Monday, December 30, 2019

The New Religion Pop Culture - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1464 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Culture Essay Tags: Pop Culture Essay Did you like this example? The New Religion: Pop Culture Aims and Objectives Summary The dissertation will explore and demonstrate the transformation and recreation of pop culture, with emphasis on current pop music and pop video. The way of life of society has transformed in time as a result of new beliefs, new ideas and new symbols. Any à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"religionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ stopped expanding and even existing as a direct consequence of its inability to recreate itself and give new meaning to old symbols and signs for the continually à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"convertingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ society. The pop culture, by ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s nature, recreates popular archetypes that are deep inoculated in the psychology of humanity as sex, religion, death, war, politics, etc. Through ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s continual transformation and recreation of style the pop culture is becoming the perfect manipulative and dominating way of life. Is the pop culture transforming in an always present, contemporary way of life, the new religion that recreates ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s artistic expression in order to expand and grow? This is the research question around which this research is based. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The New Religion Pop Culture" essay for you Create order The main aim of this dissertation is to identify and explain the recreation of symbols and themes in todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s pop music and pop video and to show the influence of this transition from à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"occasional believerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"fanaticà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ in todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s society. In order to accomplish this aim the following objectives need to be analysed and discussed: Analysis of old and new symbols in pop music and pop videos (signs and symbols take place of reality à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" hyper reality ) The birth of pop culture and ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s evolution The continuous recreation of style in pop culture (sexuality without gender, religious representations as show, death as artistic expression of freedom) The impact of pop culture on society as the perfect religion Artists (expression creators) in pop music culture : Madonna, Lady Gaga (the use of symbols as strategic components in the Fame experiment; symbols with no meaning as surface style) The analysis of these objectives will also demonstrate that reinventions of universal archetypal subjects are essential for the consumerism mass-media. Pop music is an important part of mass-media which has a huge impact on population. Pop culture creates the future society; a society that religiously consume media just for ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s own personal satisfaction. Culture is a way of life and culture exists everywhere because is created by our choices. The pop culture is defined by mass-production, mass-consumerism, choice manipulation and reinforcement and recreation of symbols in order to grow and expand. This dissertation will also demonstrate how pop music, pop videos and popular performances are influencing our choices by repeatedly representing popular brands and by touching on the most primal subjects we all can relate to. Brief Example and Review of two relevant texts Living to tell: Madonnaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Resurrection of the Fleshly is the name of Chapter 7 from Susan McClaryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s book Feminine Endings: Music, Gender and Sexuality. This Chapter analyse and debates the influence of pop artist Madonna to pop music as well as her artistic expression, main themes and symbols. For example themes as survival, pleasure, sexual transformation, resistance to closure, etc. are deeply analyzed. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The central dichotomy she inevitably invokes is that of the virgin and the whore. Her name, her apparently casual flaunting of crucifixes and rosaries as accessories, and her overtly erotic dress and behaviour have consistently thrown into confusion the terms of that standard binary opposition; but what precisely she means by this play of signs has never been obvious. Indeed, many critics have taken her use of religious imagery to be a prime example of what Frederic Jameson calls à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“blank pasticheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?: the symbols are seen as detached from their traditional contexts and thus as ceasing to signify.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Feminine Endings, pg 163) The aforestated passage is very important in achieving the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Artists in pop music cultureà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Analysis of old and new symbols in pop music and pop videosà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The continuous recreation of style in pop cultureà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ objectives as is not limited to analyzing the symbols and signs but also, based on this symbols transformation, supports the idea of symbols with no meaning as surface style and religious representations as show. Another relevant text is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s like feminism, but you donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have to burn your braà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢: Girl power and the Spice Girlsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ breakthrough 1996-1997 which is Chapter 10 in Andrew Blakeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s book Living Through Pop. This Chapter presents, analyse and debates the evolution and transformations in pop music culture, as well the themes and symbols used by pop music group Spice Girls. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“We decided we wanted to be more than a band. We wanted the whole philosophy of the Spice Girls to be like a cult à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Girl Power. We havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t invented it à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve just tapped into how girls are feeling. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s like feminism, but you donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have to burn your bra. And the message is: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢You can do what you want à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" look the way you want à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" as long as you believe in yourself.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Living through pop, pg 163) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Madonna is constructed as a fetishistic icon serving by contrast to point up the notion that the Spice Girls are basically ordinary and therefore can be emulated. Although Madonna, like the Spice Girls articulates a form of sexual empowerment for women, in many ways Madonnaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s pop persona works very differently. Both Spice Girls and Madonna play with the dichotomy between one-dimensional images of femininity and the sense of a producing presence behind them, but with different resultsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Living through pop, pg 166) These passages are serving as relevant data evidence for most of the dissertation objectives. Research Strategy The research question is a practicable question which can be answered during the dissertation allocated time-scale by using the research resources and academic knowledge of my course. The research will largely use the qualitative research approach. This research approach constructs and supports the dissertation that explores and analyse the transformation of style in popular culture. The main benefit of this research approach is ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s depth of exploration and understanding of the phenomena. For this research several types of qualitative research are needed: Antipositivism à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" The research concentrates on pop cultural  transformation,  values,  symbols and social processes viewed from a  subjective perspective (non-scientific) Critical Analysis à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" The research will critically analyse the pop culture transformations and their media social impact Interpretivism The main purpose of interpretivism is that the whole subject needs to be examined in order to understand the phenomena. The dissertation will examine the evolution of pop culture from ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s birth to present times focusing on representations (signs, symbols, artistic performances and expression) Research methodology The data needed for the dissertation will be collected using the following methods: Historical gathering Is defined as a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Systematic collection and objective evaluation of data related to past occurrences in order to test hypotheses concerning causes, effects, or trends of these events that may help to explain present events and anticipate future events.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Gay, 1996) This research method is fundamental for my dissertation because ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the primary way of collecting data for several dissertation objectives (The birth of pop culture and ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s evolution; Analysis of old and new symbols in pop music and pop videos). Case Study It is based on an in-depth investigation and analysis of a single entity by collecting  data, analyzing  information, and reporting the results. The research needs the simultaneously use of both case study types- descriptive and explanatory. The following pop music-videos case studies focusing on style, themes and symbols will support the achievement of the research objectives: Madonna à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Music/American Life; Lady Gaga à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Telephone; Madonna à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Vogue/Like a Prayer and Lady Gaga à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Alejandro. Media ethnography This research method is needed in order to define how pop music has influenced behaviour and society. A relevant media ethnographic research has been conducted by Paul Willis Symbolism and Practice: A Theory for the Social Meaning of Pop Music where he investigates the relationship between media and audiences and how pop music influenced young people in Britain. Validity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Validity is concerned with whether the findings are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"reallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ about what they appear to be about (Robson, 2002:93)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? The issue of validity is addressed in this research using triangulation. Triangulation involves the use of multiple sources to enhance the rigour of the research (Robson, 2002:174). This research also uses data triangulation, the use of more than one method of data collection. Ethical Research The research will follow the Professional ethical guideline and strive to protect the rights, privacy, dignity of those that are referred in this research, personal information will be treated confidentially and any information will be ethically used. Robson (2002:203) highlights the political issues involved with any research, for example, whose interests the research is serving. The sole purpose of this research is the completion of an Undergraduate level dissertation and is not being undertaken to serve any other interests.

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Fat Man Little Boy - 3852 Words

â€Å"Fat Man and Little Boy† starring Paul Newman By: Lara Brown Misty Corbett Joanne W. Hix Markette Plummer Stacee Sloan Management 5120 Organizational Design and Change Professor Warren Watson 10/25/09 1. Draw the organizational design for how Groves and Oppenheimer set up the Project. Describe how would you redesign or modify their organization to be more effective. Show this in a drawing. Be sure to describe how your modification is different from the original organization. Also, describe the basic design characteristics (key business processes, key supporting processes, deliberations, integration mechanisms, and interdependencies) in the atom bomb project, as it existed in the film, and any changes in these factors in†¦show more content†¦Once the appropriate organizational structure was established, the culture, morals, values and ethics evolved. However, Groves and Oppenheimer did, some additional things in terms of organizational design that aided in integration, specifically to handle conflict resolution and re-focusing in a crisis situation. Roles were defined for both Groves and Oppenheimer, such as when Oppenheimer requested from Groves to allow him to manage inside the lab and Groves can manage outside of the lab. This role division allows for differentiation of management styles to meet the functional needs. Authority and control were also well established by the great minds that came to play in meeting each rigorous deadline. For instance when Groves communicated to Oppenheimer that open discussion at the cantina was not acceptable, Oppenheimer defended this approach and used his authority and control to negotiate a compromise with Groves. The final initiative made by Groves and Oppenheimer to integrate the diverse organizational types was to develop functional teams. The function of each team was to meet their goal, within a 19-month deadline. The teams were comprised of intelligent men who pride themselves on progress and creativity. These teams not only served the purpose to meet the goal of their â€Å"function† but also to stimulate each other and challenge each other. Each member was competing against theShow MoreRelatedWhat Are the Positive and Negative Aspects of the Aromic Bomb?1520 Words   |  7 Pagesoperation known as The Manhattan Project achieved its goal - to create the first atomic bomb. Since its inception in 1939, scientist had struggled to find a way to harness the power of fission. Through the combined efforts of many, a test bomb known as Fat Boy was finally created. On July 16, 1945 in a desert in New Mexico the worlds first nuclear test, codenamed Trinity, was conducted and usher ed in the Atomic Age. Long Term Implications Of The Manhattan Project The initial explosion of an atomicRead MoreNuclear Warfare Is The Use Of Nuclear Weapons As A Military1204 Words   |  5 Pagesweeks later â€Å"Little boy† and† Fat Man† were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, destroying a large part of the cities. On August 5, 1945, the U.S. dropped â€Å"Little Boy† on the city of Hiroshima, officially making it the first atomic weapon used in war. It’s estimated that about 99,000 to 166,000 people died from the bomb and its effect in a four-month period after the explosion. And five years later an estimated 200,000 or more people died due to the results of the bombing. â€Å"Little Boy† was a uraniumRead MoreThe Bombing Of Hiroshima And Nagasaki1474 Words   |  6 Pagesdebated of these was the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Japan in the summer of 1945. There were two bombs used, one for each city. The first was a Uranium fission bomb coined â€Å"Little Boy† [see figure 1] that was dropped from the Enola Gay B-29 bomber on Hiroshima at 8:15 am on August 6, 1945. Little Boy was 10 feet long, 28 inches wide, and weighed 9,700 pounds. It contained high enriched uranium or â€Å"Oralloy† as fuel. The bomb was dropped via parachute by Commander Paul Tibbet and explodedRead MoreThe Atomic Bomb Changed The Course Of History740 Words   |  3 Pagesjade green radioactive glass created by the heat of the reaction (about money). With a nuclear bomb on their hands, the U.S. set out to finally end a war that had destroyed so many lives. The first bomb was in Hiroshima. A uranium bomb nicknamed Little Boy (despite weighing in at over four and a half tons) was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The Aioi Bridge, one of 81 bridges connecting the seven-branched delta of the Ota River, was the target; ground zero was set at 1,9 80 feet. After manyRead MoreShort Story1513 Words   |  7 Pagesaround the center that sat the little orchestra playing a haunting tune. The girl’s dresses flounced out, as their heads were thrown back, eyes closed. The guys of the pair moved to the left, narrowly avoiding some of the spinning couples to come into contact with the most stereotypical male bar room, he had ever seen. Cigar smoke layered over head as fathers and sons took generous sips of whisky and chuckled with their ironically flamboyant hand gestures. The boy seemed to shrink under the atmosphereRead MoreNuclear Technology Is The Reaction Of An Atomic Nuclei882 Words   |  4 Pageswhich is when a piece of material is shot into another piece of material which will start the reaction. (Science Behind the Atom Bomb). On August 6th, 1945, the first atomic bomb, â€Å"Little Boy,† was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Little Boy weighed 9,700lbs, was 10ft in length, and 28in in diameter. Litt le Boy was a gun type device. Forty percent of the critical Uranium 235 was put in the front of the bomb as the target. Sixty percent of the Uranium 235 was put in the back as the projectileRead MoreTaking a Look at Dropping the H-Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki921 Words   |  4 Pagesmade to drop on Japan were named Fat Man and Little Boy. Locations of Manhattan Project Trinity Test explosion Personnel working on Little Boy about little boy Little Boy was one of the two and only atomic weapons produced in World War 2. It was modeled after an unsuccessful bomb called Thin Man. It was a Uranium gun-type atomic bomb. It obtained its explosive power from nuclear fission of Uranium-235 (isotope of uranium). All the components of Little Boy were made at 3 different plantsRead MoreThe Atomic Bomb Was Built During Ww21066 Words   |  5 Pagesnamed robert j oppenheimer was the man who was put in charge of the manhattan project it was said he helped with the manhattan project extremely he was know asâ€Å"father of the atomic bomb†(History). The two atomic bombs made were called little boy and fat man these two bombs were dropped on nagasaki and hiroshima. One bomb was a plutonium bomb the other was a uranium bomb to see the difference in the bomb s blast radius. The first bomb dropped was codenamed â€Å"little boy† and this bomb was a uranium bombRead MoreA Scientific Breakthrough That Changed The Face Of International And Domestic Warfare Forever1614 Words   |  7 Pagescreation of the atomic bomb Little Boy. This was a gun-type fission weapon. It would shoot the critical masses of radioactive uranium-235 into each other until the fission took place and the release of nuclear energy took place. They first tested this unbelievable invention right outside Alamogordo, New Mexico on July 16, 1945. This first test of an atomic bomb was codenamed Trinity. This bomb was of the same design that the second bomb dropped during the called Fat Man was. This bomb was an implosion-typeRead MoreThe Creation of Nuclear Weapons Changed the World Forever654 Words   |  3 Pagesfirst atomic bomb called the â€Å"Little Boy† and the â€Å"FatMan†. Oppenheimer was the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico. He was incharge of gather the best minds to develop weapons of mass destruction. Oppenheimer along with 200 other physics developed weapons that would change the world forever. Little Boy was an atomic made out of Uranium, it contained 140 lbs. of pure uranium.Its explosive force was equivalent as 15,000 tons of TNT. Little Boy was tested during World War II

Saturday, December 14, 2019

Angels Demons Chapter 66-69 Free Essays

string(33) " now close enough to see it all\." 66 Chinita Macri was mad. She sat in the passenger’s seat of the BBC van as it idled at a corner on Via Tomacelli. Gunther Glick was checking his map of Rome, apparently lost. We will write a custom essay sample on Angels Demons Chapter 66-69 or any similar topic only for you Order Now As she had feared, his mystery caller had phoned back, this time with information. â€Å"Piazza del Popolo,† Glick insisted. â€Å"That’s what we’re looking for. There’s a church there. And inside is proof.† â€Å"Proof.† Chinita stopped polishing the lens in her hand and turned to him. â€Å"Proof that a cardinal has been murdered?† â€Å"That’s what he said.† â€Å"You believe everything you hear?† Chinita wished, as she often did, that she was the one in charge. Videographers, however, were at the whim of the crazy reporters for whom they shot footage. If Gunther Glick wanted to follow a feeble phone tip, Macri was his dog on a leash. She looked at him, sitting there in the driver’s seat, his jaw set intently. The man’s parents, she decided, must have been frustrated comedians to have given him a name like Gunther Glick. No wonder the guy felt like he had something to prove. Nonetheless, despite his unfortunate appellative and annoying eagerness to make a mark, Glick was sweet†¦ charming in a pasty, Briddish, unstrung sort of way. Like Hugh Grant on lithium. â€Å"Shouldn’t we be back at St. Peter’s?† Macri said as patiently as possible. â€Å"We can check this mystery church out later. Conclave started an hour ago. What if the cardinals come to a decision while we’re gone?† Glick did not seem to hear. â€Å"I think we go to the right, here.† He tilted the map and studied it again. â€Å"Yes, if I take a right†¦ and then an immediate left.† He began to pull out onto the narrow street before them. â€Å"Look out!† Macri yelled. She was a video technician, and her eyes were sharp. Fortunately, Glick was pretty fast too. He slammed on the brakes and avoided entering the intersection just as a line of four Alpha Romeos appeared out of nowhere and tore by in a blur. Once past, the cars skidded, decelerating, and cut sharply left one block ahead, taking the exact route Glick had intended to take. â€Å"Maniacs!† Macri shouted. Glick looked shaken. â€Å"Did you see that?† â€Å"Yeah, I saw that! They almost killed us!† â€Å"No, I mean the cars,† Glick said, his voice suddenly excited. â€Å"They were all the same.† â€Å"So they were maniacs with no imagination.† â€Å"The cars were also full.† â€Å"So what?† â€Å"Four identical cars, all with four passengers?† â€Å"You ever heard of carpooling?† â€Å"In Italy?† Glick checked the intersection. â€Å"They haven’t even heard of unleaded gas.† He hit the accelerator and peeled out after the cars. Macri was thrown back in her seat. â€Å"What the hell are you doing?† Glick accelerated down the street and hung a left after the Alpha Romeos. â€Å"Something tells me you and I are not the only ones going to church right now.† 67 The descent was slow. Langdon dropped rung by rung down the creaking ladder†¦ deeper and deeper beneath the floor of the Chigi Chapel. Into the Demon’s hole, he thought. He was facing the side wall, his back to the chamber, and he wondered how many more dark, cramped spaces one day could provide. The ladder groaned with every step, and the pungent smell of rotting flesh and dampness was almost asphyxiating. Langdon wondered where the hell Olivetti was. Vittoria’s outline was still visible above, holding the blowtorch inside the hole, lighting Langdon’s way. As he lowered himself deeper into the darkness, the bluish glow from above got fainter. The only thing that got stronger was the stench. Twelve rungs down, it happened. Langdon’s foot hit a spot that was slippery with decay, and he faltered. Lunging forward, he caught the ladder with his forearms to avoid plummeting to the bottom. Cursing the bruises now throbbing on his arms, he dragged his body back onto the ladder and began his descent again. Three rungs deeper, he almost fell again, but this time it was not a rung that caused the mishap. It was a bolt of fear. He had descended past a hollowed niche in the wall before him and suddenly found himself face to face with a collection of skulls. As he caught his breath and looked around him, he realized the wall at this level was honeycombed with shelflike openings – burial niches – all filled with skeletons. In the phosphorescent light, it made for an eerie collage of empty sockets and decaying rib cages flickering around him. Skeletons by firelight, he grimaced wryly, realizing he had quite coincidentally endured a similar evening just last month. An evening of bones and flames. The New York Museum of Archeology’s candlelight benefit dinner – salmon flambe in the shadow of a brontosaurus skeleton. He had attended at the invitation of Rebecca Strauss – one-time fashion model now art critic from the Times, a whirlwind of black velvet, cigarettes, and not-so-subtly enhanced breasts. She’d called him twice since. Langdon had not returned her calls. Most ungentlemanly, he chided, wondering how long Rebecca Strauss would last in a stink-pit like this. Langdon was relieved to feel the final rung give way to the spongy earth at the bottom. The ground beneath his shoes felt damp. Assuring himself the walls were not going to close in on him, he turned into the crypt. It was circular, about twenty feet across. Breathing through his sleeve again, Langdon turned his eyes to the body. In the gloom, the image was hazy. A white, fleshy outline. Facing the other direction. Motionless. Silent. Advancing through the murkiness of the crypt, Langdon tried to make sense of what he was looking at. The man had his back to Langdon, and Langdon could not see his face, but he did indeed seem to be standing. â€Å"Hello?† Langdon choked through his sleeve. Nothing. As he drew nearer, he realized the man was very short. Too short†¦ â€Å"What’s happening?† Vittoria called from above, shifting the light. Langdon did not answer. He was now close enough to see it all. You read "Angels Demons Chapter 66-69" in category "Essay examples" With a tremor of repulsion, he understood. The chamber seemed to contract around him. Emerging like a demon from the earthen floor was an old man†¦ or at least half of him. He was buried up to his waist in the earth. Standing upright with half of him below ground. Stripped naked. His hands tied behind his back with a red cardinal’s sash. He was propped limply upward, spine arched backward like some sort of hideous punching bag. The man’s head lay backward, eyes toward the heavens as if pleading for help from God himself. â€Å"Is he dead?† Vittoria called. Langdon moved toward the body. I hope so, for his sake. As he drew to within a few feet, he looked down at the upturned eyes. They bulged outward, blue and bloodshot. Langdon leaned down to listen for breath but immediately recoiled. â€Å"For Christ’s sake!† â€Å"What!† Langdon almost gagged. â€Å"He’s dead all right. I just saw the cause of death.† The sight was gruesome. The man’s mouth had been jammed open and packed solid with dirt. â€Å"Somebody stuffed a fistful of dirt down his throat. He suffocated.† â€Å"Dirt?† Vittoria said. â€Å"As in†¦ earth?† Langdon did a double take. Earth. He had almost forgotten. The brands. Earth, Air, Fire, Water. The killer had threatened to brand each victim with one of the ancient elements of science. The first element was Earth. From Santi’s earthly tomb. Dizzy from the fumes, Langdon circled to the front of the body. As he did, the symbologist within him loudly reasserted the artistic challenge of creating the mythical ambigram. Earth? How? And yet, an instant later, it was before him. Centuries of Illuminati legend whirled in his mind. The marking on the cardinal’s chest was charred and oozing. The flesh was seared black. La lingua pura†¦ Langdon stared at the brand as the room began to spin. Angels Demons â€Å"Earth,† he whispered, tilting his head to see the symbol upside down. â€Å"Earth.† Then, in a wave of horror, he had one final cognition. There are three more. 68 Despite the soft glow of candlelight in the Sistine Chapel, Cardinal Mortati was on edge. Conclave had officially begun. And it had begun in a most inauspicious fashion. Half an hour ago, at the appointed hour, Camerlegno Carlo Ventresca had entered the chapel. He walked to the front altar and gave opening prayer. Then, he unfolded his hands and spoke to them in a tone as direct as anything Mortati had ever heard from the altar of the Sistine. â€Å"You are well aware,† the camerlegno said, â€Å"that our four preferiti are not present in conclave at this moment. I ask, in the name of his late Holiness, that you proceed as you must†¦ with faith and purpose. May you have only God before your eyes.† Then he turned to go. â€Å"But,† one cardinal blurted out, â€Å"where are they?† The camerlegno paused. â€Å"That I cannot honestly say.† â€Å"When will they return?† â€Å"That I cannot honestly say.† â€Å"Are they okay?† â€Å"That I cannot honestly say.† â€Å"Will they return?† There was a long pause. â€Å"Have faith,† the camerlegno said. Then he walked out of the room. The doors to the Sistine Chapel had been sealed, as was the custom, with two heavy chains on the outside. Four Swiss Guards stood watch in the hallway beyond. Mortati knew the only way the doors could be opened now, prior to electing a Pope, was if someone inside fell deathly ill, or if the preferiti arrived. Mortati prayed it would be the latter, although from the knot in his stomach he was not so sure. Proceed as we must, Mortati decided, taking his lead from the resolve in the camerlegno’s voice. So he had called for a vote. What else could he do? It had taken thirty minutes to complete the preparatory rituals leading up to this first vote. Mortati had waited patiently at the main altar as each cardinal, in order of seniority, had approached and performed the specific balloting procedure. Now, at last, the final cardinal had arrived at the altar and was kneeling before him. â€Å"I call as my witness,† the cardinal declared, exactly as those before him, â€Å"Christ the Lord, who will be my judge that my vote is given to the one who before God I think should be elected.† The cardinal stood up. He held his ballot high over his head for everyone to see. Then he lowered the ballot to the altar, where a plate sat atop a large chalice. He placed the ballot on the plate. Next he picked up the plate and used it to drop the ballot into the chalice. Use of the plate was to ensure no one secretly dropped multiple ballots. After he had submitted his ballot, he replaced the plate over the chalice, bowed to the cross, and returned to his seat. The final ballot had been cast. Now it was time for Mortati to go to work. Leaving the plate on top of the chalice, Mortati shook the ballots to mix them. Then he removed the plate and extracted a ballot at random. He unfolded it. The ballot was exactly two inches wide. He read aloud for everyone to hear. â€Å"Eligo in summum pontificem†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he declared, reading the text that was embossed at the top of every ballot. I elect as Supreme Pontiff†¦ Then he announced the nominee’s name that had been written beneath it. After he read the name, he raised a threaded needle and pierced the ballot through the word Eligo, carefully sliding the ballot onto the thread. Then he made note of the vote in a logbook. Next, he repeated the entire procedure. He chose a ballot from the chalice, read it aloud, threaded it onto the line, and made note in his log. Almost immediately, Mortati sensed this first vote would be failed. No consensus. After only seven ballots, already seven different cardinals had been named. As was normal, the handwriting on each ballot was disguised by block printing or flamboyant script. The concealment was ironic in this case because the cardinals were obviously submitting votes for themselves. This apparent conceit, Mortati knew, had nothing to do with self-centered ambition. It was a holding pattern. A defensive maneuver. A stall tactic to ensure no cardinal received enough votes to win†¦ and another vote would be forced. The cardinals were waiting for their preferiti†¦ When the last of the ballots had been tallied, Mortati declared the vote â€Å"failed.† He took the thread carrying all the ballots and tied the ends together to create a ring. Then he lay the ring of ballots on a silver tray. He added the proper chemicals and carried the tray to a small chimney behind him. Here he lit the ballots. As the ballots burned, the chemicals he’d added created black smoke. The smoke flowed up a pipe to a hole in the roof where it rose above the chapel for all to see. Cardinal Mortati had just sent his first communication to the outside world. One balloting. No Pope. 69 Nearly asphyxiated by fumes, Langdon struggled up the ladder toward the light at the top of the pit. Above him he heard voices, but nothing was making sense. His head was spinning with images of the branded cardinal. Earth†¦ Earth†¦ As he pushed upward, his vision narrowed and he feared consciousness would slip away. Two rungs from the top, his balance faltered. He lunged upward trying to find the lip, but it was too far. He lost his grip on the ladder and almost tumbled backward into the dark. There was a sharp pain under his arms, and suddenly Langdon was airborne, legs swinging wildly out over the chasm. The strong hands of two Swiss Guards hooked him under the armpits and dragged him skyward. A moment later Langdon’s head emerged from the Demon’s hole, choking and gasping for air. The guards dragged him over the lip of the opening, across the floor, and lay him down, back against the cold marble floor. For a moment, Langdon was unsure where he was. Overhead he saw stars†¦ orbiting planets. Hazy figures raced past him. People were shouting. He tried to sit up. He was lying at the base of a stone pyramid. The familiar bite of an angry tongue echoed inside the chapel, and then Langdon knew. Olivetti was screaming at Vittoria. â€Å"Why the hell didn’t you figure that out in the first place!† Vittoria was trying to explain the situation. Olivetti cut her off midsentence and turned to bark orders to his men. â€Å"Get that body out of there! Search the rest of the building!† Langdon tried to sit up. The Chigi Chapel was packed with Swiss Guards. The plastic curtain over the chapel opening had been torn off the entryway, and fresh air filled Langdon’s lungs. As his senses slowly returned, Langdon saw Vittoria coming toward him. She knelt down, her face like an angel. â€Å"You okay?† Vittoria took his arm and felt his pulse. Her hands were tender on his skin. â€Å"Thanks.† Langdon sat up fully. â€Å"Olivetti’s mad.† Vittoria nodded. â€Å"He has a right to be. We blew it.† â€Å"You mean I blew it.† â€Å"So redeem yourself. Get him next time.† Next time? Langdon thought it was a cruel comment. There is no next time! We missed our shot! Vittoria checked Langdon’s watch. â€Å"Mickey says we’ve got forty minutes. Get your head together and help me find the next marker.† â€Å"I told you, Vittoria, the sculptures are gone. The Path of Illumination is – † Langdon halted. Vittoria smiled softly. Suddenly Langdon was staggering to his feet. He turned dizzying circles, staring at the artwork around him. Pyramids, stars, planets, ellipses. Suddenly everything came back. This is the first altar of science! Not the Pantheon! It dawned on him now how perfectly Illuminati the chapel was, far more subtle and selective than the world famous Pantheon. The Chigi was an out of the way alcove, a literal hole-in-the-wall, a tribute to a great patron of science, decorated with earthly symbology. Perfect. Langdon steadied himself against the wall and gazed up at the enormous pyramid sculptures. Vittoria was dead right. If this chapel was the first altar of science, it might still contain the Illuminati sculpture that served as the first marker. Langdon felt an electrifying rush of hope to realize there was still a chance. If the marker were indeed here, and they could follow it to the next altar of science, they might have another chance to catch the killer. Vittoria moved closer. â€Å"I found out who the unknown Illuminati sculptor was.† Langdon’s head whipped around. â€Å"You what?† â€Å"Now we just need to figure out which sculpture in here is the – â€Å" â€Å"Wait a minute! You know who the Illuminati sculptor was?† He had spent years trying to find that information. Vittoria smiled. â€Å"It was Bernini.† She paused. â€Å"The Bernini.† Langdon immediately knew she was mistaken. Bernini was an impossibility. Gianlorenzo Bernini was the second most famous sculptor of all time, his fame eclipsed only by Michelangelo himself. During the 1600s Bernini created more sculptures than any other artist. Unfortunately, the man they were looking for was supposedly an unknown, a nobody. Vittoria frowned. â€Å"You don’t look excited.† â€Å"Bernini is impossible.† â€Å"Why? Bernini was a contemporary of Galileo. He was a brilliant sculptor.† â€Å"He was a very famous man and a Catholic.† â€Å"Yes,† Vittoria said. â€Å"Exactly like Galileo.† â€Å"No,† Langdon argued. â€Å"Nothing like Galileo. Galileo was a thorn in the Vatican’s side. Bernini was the Vatican’s wonder boy. The church loved Bernini. He was elected the Vatican’s overall artistic authority. He practically lived inside Vatican City his entire life!† â€Å"A perfect cover. Illuminati infiltration.† Langdon felt flustered. â€Å"Vittoria, the Illuminati members referred to their secret artist as il maestro ignoto – the unknown master.† â€Å"Yes, unknown to them. Think of the secrecy of the Masons – only the upper-echelon members knew the whole truth. Galileo could have kept Bernini’s true identity secret from most members†¦ for Bernini’s own safety. That way, the Vatican would never find out.† Langdon was unconvinced but had to admit Vittoria’s logic made strange sense. The Illuminati were famous for keeping secret information compartmentalized, only revealing the truth to upper-level members. It was the cornerstone of their ability to stay secret†¦ very few knew the whole story. â€Å"And Bernini’s affiliation with the Illuminati,† Vittoria added with a smile, â€Å"explains why he designed those two pyramids.† Langdon turned to the huge sculpted pyramids and shook his head. â€Å"Bernini was a religious sculptor. There’s no way he carved those pyramids.† Vittoria shrugged. â€Å"Tell that to the sign behind you.† Langdon turned to the plaque: ART OF THE CHIGI CHAPEL While the architecture is Raphael’s, all interior adornments are those of Gianlorenzo Bernini. Langdon read the plaque twice, and still he was not convinced. Gianlorenzo Bernini was celebrated for his intricate, holy sculptures of the Virgin Mary, angels, prophets, Popes. What was he doing carving pyramids? Langdon looked up at the towering monuments and felt totally disoriented. Two pyramids, each with a shining, elliptical medallion. They were about as un-Christian as sculpture could get. The pyramids, the stars above, the signs of the Zodiac. All interior adornments are those of Gianlorenzo Bernini. If that were true, Langdon realized, it meant Vittoria had to be right. By default, Bernini was the Illuminati’s unknown master; nobody else had contributed artwork to this chapel! The implications came almost too fast for Langdon to process. Bernini was an Illuminatus. Bernini designed the Illuminati ambigrams. Bernini laid out the path of Illumination. Langdon could barely speak. Could it be that here in this tiny Chigi Chapel, the world-renowned Bernini had placed a sculpture that pointed across Rome toward the next altar of science? â€Å"Bernini,† he said. â€Å"I never would have guessed.† â€Å"Who other than a famous Vatican artist would have had the clout to put his artwork in specific Catholic chapels around Rome and create the Path of Illumination? Certainly not an unknown.† Langdon considered it. He looked at the pyramids, wondering if one of them could somehow be the marker. Maybe both of them? â€Å"The pyramids face opposite directions,† Langdon said, not sure what to make of them. â€Å"They are also identical, so I don’t know which†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I don’t think the pyramids are what we’re looking for.† â€Å"But they’re the only sculptures here.† Vittoria cut him off by pointing toward Olivetti and some of his guards who were gathered near the demon’s hole. Langdon followed the line of her hand to the far wall. At first he saw nothing. Then someone moved and he caught a glimpse. White marble. An arm. A torso. And then a sculpted face. Partially hidden in its niche. Two life-size human figures intertwined. Langdon’s pulse accelerated. He had been so taken with the pyramids and demon’s hole, he had not even seen this sculpture. He moved across the room, through the crowd. As he drew near, Langdon recognized the work was pure Bernini – the intensity of the artistic composition, the intricate faces and flowing clothing, all from the purest white marble Vatican money could buy. It was not until he was almost directly in front of it that Langdon recognized the sculpture itself. He stared up at the two faces and gasped. â€Å"Who are they?† Vittoria urged, arriving behind him. Langdon stood astonished. â€Å"Habakkuk and the Angel,† he said, his voice almost inaudible. The piece was a fairly well-known Bernini work that was included in some art history texts. Langdon had forgotten it was here. â€Å"Habakkuk?† â€Å"Yes. The prophet who predicted the annihilation of the earth.† Vittoria looked uneasy. â€Å"You think this is the marker?† Langdon nodded in amazement. Never in his life had he been so sure of anything. This was the first Illuminati marker. No doubt. Although Langdon had fully expected the sculpture to somehow â€Å"point† to the next altar of science, he did not expect it to be literal. Both the angel and Habakkuk had their arms outstretched and were pointing into the distance. Langdon found himself suddenly smiling. â€Å"Not too subtle, is it?† Vittoria looked excited but confused. â€Å"I see them pointing, but they are contradicting each other. The angel is pointing one way, and the prophet the other.† Langdon chuckled. It was true. Although both figures were pointing into the distance, they were pointing in totally opposite directions. Langdon, however, had already solved that problem. With a burst of energy he headed for the door. â€Å"Where are you going?† Vittoria called. â€Å"Outside the building!† Langdon’s legs felt light again as he ran toward the door. â€Å"I need to see what direction that sculpture is pointing!† â€Å"Wait! How do you know which finger to follow?† â€Å"The poem,† he called over his shoulder. â€Å"The last line!† † ‘Let angels guide you on your lofty quest?’ † She gazed upward at the outstretched finger of the angel. Her eyes misted unexpectedly. â€Å"Well I’ll be damned!† How to cite Angels Demons Chapter 66-69, Essay examples

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Historical Geology Essay Example For Students

Historical Geology Essay Historical Geology Essay of The Permian Basin One of the largest oil producing areas of the world is located in West Texas. This area is known as the Permian Basin. Most of the oil is being produced from rocks formed in the Permian Period. The largest amounts of these rocks are located in the Permian Basin and southeastern New Mexico.That is why this area is known as the Permian Basin. The main features of the Permian Basin was formed in the early part of the Paleozoic area but it wasnt until the Mississippian and Pennsylvanian Periods that the folding occurred in which formed the outlines of the basin as it is presented to us today. (Intro to Petroleum Geology of the Permian Basin) Our basic composition of the Permian Basin is made up of sand, distance, and mountain regions. We also have the desert region in which tons of Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic rocks can be found. There are also a lot of crusted plates, and violent volcanoes that are located in our region. In our Big Bend and Fort Davis areas, when traveling down the highway you may find many sedimentary deep filled basins and uplifted landscapes where you can tell erosion played a huge part in their current forms. The earth as we know it can be divided from the center outward into three concentric shells. These shells are known as the Lithosphere, Hydrosphere, and the atmosphere. Basically these are the general features of the Earth and I am going to give you a description in which you may be able to define the uses of these in our every day The Lithosphere: (rock sphere) is the solid sphere in which we live, farm and build our buildings of our cities. It is 8,000 miles in diametere and 26,000 miles in circumference. The outer few miles of lithosphere is made up of rock called crust. Hydrosphere: This is where the water sphere is located. It is made up of everything that contains water: Oceans, Rivers , Lakes, as well as the groundwater. The main purpose we use this for is to drill wells into so that we may obtain the water that Atmosphere: This is the outer shell and it is made up of the air. It extends outward at least 200 miles from the surface of the crust, but half of its mass is within 12 miles of sea level. The atmosphere is important to all living things because it gives us oxygen which is the important factor to process life. (Intro to Petroleum The feature that makes up our lovely West Texas region A.K.A. the Permian Basin, is three rock types. These are found exclusively in the Big Bend, and Marathon regions. These rock types are Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic. These are found throughout most of the Permian Basin area. Here are some brief definitions in which you may define these rock types. These definitions come from the book(Intro to Petroleum Igneous Rocks: formed by the cooling and solidfication of molten material called Sedimentary Rocks: formed from particles that were deposited by water, air, or ice. Metamorphic Rocks: formed from sedimentary and igneous rocks, but altered by heat, pressure, and fluids to a different form and mineral composition. Erosion as mentioned earlier has played a huge role in defining and shaping our scenic view and landscapes of West Texas. When looking up at one of these magnificent ancient volcanoes, you can estimate pretty much exactly how much rock has been weathered, eroded and removed from this part of the country. Another example of erosion is pretty much given at the bottom of every mountain found in West Texas. You can see it in the talus piles and even in the dry climate of this part of the state. 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