It's the default document template for Microsoft Word. I don't know the specific technicalities, but we see lots of problems associated with the Normal.dot file where I work. If it gets corrupt, it can cause varying levels of problems on a machine, from a stuttering mouse pointer, to 100% CPU resource use, or even crash the PC altogether. Luckily it's very easy to correct; delete the file. The next time you run Word, it will create a new Normal.dot that should stop the problems.