Swiss Guards acted without hesitation. They opened fire. The bullets smashed into Kohler's chest, driving him backward. Kohler collapsed into his wheelchair, his chest gurgling blood. His gun went skittering across the floor. Langdon stood stunned in the doorway. Vittoria seemed paralyzed. â€Å"Max†¦Ã¢â‚¬  she whispered. The camerlegno, still twisting on the floor, rolled toward Rocher, and with the trancelike terror of the early witch hunts, pointed his index finger at Rocher and yelled a single word. â€Å"ILLUMINATUS!† â€Å"You bastard,† Rocher said, running at him. â€Å"You sanctimonious bas – â€Å" This time it was Chartrand who reacted on instinct, putting three bullets in Rocher's back. The captain fell face first on the tile floor and slid lifeless through his own blood. Chartrand and the guards dashed immediately to the camerlegno, who lay clutching himself, convulsing in pain. Both guards let out exclamations of horror when they saw the symbol seared on the camerlegno's chest. The second guard saw the brand upside down and immediately staggered backward with fear in his eyes. Chartrand, looking equally overwhelmed by the symbol, pulled the camerlegno's torn cassock up over the burn, shielding it from view. Langdon felt delirious as he moved across the room. Through a mist of insanity and violence, he tried to make sense of what he was seeing. A crippled scientist, in a final act of symbolic dominance, had flown into Vatican City and branded the church's highest official. Some things are worth dying for, the Hassassin had said. Langdon wondered how a handicapped man could possibly have overpowered the camerlegno. Then again, Kohler had a gun. It doesn't matter how he did it! Kohler accomplished his mission! Langdon moved toward the gruesome scene. The camerlegno was being attended, and Langdon felt himself drawn toward the smoking brand on the floor near Kohler's wheelchair. The sixth brand? The closer Langdon got, the more confused he became. The brand seemed to be a perfect square, quite large, and had obviously come from the sacred center compartment of the chest in the Illuminati Lair. A sixth and final brand, the Hassassin had said. The most brilliant of all. Langdon knelt beside Kohler and reached for the object. The metal still radiated heat. Grasping the wooden handle, Langdon picked it up. He was not sure what he expected to see, but it most certainly was not this. Angels & Demons Langdon stared a long, confused moment. Nothing was making sense. Why had the guards cried out in horror when they saw this? It was a square of meaningless squiggles. The most brilliant of all? It was symmetrical, Langdon could tell as he rotated it in his hand, but it was gibberish. When he felt a hand on his shoulder, Langdon looked up, expecting Vittoria. The hand, however, was covered with blood. It belonged to Maximilian Kohler, who was reaching out from his wheelchair. Langdon dropped the brand and staggered to his feet. Kohler's still alive! Slumped in his wheelchair, the dying director was still breathing, albeit barely, sucking in sputtering gasps. Kohler's eyes met Langdon's, and it was the same stony gaze that had greeted Langdon at CERN earlier that day. The eyes looked even harder in death, the loathing and enmity rising to the surface. The scientist's body quivered, and Langdon sensed he was trying to move. Everyone else in the room was focused on the camerlegno, and Langdon wanted to call out, but he could not react. He was transfixed by the intensity radiating from Kohler in these final seconds of his life. The director, with tremulous effort, lifted his arm and pulled a small device off the arm of his wheelchair. It was the size of a matchbox. He held it out, quivering. For an instant, Langdon feared Kohler had a weapon. But it was something else. â€Å"G-give†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Kohler's final words were a gurgling whisper. â€Å"G-give this†¦ to the m-media.† Kohler collapsed motionless, and the device fell in his lap. Shocked, Langdon stared at the device. It was electronic. The words SONY RUVI were printed across the front. Langdon recognized it as one of those new ultraminiature, palm-held camcorders. The balls on this guy! he thought. Kohler had apparently recorded some sort of final suicide message he wanted the media to broadcast†¦ no doubt some sermon about the importance of science and the evils of religion. Langdon decided he had done enough for this man's cause tonight. Before Chartrand saw Kohler's camcorder, Langdon slipped it into his deepest jacket pocket. Kohler's final message can rot in hell! It was the voice of the camerlegno that broke the silence. He was trying to sit up. â€Å"The cardinals,† he gasped to Chartrand. â€Å"Still in the Sistine Chapel!† Chartrand exclaimed. â€Å"Captain Rocher ordered – † â€Å"Evacuate†¦ now. Everyone.† Chartrand sent one of the other guards running off to let the cardinals out. The camerlegno grimaced in pain. â€Å"Helicopter†¦ out front†¦ get me to a hospital.† 115 In St. Peter's Square, the Swiss Guard pilot sat in the cockpit of the parked Vatican helicopter and rubbed his temples. The chaos in the square around him was so loud that it drowned out the sound of his idling rotors. This was no solemn candlelight vigil. He was amazed a riot had not broken out yet. With less than twenty-five minutes left until midnight, the people were still packed together, some praying, some weeping for the church, others screaming obscenities and proclaiming that this was what the church deserved, still others chanting apocalyptic Bible verses. The pilot's head pounded as the media lights glinted off his windshield. He squinted out at the clamorous masses. Banners waved over the crowd. Antimatter is the Antichrist! Scientist=Satanist Where is your God now? The pilot groaned, his headache worsening. He half considered grabbing the windshield's vinyl covering and putting it up so he wouldn't have to watch, but he knew he would be airborne in a matter of minutes. Lieutenant Chartrand had just radioed with terrible news. The camerlegno had been attacked by Maximilian Kohler and seriously injured. Chartrand, the American, and the woman were carrying the camerlegno out now so he could be evacuated to a hospital. The pilot felt personally responsible for the attack. He reprimanded himself for not acting on his gut. Earlier, when he had picked up Kohler at the airport, he had sensed something in the scientist's dead eyes. He couldn't place it, but he didn't like it. Not that it mattered. Rocher was running the show, and Rocher insisted this was the guy. Rocher had apparently been wrong. A new clamor arose from the crowd, and the pilot looked over to see a line of cardinals processing solemnly out of the Vatican onto St. Peter's Square. The cardinals' relief to be leaving ground zero seemed to be quickly overcome by looks of bewilderment at the spectacle now going on outside the church. The crowd noise intensified yet again. The pilot's head pounded. He needed an aspirin. Maybe three. He didn't like to fly on medication, but a few aspirin would certainly be less debilitating than this raging headache. He reached for the first-aid kit, kept with assorted maps and manuals in a cargo box bolted between the two front seats. When he tried to open the box, though, he found it locked. He looked around for the key and then finally gave up. Tonight was clearly not his lucky night. He went back to massaging his temples. Inside the darkened basilica, Langdon, Vittoria, and the two guards strained breathlessly toward the main exit. Unable to find anything more suitable, the four of them were transporting the wounded camerlegno on a narrow table, balancing the inert body between them as though on a stretcher. Outside the doors, the faint roar of human chaos was now audible. The camerlegno teetered on the brink of unconsciousness. Time was running out. 116 It was 11:39 P.M. when Langdon stepped with the others from St. Peter's Basilica. The glare that hit his eyes was searing. The media lights shone off the white marble like sunlight off a snowy tundra. Langdon squinted, trying to find refuge behind the faà §ade's enormous columns, but the light came from all directions. In front of him, a collage of massive video screens rose above the crowd. Standing there atop the magnificent stairs that spilled down to the piazza below, Langdon felt like a reluctant player on the world's biggest stage. Somewhere beyond the glaring lights, Langdon heard an idling helicopter and the roar of a hundred thousand voices. To their left, a procession of cardinals was now evacuating onto the square. They all stopped in apparent distress to see the scene now unfolding on the staircase. â€Å"Careful now,† Chartrand urged, sounding focused as the group began descending the stairs toward the helicopter. Langdon felt like they were moving underwater. His arms ached from the weight of the camerlegno and the table. He wondered how the moment could get much less dignified. Then he saw the answer. The two BBC reporters had apparently been crossing the open square on their way back to the press area. But now, with the roar of the crowd, they had turned. Glick and Macri were now running back toward them. Macri's camera was raised and rolling. Here come the vultures, Langdon thought. â€Å"Alt!† Chartrand yelled. â€Å"Get back!† But the reporters kept coming. Langdon guessed the other networks would take about six seconds to pick up this live BBC feed again. He was wrong. They took two. As if connected by some sort of universal consciousness, every last media screen in the piazza cut away from their countdown clocks and their Vatican experts and began transmitting the same picture – a jiggling action footage swooping up the Vatican stairs. Now, everywhere Langdon looked, he saw the camerlegno's limp body in a Technicolor close-up. This is wrong! Langdon thought. He wanted to run down the stairs and interfere, but he could not. It wouldn't have helped anyway. Whether it was the roar of the crowd or the cool night air that caused it, Langdon would never know, but at that moment, the inconceivable occurred. Like a man awakening from a nightmare, the camerlegno's eyes shot open and he sat bolt upright. Taken entirely by surprise, Langdon and the others fumbled with the shifting weight. The front of the table dipped. The camerlegno began to slide. They tried to recover by setting the table down, but it was too late. The camerlegno slid off the front. Incredibly, he did not fall. His feet hit the marble, and he swayed upright. He stood a moment, looking disoriented, and then, before anyone could stop him, he lurched forward, staggering down the stairs toward Macri. â€Å"No!† Langdon screamed. Chartrand rushed forward, trying to reign in the camerlegno. But the camerlegno turned on him, wild-eyed, crazed. â€Å"Leave me!† Chartrand jumped back. The scene went from bad to worse. The camerlegno's torn cassock, having been only laid over his chest by Chartrand, began to slip lower. For a moment, Langdon thought the garment might hold, but that moment passed. The cassock let go, sliding off his shoulders down around his waist. The gasp that went up from the crowd seemed to travel around the globe and back in an instant. Cameras rolled, flashbulbs exploded. On media screens everywhere, the image of the camerlegno's branded chest was projected, towering and in grisly detail. Some screens were even freezing the image and rotating it 180 degrees. The ultimate Illuminati victory. Langdon stared at the brand on the screens. Although it was the imprint of the square brand he had held earlier, the symbol now made sense. Perfect sense. The marking's awesome power hit Langdon like a train. Orientation. Langdon had forgotten the first rule of symbology. When is a square not a square? He had also forgotten that iron brands, just like rubber stamps, never looked like their imprints. They were in reverse. Langdon had been looking at the brand's negative! As the chaos grew, an old Illuminati quote echoed with new meaning: â€Å"A flawless diamond, born of the ancient elements with such perfection that all those who saw it could only stare in wonder.† Langdon knew now the myth was true. Earth, Air, Fire, Water. The Illuminati Diamond. Angels & Demons 117 Robert Langdon had little doubt that the chaos and hysteria coursing through St. Peter's Square at this very instant exceeded anything Vatican Hill had ever witnessed. No battle, no crucifixion, no pilgrimage, no mystical vision†¦ nothing in the shrine's 2,000-year history could possibly match the scope and drama of this very moment. As the tragedy unfolded, Langdon felt oddly separate, as if hovering there beside Vittoria at the top of the stairs. The action seemed to distend, as if in a time warp, all the insanity slowing to a crawl†¦ The branded camerlegno†¦ raving for the world to see†¦ The Illuminati Diamond†¦ unveiled in its diabolical genius†¦ The countdown clock registering the final twenty minutes of Vatican history†¦ The drama, however, had only just begun. The camerlegno, as if in some sort of post-traumatic trance, seemed suddenly puissant, possessed by demons. He began babbling, whispering to unseen spirits, looking up at the sky and raising his arms to God. â€Å"Speak!† the camerlegno yelled to the heavens. â€Å"Yes, I hear you!† In that moment, Langdon understood. His heart dropped like a rock. Vittoria apparently understood too. She went white. â€Å"He's in shock,† she said. â€Å"He's hallucinating. He thinks he's talking to God!† Somebody's got to stop this, Langdon thought. It was a wretched and embarrassing end. Get this man to a hospital! Below them on the stairs, Chinita Macri was poised and filming, apparently having located her ideal vantage point. The images she filmed appeared instantly across the square behind her on media screens†¦ like endless drive-in movies all playing the same grisly tragedy. The whole scene felt epic. The camerlegno, in his torn cassock, with the scorched brand on his chest, looked like some sort of battered champion who had overcome the rings of hell for this one moment of revelation. He bellowed to the heavens. â€Å"Ti sento, Dio! I hear you, God!† Chartrand backed off, a look of awe on his face. The hush that fell across the crowd was instant and absolute. For a moment it was as if the silence had fallen across the entire planet†¦ everyone in front of their TVs rigid, a communal holding of breath. The camerlegno stood on the stairs, before the world, and held out his arms. He looked almost Christlike, bare and wounded before the world. He raised his arms to the heavens and, looking up, exclaimed, â€Å"Grazie! Grazie, Dio!† The silence of the masses never broke. â€Å"Grazie, Dio!† the camerlegno cried out again. Like the sun breaking through a stormy sky, a look of joy spread across his face. â€Å"Grazie, Dio!† Thank you, God? Langdon stared in wonder. The camerlegno was radiant now, his eerie transformation complete. He looked up at the sky, still nodding furiously. He shouted to the heavens, â€Å"Upon this rock I will build my church!† Langdon knew the words, but he had no idea why the camerlegno could possibly be shouting them. The camerlegno turned back to the crowd and bellowed again into the night. â€Å"Upon this rock I will build my church!† Then he raised his hands to the sky and laughed out loud. â€Å"Grazie, Dio! Grazie!† The man had clearly gone mad. The world watched, spellbound. The culmination, however, was something no one expected. With a final joyous exultation, the camerlegno turned and dashed back into St. Peter's Basilica.

Sexual Offences Act 2003

One of the driving forces behind the creation of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 was the low conviction rate on rapists. In 1999 9,008 rape cases were reported and only 1 in 13 resulted in a conviction . Within this essay I will discuss whether or not the changes introduced by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 add greater clarity to the area of rape. In order to fully understand this question one must first define rape. The standard definition of rape is â€Å"unlawful sexual intercourse with a woman who at the time of intercourse does not consent . I say standard because with each Sexual Act the definition of rape has changed in some way. When rape was first introduced as a statutory offence in the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 it simply stated that ‘it is a felony to rape a woman . ’ The Sexual Offences Act 2003 now defines rape as the ‘intentional penetration of the vagina, anus, or mouth of another person who does not consent . ’ Each Sexual Offences Act attempts to further clarify the area of rape. The main change in the Sexual Offences Act 2003 has to deal with the definition and the area of consent. The Sexual Offences Act of 1956 elaborates to a great extent on the area of rape; it goes more in depth where rape is concerned than the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. The Sexual Offences Act 1956 states: â€Å"Rape of a man or woman (1)It is an offence for a man to rape a woman or another man. (2)A man commits rape if— (a)he has sexual intercourse with a person (whether vaginal or anal) who at the time of the intercourse does not consent to it; and (b)at the time he knows that the person does not consent to the intercourse or is reckless as to whether that person consents to it. 3)A man also commits rape if he induces a married woman to have sexual intercourse with him by impersonating her husband. (4)Subsection (2) applies for the purpose of any enactment. † Like Offences Against the Person Act 1861, this act also failed to clarify or to give further direction on the matter of consent. Thus, it was still up to the â€Å"judiciary to determine the constituent e lements and develop the factors that might vitiate an apparent consent. † In 1975 the case of DPP v Morgan prompted Parliament to amend this act in order to attempt to clarify the area of consent. The amendment to this act is found in the Sexual Offences Act 1976. This act states: (1)For the purposes of section 1 of the M1Sexual Offences Act 1956 (which relates to rape) a man commits rape if— (a)he has unlawful sexual intercourse with a woman who at the time of the intercourse does not consent to it; and (b)at that time he knows that she does not consent to the intercourse or he is reckless as to whether she consents to it; and references to rape in other enactments (including the following provisions of this Act) shall be construed accordingly. 2)It is hereby declared that if at a trial for a rape offence the jury has to consider whether a man believed that a woman was consenting to sexual intercourse, the presence or absence of reasonable grounds for such a belief is a matter to which the jury is to have regard, in conjunction with any other relevant matters, in considering whether he so believed. † In the case of DPP v Morgan the husband invited three friends o ver to have intercourse with his wife. He told them that she might be acting like she was resisting but she was actually just role playing. Though the wife struggled against them they still had sex with her because they were under the belief that she had consented. They were tried with rape. The judge’s remark to the jury simply was if you believe that the wife did not consent then the defendants belief that she did indeed consent is not a defense. They were all convicted of rape. Due to the confusion caused by this case section 1(2) (as shown above) of the Sexual Offences Act 1976 was created. This gives a definition of mens rea in regards to consent . Although this act tried to further clarify consent and the meaning of rape there were still some tweaking that had to be done to it. For instance it defines rape but it doesn’t establish the need to show that there was â€Å"force, fear, or fraud affecting the woman’s consent. † The Jury was just instructed to give consent its ordinary meaning. That being stated this act also failed to provide a legal definition of consent. All of these changes were made in the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The Sexual Offences Act 2003 states: â€Å" Rape (1) A person (A) commits an offence if— a) he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person (B) with his penis, (b) B does not consent to the penetration, and (c) A does not reasonably believe that B consents. (2) Whether a belief is reasonable is to be determined having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps A has taken to ascertain whether B consents. (3) Sections 75 and 76 apply to an offence under this section. (4) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable, on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for life. † Although these changes were made does it actually add clarity to the area of rape? The first change that must be mentioned is the inclusion of oral as a point where penetration can occur. This was included because it was decided that oral sex was just â€Å"as abhorrent demeaning and traumatizing a violation and equally, if not more psychologically harmful than vaginal and anal rape . † Secondly, section 1(1) of this act makes rape gender specific. Since it states that penetration must be done with a penis then only males can commit rape. Thus, women cannot legally be charged with rape but if they act as an accomplice of a male rapist then they can be charged with â€Å"causing a person to engage in sexual activity †. Although this section shows that a woman cannot be a rapist section 79(3) which state, â€Å"references to a part of the body include references to a part surgically constructed (in particular, through gender reassignment surgery), † is a deviation of this rule this shows that if it is a transsexual, who committed penile surgery then she can be charged with rape, for rape is the penetration of the penis, whether it is a surgically constructed penis or a natural one. It does not matter the gender of who is raped or that of the rapist . Those with surgically constructed vaginas can also be raped as per R v Matthews . Thirdly, the actus reus for rape is no longer unlawful sexual intercourse. In the previous Sexual Acts 1956 and 1976 unlawful intercourse was the actus reus. Unlawful meant sexual intercourse outside of marriage. This was discovered to be a common law action as per R v R , and was abolished. Now a husband can rape his wife. The actus reus for rape according to the Sexual Offences Act 2003 is penetration . In accordance with this act in order for it to be rape several elements must be meet. Firstly, it has to be proven that the vagina, anus or mouth was intentionally penetrated by the defendant. The mens rea for rape is the intentional penetration. Once penetrated it is thought that intent is there unless the penetration is minimal. In that case it can be argued that the defendant only â€Å"meant to stay on the outside† . Intoxication cannot be used as a defense as per R v Woods , due to the fact that rape is still a crime of basic intent. Before this act the actus reus for rape was unlawful intercourse (outside marriage)it is now penetration. Section 79(2) defines penetration as â€Å"a continuing act from entry to withdrawal ,† as per Cooper v Schaub . For it to be penetration full entry is not necessary. Thus, the vagina includes the vulva this is explained in section 79(9), which simply states that â€Å"Vagina includes vulva † As per R v Tarmohammed the penis should be removed if at any point consent is withdrawn. This brings me to my next point that of consent. Secondly, it has to be determined whether or not the victim gave consent. Section 74 defines consent as â€Å" a person freely agreeing by choice and who has the freedom and capacity to make that choice . The phrase capacity to make a choice is a tricky phrase especially if one is dealing with a person with a mental disorder. To help clarify this in the Offences related to persons with a mental disorder section 30(2) is used. This states: â€Å"B is unable to refuse if – He lacks the capacity to choose whether to agree to the touching (w hether because he lacks sufficient understanding of the nature or possible consequences of what is being done, or for any other reason), or he is unable to communicate such a choice to A. Therefore if one does not understand the complete nature of the act then they cannot consent as per R v Williams . More clarification on whether or not a woman has consented is given by sections 75 and 76 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. These sections each contain a presumption about consent. Section 75 contain evidential presumption which may be challenged by the defendant, whereas, section 76 cannot be challenged as it is conclusive presumptions . The evidential burden is not a burden of proof; it simply means that the defendant needs to provide some evidence that supports his case. Section 75 states: â€Å"(1) If in proceedings for an offence to which this section applies it is proved— (a) that the defendant did the relevant act, (b) that any of the circumstances specified in subsection (2) existed, and (c) that the defendant knew that those circumstances existed, † If (a), (b), and (c) are proved by the prosecution then it can be assumed that the victim did not consent to the act nor did the offender reasonably believe that he had consent. If the judge does not think that the evidence is enough to raise an issue then the jury is instructed to look at section 75(2) . This states: â€Å"The circumstances are that— a) any person was, at the time of the relevant act or immediately before it began, using violence against the complainant or causing the complainant to fear that immediate violence would be used against him; (b) any person was, at the time of the relevant act or immediately before it began, causing the complainant to fear that vio lence was being used, or that immediate violence would be used, against another person; (c) the complainant was, and the defendant was not, unlawfully detained at the time of the relevant act; (d) the complainant was asleep or otherwise unconscious at the time of the relevant act; (e) because of the complainant’s physical disability, the complainant would not have been able at the time of the relevant act to communicate to the defendant whether the complainant consented; (f) any person had administered to or caused to be taken by the complainant, without the complainant’s consent, a substance which, having regard to when it was administered or taken, was capable of causing or enabling the complainant to be stupefied or overpowered at the time of the relevant act. (3) In subsection (2)(a) and (b), the reference to the time immediately before the relevant act began is, in the case of an act which is one of a continuous series of sexual activities, a reference to the time immediately before the first sexual activity began. When looking at sections 75(2)(a) and (b) violence is not given a legal definition here but uses its normal definition. Violence is â€Å"any action using physical force intended to hurt, damage, or kill . † The one who does the act does not have to be the one that used violence in coercing the victim. In regards to section 75(2)(d) if one is asleep they then cannot give consent to the act as per R v Larter and Castleton . When dealing with section 75(2)(e) if one cannot communicate it may be due to a physical or mental disability. In regards to section 75(2)(f) if the offender knew that the substance used would render the victim ‘overpowered’ then he can be charged with rape. The conclusive presumptions found in section 76 are: (1) If in proceedings for an offence to which this section applies it is proved that the defendant did the relevant act and that any of the circumstances specified in subsection (2) exi sted, it is to be conclusively presumed— (a) that the complainant did not consent to the relevant act, and (b) that the defendant did not believe that the complainant consented to the relevant act. (2) The circumstances are that— (a) the defendant intentionally deceived the complainant as to the nature or purpose of the relevant act; (b) the defendant intentionally induced the complainant to consent to the relevant act by impersonating a person known personally to the complainant. This simply means that if the offender intentionally deceives the victim in regards to what the act is which is taken place or to who he is then the consent is not valid. Thirdly, it has to be proven that the offender did not reasonably believe that the victim consented. Consent of honest but mistaken belief is not available where â€Å"due to self-induced intoxication, there was recklessness as to consent, or where D failed to take all reasonable steps that might be expected in the circumst ances. † In the case of DPP v Morgan it was decided that a person would not be guilty of rape if they had an honest belief that the victim did indeed consent. With the Sexual Offences Act section 1(2) it is no longer as simple as that. Section 1(2) states: â€Å"Whether a belief is reasonable is to be determined having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps A has taken to ascertain whether B consents. † The offender may in fact have made an honest mistake in regards of consent but it must be decided if the mistake was a reasonable one. This is left up to the jury to determine using a subjective approach. This means that the jury must look at all the facts including the offender characteristics, thus, giving a subjective view. In conclusion, it is my belief that the Sexual Offences Act 2003 does add a greater clarity to the area of rape. When one look at the previous Sexual Acts and compare them with the current act it is easy to see the changes that has been made Not only can a biological male commit the act of rape but now a transgender individual can as well. Due to this act rape now entails oral sex and consent is given a legal definition. Section 75 and 76 of the act helps to further clarify the area of consent. Thanks to the changes made in this act the elements for rape are now more defined. ? BIBLIOGRAPHY Card, Richard (2008) Card, Cross, and Jones Criminal Law. New York, Oxford University Press Cooper v Schaub [1994] Crim LR 531 DPP v Morgan [1976] A. C. 182 Martin ,A, Elizabeth. ed)(2006) Oxford dictionary of Law. New York, Oxford University Press Office of Public Sector Information. The UK Statute law Database. (online) available from: http://www. opsi. gov. uk/ (Accessed 3rd April 2009) R v R [1993] 1 All ER 747 R v Larter and Castleton [1995] Crim LR 75 R v Tarmohammed [1997] Crim LR 458 R v Williams [19 92] All ER 322 R v Woods (1981) 74 Cr App R 312 Soanes, Catherine. (ed)(2007) Oxford English Mini Dictionary. New York, Oxford University Press Stevenson, Kim. et al (2004) Blackstone’s Guide to The Sexual Offences Act 2003. New York, Oxford University Press Tomaselli, Sylvana. , Porter Roy (ed)(1986) RAPE. New York, Basil Blackwell Ltd.