Under the Whiplash by Lara Oruno Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Under the Whiplash by Lara Oruno - Essay Example First used by the Greeks, slavery has roots in the antique forced labor practices of the Egypt of pharaohs, Greece, Italy and the Middle East, particularly in Babylon and Assyria. A people stripped of any right to demand status of origin or title [name], slavery, apparently has a long history that saw Europe enslave approximately 20 percent of their own population at some point; a practice that only faded out in the fifteen century with the newfound sources from the far continents of Africa and Asia (Coates 18). With the advent of large scale plantations in the Americas, tens of millions of Africans became victims of slavery. Like the antique slaves, they were not only subjected to forced labor, but had to yield to the sexual demands of their masters. Keeping with the old tradition, all male slaves, irrespective of their ages, acquired the tittle "boy". Unlike the old slavery that offered a relief through some form of emancipation, slavery in the Caribbean was but a totalitarian syst em based on extreme exploitation driven in part by racism (Coates 19). The only alternative to freedom to such cruelty were brave flight efforts with a subsequent strong resistance. While the two terms, forced labor and slavery, have historically been used interchangeably, there exist a thin line in between. According to the International Labor Organization, forced labor refers to â€Å"work imposed on a person under the threat(s) of a penalty and for which the willingness to offer such a service is non-existent† (ILO par 3). Slavery, however, is an elastic concept that not only covers forced labor, but includes the dimension of the subjects involved being treated as property worth some definite price. (Laura 162). In the second article, â€Å"Who was responsible?† Elikia M'Bokolo tries to navigate the thicket of who should take the responsibility on the massive shipments of Africans to the Americas. A controversial subject that has left historians with more of a guess work, M'Bokolo works extracts extra hard to deconstruct the myth placing the Africans themselves right in the middle. From slave-raiding that involved outright abduction to slave-trading, either of the processes engaged the expedition of man-hunts that carried maximum risks, including mass killings; the 1446 massacre near the Cap Vert peninsula in present-day Senegal was but a clear indication of the Africans determination to fight off enslavement. Accordingly, the Europeans, particularly the Portuguese, were the pioneer traders in slaves, perhaps to minimize the risks of deaths in millions, of people whose services were increasingly needed to sustain plantation farming in America. Understandably, slave-raiding continued even after the routinisation of slave-trade, occasionally becoming a buffer source of slaves’ supply for traders. M'Bokolo goes to note that the terms of trade were never in the hands of Africans; the occasional raids coupled with the building of forts along the coastline sent a clear message to the rulers of the continent that left them with no choices other than to comply (Coates 21). As such, though Africans got involved in selling their fellow brothers, Europe’s domination shaped every aspect of the trade, leaving Africa counting its losses as they [th e Europeans] reaped massively. Bluntly put, slave trade, to Africans, was a kind of diabolical-plot which forcefully made them [Africans] accomplices or otherwise perish in the merciless expeditions. The section â€Å"A Controversial Question† highlights the controversy on who between the Europeans and Africans should bear the blame in perpetuating the

Mitosis and Meiosis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mitosis and Meiosis - Assignment Example There are 3 aspects that are critical for the survival of all organisms and they are growth, repair and reproduction. Division of cells is very important for these events. Division of cells happens through 2 different types of processes, the mitosis and meiosis which constitute different phases of cell cycle (Sadava, 2013). As and when needed, different hormones in the body of the organism send signals to the cells for preparation for division. There are mainly 2 parts in the process of division. The first phase is the interphase during which there is growth and preparation. This is followed by cell division which includes cytokinesis and mitosis. Interphase constitutes 90 percent of the cell cycle. During mitosis, the nucleus of the cell is replicated and divided into 2 nuclei that are similar and have identical genetic material. This type of cell division is mainly for growth of cells, repair and asexual reproduction. The end result of mitosis is somatic cells, each of which will have diploid number of chromosomes (Sadava, 2013). There are basically four stages in mitosis. The first stage is known as prophase. Sister chromatids in the cell condense and become visible. The envelope of the nucleus breaks to expose the chromosomes. Formation of spindle fibers begins extending from the centrioles. The spindle fibers are made up of microtubules and they are attached to the centromere of sister chromatids. The centrioles migrate to opposite sides of the cells slowly. The next phase is the metaphase. There chromosomes form a line along the equatorial plate which is in the center of the cell. From here, the chromosomes are moved with the help of centrioles and spindle fibers. The third phase is the anaphase. The centromeres are pulled apart and the sister chromatids separate. This is done by spindle fibers. The daughter chromosomes are also pulled to opposite poles. Thus each daughter cell will have identical set of chromosomes similar to the parent cell. In the telophase, new nuclei begin to form in each cell aroun d chromosomes. The chromosomes also unravel into their loose form and spindle fibers disassemble. Cytokinesis starts and new cells are towed (Sadava, 2013). In cytokinesis, the cytoplasm of the cell divides into two parts, each one having a new nucleus. Thus, the daughter cells are genetically identical to the parent cell. Meiosis is another type of cell division which occurs in reproductive cells or germ cells only. It involves two fissions of the nucleus and gives rise to four sex cells or gametes (Sadava, 2013). Each of the cells has half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell. Meiosis occurs in 2 stages, meiosis -1 and meiosis-2. In meiosis-1, the pairs separate and in meiosis-2 sister chromatids separate as in mitosis. There are four steps in meiosis-1. The interphase is similar to mitosis during which the DNA replicates and forms sister chromatids connected at the centromere. However, homologous pairs of chromosomes pair up. In prophase-1, the chromosomes thicken and the homologous pairs of chromosomes tangle together and move towards the equatorial plate. Thus, 4 sister chromatids move together and this is known as tetrad. Nuclear envelop disappears and spinal fibers start forming. Crossing-over also occurs in this phase. Swapping of parts of chromosomes also occurs due to tangling. This leads to genetic variation between individuals. In metaphase-1, homologous pair line up along the equatorial plate. In anaphase-1, separation of homologous pairs occurs due to pulling of spindle fibers from the centromere. Now, each chromosome has 2 sister chromatids. In telophase-1, cytokinesis occurs with or without formation of nuclear membrane and this leads to new cells with haploid set of chromosomes in each and resembles sister chromatids (Sadava, 2013). In meiosis-2 that occurs after cytokinesis and telophase-1, division of cells occurs, but