The African Diaspora free essay sample

The African Diaspora refers to tales of how Africans, although dispersed, managed to keep hold of their cultures, traditions and ways as they reform in identities conforming to a new world. For a period longer than four centuries, about four million Africans were captured, taken away from their homes and shipped to the Caribbean Islands and North America to work as slaves[1] The change of location and lives motivated the need for African culture and ways to be upheld in the new home away from home. Despite this separation from their tribes, cultures and people, Africans living in Diaspora managed to maintain different aspects of their culture including language, religion, and folklore which they linked to their past. The Americanization process saw the Africans form a new culture called Afro-Americans also known as Creoles[2]. Permanent ties between Africa and North America were created by the Trans Atlantic slave trade having being the biggest in the world. We will write a custom essay sample on The African Diaspora or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Africans from all over the African continent especially the coastal regions were relocated to different parts of North America. The Bantus of the coast of Guinea followed by the Mande had the biggest cultural homogeneity. This made the African-American culture experience a great influence in the Diaspora by the many people coming from these regions. Culture Maintained Afro-American culture differed from one region to another. However, religion was the only homogeneous aspect amongst most of the regions. Christianity is a good example of how Afro-American culture fused its beliefs with the existing religion producing a new theology[3]. The religion spread so fast among the slave communities which saw the Great Awakening sweep the colonies with an influx of evangelical Christianity. The Africans could identify and understand life better with this new wave, which was once used by white slave masters to attract them as potential slaves. The captives later on took Christian teachings of equality which had initially been used as a tool of manipulation by their owners and used it to liberate themselves from captivity[4]. The conversion to Christianity saw the slaves maintain most of their traditions despite having newly acquired some which they blended with their African religious ways. Language is yet another aspect of culture that affected the slaves who moved from their home countries to colonial territories. Pigeon English, also referred to as Pidgin English, has been in the past used largely by Africans even though it was seen as their incapability of using proper English[5]. Studies however show that African Americans’ way of speaking English is tied to some African Languages. Creole languages are still spoken in parts of the USA currently and have gained much acceptance reflecting the survival of African culture throughout slavery and westernization[6]. These languages include Pigeon English and Gullah. This use of two or more varieties of the same language is referred in â€Å"Down by the Riverside: A South Carolina Slave Community†, a book by Joyner. The writer terms this variance in language as Diglossia.[7] African Americans merged their old ways with the new ways the learnt in the new land. These included, cooking, woodcarving, story telling and the tradition of singing gospel songs.[8]   They added their spices to already existing western dishes. The blending of cultures was inevitable at some point as both cultures borrowed aspects of the others’ culture at some point. Western dishes ay some point made use of African spices to enrich their food. Africans living in diaspora kept their culture alive by maintaining their African symbols with their meanings. The placing of familiar snake symbols on metal gates and frames of windows and doors was widely used. Wood used by the carvers played an important role in culture preservation. This led way for carvers to make statues, sculptures, canes in form of chains so as not to forget the days of their bondage and the endurance the went through. The detailed carvings had relevance to family and friends of the carvers. Songs sung while working in the fields to pass time evolved into gospel music which later on constituted themes of freedom from captivity in conjunction with salvation. These songs came with a distinct style of native dancing which varied from one colony to another. These aspects of culture indicate the merger between western and African culture. As documented in â€Å"The African diaspora: African origins and New World Identities†, the writers show marriage among the natives of Africa as having enhanced the maintenance of the original culture for a long while. In the colonial days, women could not own property on their own unless they were married.[9]This resulted in many black natives intermarrying among themselves so as to own property in the new land. The culture of marriage charged the woman with the responsibility of bearing children and teaching them the African ways and cultures. The writers further show how blacks were assimilated into white culture through marriage. Middle class educated black men in Venezuela were the first to be socially accepted to marry white women.[10] They thought that would bring an end to racial bias. The process took some time before the acceptance of mixed marriages, its inclusion into both cultures was expected to reduce racial prejudice. However, racial violence against the Afro-Cuban society was highly noticed in an effort to discouraged mixed marriages. With more time, racial interactions and intermarriages became more tolerable. Black men were better placed to intermarry out of their racial circle as opposed to black women. As documented in â€Å"The African Diaspora: African origins and new world identities†, the issue was widely known to a point of being coined into a saying: â€Å"White woman for marriage, mulata (biracial) for sex, black woman for work.†[11] The gradual subdivision of the colony into diverse social groups was inevitable because of the social and cultural development as well as the changing needs of the society. In â€Å"The African Diaspora†, writers Harris and Jalloh shed light into the development of an elite group of merchants, military officials, church officials, planters and officials of the state. Another group was categorized by artisans, professionals, and people with influence in the church.[12] A third lower group consisted of soldiers, hawkers, and professionals of a low level. The emotional pain suffered by the Africans under captivity was great. However, all slaves were affected differently. Some were emotionally torn by the experience, others died, while other got the better out of the traumatizing experience. Benefits of captivity included, getting education, mastering crude western technology and ways of life like administration, literature, politics, farming, food and religion.[13] An article on Race and History by Barton shows that Black history and its influence on the world is important not only to the blacks in America but the whole world too. The understanding of this history and the need to remember it is important at this point when globalization has hit the world making it a task for all people of different origins. Culture is important to preserve a people and nation too. Blacks in the USA and the rest of the world should in this spirit preserve their culture through music, traditions, language and other aspects despite being assimilated into westernization. Aspects such as the strong structure of the family, matrilineal systems, respect for elders and rites should be upheld to ensure continuity in the African culture[14].

When to Cite a Source in a Paper

When to Cite a Source in a Paper Write an essay and back it up with facts. How many times have you heard a teacher or professor say this? But many students might wonder what exactly counts as a fact, and what doesnt. That means they dont know when it is proper to cite a source, and when its OK not to use a citation. Dictionary.com states that a fact is: Something demonstrated to exist or known to have existed. Demonstrated is a hint here. What the teacher means when she/he tells you to use facts is that you need to back up your claims with some evidence that supports your claims (sources). Its one trick that teachers use to make sure you actually use some references when you write a paper, instead of simply offering a list of your opinions. This may sound easy, but its actually tough sometimes to know when you need to back up a statement with evidence and when it is fine to leave a statement unsupported. When to Cite a Source You should use evidence (citations) any time you make a claim that is not based on a well-known fact or common knowledge. Heres a list of situations when your teacher would expect a citation: You make a specific claim that could be challengedlike London is the foggiest city in the world.  You quote somebody.You make a specific claim that is not common knowledge like the Indian Ocean is the youngest of the worlds major oceans.You paraphrase information from a source (give the meaning but change the wording).Offer an authoritative (expert) opinionlike germs cause pneumonia.You got an idea from somebody else, even through email or conversation. Although there may be interesting facts that you have believed or know for many years, you will be expected to provide proof of those facts when youre writing a paper for school. Examples of Claims You Should Support Hot water can freeze faster than cold water.Poodles are friendlier than Dalmatians.American Chestnut trees are nearly extinct.Eating while driving is more dangerous than talking on the cell phone while driving.Thomas Edison invented a vote counter. When You Dont Need to Cite a Source So how do you know when you do not need to cite a source?  Common knowledge is basically a fact that practically everyone knows, like the fact that George Washington was a U.S. president. More  Examples of Common Knowledge or Well-Known Facts Bears hibernate in the winter.Fresh water freezes at 32 degrees F.Many trees shed their leaves in the fall.Some trees do not shed their leaves in the fall.Bears hibernate. A well-known fact is something that many people know, but it is also something that a reader could look up easily if he/she didnt know. Its best to plant flowers in the early spring.Holland is famous for its tulips.Canada has a multilingual population. If youre not really certain about something being common knowledge, you could give it the little sister test. If you have a younger sibling, ask him or her the subject youre pondering. If you get an answer, it could be common knowledge! A Good Rule of Thumb A good rule of thumb for any writer is to go ahead and use a citation when youre not certain whether or not the citation is necessary. The only risk in doing this is littering your paper with unnecessary citations that will drive your teacher crazy. Too many citations will give your teacher the impression that you are attempting to stretch your paper to a certain word count! Simply trust your own best judgment and be honest with yourself. Youll get the hang of it soon!

The Value of Work and Money Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Value of Work and Money - Essay Example It is always a regular battle for people to find jobs, even to those who graduated from universities. For this reason, some are challenged to take jobs with low salaries or that are not related to their education at all. Some try to make sense of such circumstances, considering it to be a stepping stone, a way of taking some experience on work for them to eventually land the job they want, in time. The perseverance that I have seen in most Chinese makes a one who would not easily give up, no matter how difficult situations are. If John Updike considers that â€Å"one of the advantages of having been a child in the depression is that it takes very little money to gladden the heart† (Updike, 125), I, for one who was raised in a country where applying for one position in a restaurant is a competition among hundreds of applicants, consider it a joy to have a job, no matter how difficult it is. It also follows that regardless of the salary, it easily gladdens the Chinese heart for one to have a job. This probably reflects as well the Chinese upbringing of never being ashamed about small beginnings as most wealthy Chinese worked their way to where they are now through hard work, perseverance and not being choosy of the demands of work. I always considered this to be an admirable character so with the same principle, I volunteered for odd jobs in the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai. The jobs were physically demanding. At night, as I rest on my bed, I felt like my body was badly beaten during the day. Nevertheless, there was the feeling of satisfaction that boosted my value and importance. I usually congratulated myself for a job well done during the day and treat myself to a restful night for me to be able to face another day of hard work. In such times, I felt like I was a true Chinese. I was proud of myself. In addition, I worked for a few days at a Chinese restaurant. There, I learned a lot not only about work but about job. I was challenged to continue with my studies as I observed that a university education greatly helps in the success of a person. I realized that I could actually work hard, maybe in a different manner as when I am an employee at a restaurant; that I could equally be tired but would be more financially rewarded. What I mean is that, if I have a good education that will propel me to get a white collar job, I may work as hard as a waiter, tired as dog by the end of the day, but well compensated. If I have an education that will make me stand out among others, I will not be like most who are just able to work with their hands, feet and common knowledge but I will be armed with a special knowledge and skill that would give me the chance to earn better salaries. I know I can get to the point of being the one giving a tip to the restaurant employee and not the one taking it. I do not mean to minimize the value of such job and situation; I just want to have a higher value for what I do. Studying in the United States, I am cons idered to be stingy. I do not see it that way, though. I understand that the worth of every cent I spend is the value of my parents’ sweat, hard work and long nights. If Updike says, â€Å"coins were once worth their weight in silver or gold†, they are worth my parents’ dreams for me. Nowadays, money can be easily spent. There are a lot of things to buy, many malls and places to go to. Coins and paper money can easily disappear from one’s wallet. Yet, as a person raised in a family where money is spent only in meaningful and

Modern Latin America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Modern Latin America - Essay Example The colonial age in the Latin world should be considered as the region’s most influential years: the laws, norms, movements and conflicts, were significantly influential in deciding the character of the land today. It is known that the Spanish people were the only prominent power that fought over the Latin world to acquire their control (Keen & Haynes, 2012). This is why they have some much influence even to the Latin world of today. As Spain’s political power was merged in the second half of the 16th century, so was its capacity to control and regulate the colonial economy. Functioning in line with the mercantilistic strictures of that era, Spain endeavored to capitalize on ventures through exporting valuable products, such as silver and later other agricultural commodities and minerals (Keen & Haynes, 2012). They also supplied the new colonial market with already manufactured goods in order to create an encouraging balance of trade for the Latin world. Nevertheless, t he strongly regulated trading dominion, based in Seville, was not always capable of providing the colonies effectively, and; therefore the Latin world later saws its independence (Edwards, 2010). This was after a number of successful fights against the Spanish army. Therefore, what changes marked the transition to independence? This paper will discuss the above question especially noting the issues of the Church, race, political legitimacy, neocolonialism, imperialism, sovereignty and national identity. Some of the three primary factors that this paper considers being the landmark of Latin America’s independence are the Catholic Church (separation of the church from the state), imperialism (a free market, the extension of public education and industrialization) and political legitimacy. Church The Church in Latin America bore the marks of its colonial and Iberian past following independence. Spain Catholics adopted a custom of strong faith, a vital doctrinal of enduring piety and knowledge (Keen & Haynes, 2012). Adherence itself was a means of knowledge because, in the Mass, people learnt the scriptures, the doctrines, as well as the secrets of the Catholic faith. Portugal broadcasted an orthodox Catholicism, as well, but with a lower degree of adherence and a less doctrinal knowledge. Everywhere, religion and faith in Latin America was a religious conviction of the citizens and the Church went to receive the observance and the admiration of the mestizos, Indians and other popular people (Edwards, 2010). Supreme groups were less devoted, and the prominent respect for the Church in the 19th century was the apostasy of the influential people, not the neglect of the masses. The Iberian convention in religion favored a well known, honored and a state-ran Church (Keen & Haynes, 2012). But, following independence, the church opted to separate itself from the states. The influential, wealthy and privileged people of the Church were perceived by the new states as an opponent focus of adherence, a source of revenue and a substitute power. The risk of state control emerged in a new form after independence (Edwards, 2010). The Church, therefore, had to look to its own assets and these, in the early 19th century, were thinning. The church was granted an advantaged position because it was also prevalent in Europe at that time. The entire region was typified by great rates of Catholicism after independence. Catholicism rates reached as high as 90% out of the entire Latin American population. Following independe

Kleins Theory Of The Paranoid Schizoid Position

Kleins Theory Of The Paranoid Schizoid Position Through this essay, I am going to discuss Melanie Kleins theory of the Paranoid-Schizoid position, referring to some of the defence mechanisms which the infant uses. I will also illustrate how parts of the Paranoid-Schizoid position are conveyed through Ridley Scotts film, Alien (1979). Melanie Klein believed the first object which the infant relates to in the external world is its mother. During the Paranoid-Schizoid position, the infant sees objects around it as either good or bad, according to its experiences with them. The objects are felt to be loving and good when the infants wishes are gratified, leaving them feeling happy and satisfied. Conversely, objects are seen as bad when the infants wishes are not met adequately and thus frustration prevails. At the beginning of life, the infant does not have a perceptual image of its mother, but sees her in part-objects; the most important part-object being the breast. Klein referred to the good breast, which represents the good mother who feeds the infant on demand and gives them attention, and the bad breast, representing the bad mother who says no or who is absent when the infant wants something. The infant therefore believes they have two different mothers because they cannot yet tolerate the idea of loving and hating the same object; Klein termed this process splitting. The infants ego splits due to the anxiety it experiences caused by its paranoid fear of annihilation by the bad breast. The splitting process also prevents the bad breast from destroying the good breast because the infant keeps them separated from one another. Thus, the mother must be either good or bad and the feeling directed towards her must be either love or hate; the two cannot yet coincide. The film, Alien, clearly portrays this splitting progress. At the beginning of the film, the alien attaches itself, breast-like, onto Kanes face, and breathes for him in order to keep him alive. In Kleins theory, aggression is directed towards the bad breast due to persecutory fears; they believe the bad breast wants to destroy them. Similarly, in Alien, the creature is seen as frightening and harmful, representing the bad breast which the infant has a desire to destroy. However, the creature also represents the good breast, because it is keeping Kane alive. The infants anxious fears of annihilation cause the ego to develop defence mechanisms, which aim to protect the infant from the bad breast, yet also give them control over the good and bad breast, making sure they are kept separate from one another. The schizoid response to this anxiety is to project and introject the good and bad breast. Projection allows the infant to project their bad qualities outwards, into the bad breast, such as feelings of aggression, hate and envy. An example of projection in Alien can be seen at the end of the film when Ellen blasts the alien out into space; she is ridding herself of the bad object and thus destroying it through projection. The infant also uses introjection to bring the good objects from the good breast inside them. They can then control the good objects through phantasising that the good objects are inside them. The infant thus wants to introject the good breast and project the bad breast, allowing them to make a clear distinction between the good objects, which are now inside them, and the bad objects, which have been split from them. Anal aggression is a further defence mechanism used by the infant to gain a sense of control. Since their anxiety is caused by the threatening bad breast, the infant believes they need to defend themselves using destruction and aggression. The infant does this by entering inside their mother through phantasy to see what harmful objects are within her. They believe there to be faeces, their fathers penis, and other babies inside her and consequently want to rid the mother of these bad objects. They also have the desire to put their own faeces inside their mother, since this gives them a feeling of control. The infant succeeds in this process through unconscious phantasy; they take control by sucking dry, biting up, scooping out, and robbing the mothers body of all its contentparticularly her babiesand expel dangerous substances out of the self and into the mother. The infant thus reduces their feelings of anxiety through aggression, projection and introjection. However, since the infant wants to destroy these objects inside the mother and rob her of them, they automatically feel anxiety that their mother will equally want to retaliate and attack them too. Klein writes, In his destructive phantasies he bites and tears up the breast, devours it, annihilates it; and he feels that the breast will attack him in the same way.Thus, by projecting their bad qualities onto their mother, and through anal aggression, the defence mechanisms rebound, since anxiety and fears of persecution are experienced again. These phantasies of attacking the mother can be seen through Alien when the crew are trying to destroy the creature, which they hate and fear. They project their aggression and hatred onto the creature, which inevitably leaves them believing that the creature is determined to destroy them, along with the disloyal Mother (the spaceships computer). The crew thus want to destroy the creature, whilst at the same time they are being pursued by it. Hanna Segal also notes that there are times when the good object is projected, so it can be kept safe from an overpowering badness which is felt inside. Similarly, bad objects can be introjected and identified with in an attempt to gain control over them. This is because during feelings of anxiety, projection and introjection are used to keep persecutory and ideal objects as distant from each other as possible, whilst still maintaining control of them both. In Alien, during the scene when the crew are all eating around the table, and the creature has appeared to release itself from Kane, he is then literally destroyed from within as the alien rips through his chest. In relating this scene to the Paranoid-Schizoid position, Kane introjected the bad persecutory object, with the unconscious phantasy of gaining control over it. The bad object (the creature) is then re-projected when it rips through Kanes chest. Thus, the creature is again the source of persecutory anxiety because it esca pes. It thus becomes evident that although defence mechanisms initially protect the individual from harm and anxiety, they often rebound, creating further feelings of fear and anxiety. I am now going to discuss the force which is behind the feeling of aggression. Klein is often claiming that the infant has an innate drive to destroy everything that is good. However, David Hiles suggests that this is simply a misunderstanding of the mechanism of envy. Thus, envy is the force which leads to such hatred of an external object, inevitably causing aggression. This envy is a result of the infants ego experiencing a denial of something they want or need. For example, the mother may be possessing yet withholding something which the infant desires, such as the infant wanting to be fed, or to be given attention. Envy is therefore the feeling of conflict that what one desires, and would normally be forthcoming, but is being withheld. The envious impulse within the infant encourages them to attack the very source which they originally relied upon for what was desired. Melanie Klein believed the breast to be the first object envied by the infant. Thus, withholding the breast, wh ich the infant trusts to contain goodness, causes the infant to respond aggressively, often biting the mother physically, or attacking her through phantasy. However, if a nurturing and loving environment is provided by the mother, and if the Paranoid-Schizoid stage is tolerated and worked through, then normal development will often follow. Excessive envy can lead to a weakened ego, also triggering an intense feeling of guilt. The infant realises that they are destroying the primary good object which is providing them with goodness through their envious attacks. Thus, they are gradually enter the Depressive Position, and slowly begin to realise that the mother is a whole object, and that they love and hate the same object. To conclude, the conflict between love and hate, and experiencing envy, is necessary for the personality to develop, along with the strengthening of the ego. The way in which the infant is brought up and cared for also contributes to the infants happiness and development, helping to reduce their feelings of anxiety and fears of persecution. Klein says that Persecutory anxiety is to some extent counteracted by the infants relation to the good breastthe gratification and love which the infant experiences help to counteract persecutory anxiety. Thus, the relationship which the infant has with the good breast eventually reduces anxiety and the fear of persecution. Trust is also established with the good object as the infant gradually realises that the mother is a whole object. The nature of the relationship between the mother and the infant has a great influence upon the infants future relationships with others and upon their social attitude in general. Word count- 1,540

Nypd Case

Columbia Business School Revised December 18, 2000 The New York City Police Department Patrol System The City of New York is divided into 73 precincts. These precincts are the basic managerial units for the operation of the familiar police patrol cars (called radio mobile patrols or RMPs) we see on the City streets. For staffing purposes the Police Department divides the day into three eight-hour tours of duty: 12 midnight to 8AM, 8AM to 4PM, and 4PM to 12 midnight. A particular police precinct such as the 26th, in which Columbia University stands, may have 6 patrol cars in the field during the typical 8-to-4 tour.In New York about 1200 cartours are fielded on an average day — about 200 on the 12 to 8 tour, about 400 on the 8 to 4 tour, and about 600 on the 4 to 12 tour. Most cars are staffed with two police officers. The primary tasks of the patrol cars are responding to emergencies that are phoned in by citizens via the 911 emergency telephone system and patrolling the stree ts. Annually, there are about 10 million calls received by the 911 system. Incidence of emergency calls is generally very unpredictable, but incidents are most prevalent in the early evening hours.Emergency incidents vary in severity and importance — ranging from reports of crimes in progress to complaints about loud neighbors. Roughly 10% of calls are potentially serious and get high priority from the police. When not responding to 911 calls, patrol cars patrol in their assigned neighborhoods, referred to as sectors. Each precinct typically has 4 to 8 sectors. â€Å"Back-office† operations for the 911 system are located in Police Headquarters in downtown Manhattan at One Police Plaza. Incoming 911 calls are handled by banks of telephone operators, grouped by borough.The operators screen the calls to determine whether or not they are legitimate police matters, and key in to the central computer system information about the time, location, and nature of the incident. If the incident was not previously reported, the information is electronically relayed to the police patrol dispatcher for the appropriate precinct. NYPD Patrol System Columbia Business School p. 1  © 1998, Linda V. Green – 67 – Dispatchers are civilians who are responsible for assigning patrol cars to 911 incidents in the precincts they handle.They also monitor the status of incidents and patrol cars and input all relevant information to the central computer system. Dispatchers are typically responsible for 2 or 3 contiguous precincts. When a dispatcher receives a new incident, the information is automatically added to a computer screen for that precinct, and the job is added to the dispatch queue in priority order. When a patrol car from the precinct is available, the dispatcher will assign it to the next job in the dispatch queue. If the incident is a dangerous one, more than one car may be dispatched.All communications are via radio When a car is dispatched to a jo b, it first travels to the scene of the incident. If the incident is still active, the officers perform whatever tasks are called for and, when done, write up required reports and radio to the dispatcher a final status code. The amount of service time per car per incident (including travel time) varies greatly from incident to incident, but overall it averages about 30 minutes. Allocation of the 1300 car-tours among the precincts is a complex and sensitive issue.Precincts vary greatly in population, physical area, frequency of 911 calls, incidence, and type of crime and special needs. Moreover, the rate and type of 911 calls may vary by day of the week and by season. For these reasons, allocations must be adjusted regularly, and thus it is necessary to have a fast and efficient computer-based method to help determine allocations. Fortunately, accurate data is readily available from the 911 computer system which records detailed information about each call. The table below illustrate s the type of data that is collected and used to help determine allocations for each 8 hour tour of duty.Though at any given point in time the total number of RMP’s is fixed, occasionally the city decides to either increase or cut the number, usually as a reflection of the financial status of the city. The marginal cost of adding a fully staffed car for one tour-of-duty for a year is approximately $300,000 ($230,000 of which is for labor). Suppose the city consists of only six precincts as shown in the table. Your assignment is to allocate patrol cars among these six precincts for the tour of duty described by these data.You may assume that, on average, a car spends 30 minutes on each call in each precinct. Furthermore, statistical analysis has shown that service times are well modeled by an exponential distribution. NYPD Patrol System Columbia Business School p. 2  © 1998, Linda V. Green – 68 – PRECINCT AVERAGE NO. CALLS/ HOUR 6. 4 3. 8 PERCENT OF CALLS HIGH PRIORITY 8. 2 7. 7 TOTAL FELONIES PER YEAR 10,600 6,600 SIZE (SQ. MI. ) 1. 9 . 8 A B C D E F 2. 6 3. 4 1. 5 6. 6 7. 3 13. 8 4. 0 12. 2 4,300 9,400 1,800 8,500 5. 2 1. 0 17. 0 1. 7 NYPD Patrol System Columbia Business School p. 3  © 1998, Linda V. Green – 69 – – 70 –

Nutrigenomics and Nutrigenetics

There has been a long-standing debate whether the fate or characteristics of a particular organism or human being is dependent on the environment or its genetic makeup although scientific data collected in recent years point to the interaction between these two. According to experts in the field, the physical, chemical and behavioral properties of a person can be attributed to the interaction between the blueprint which is genetics and the test site which is the environment. Genetic makeup can be considered a blueprint wherein properties regarding growth and development of an organism is stored and copied while environment can be regarded as the actual dynamism of living and nonliving factors that surround and affect the organism. Currently, there are two controversial areas of interest related to nutrition, health and well being, the nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics. These two fields involve the study of implications between nutrition, metabolism and genetic mechanisms. Proponents of nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics believe that nutrition plays a vital role in the metabolic processes inside the body and that there are specific food and fluids that are appropriate for a particular genetic makeup. This paper aims to differentiate between nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics and their role in the current nutrition research. The goals, applications and implications will be likewise enumerated. In addition current researches that delve into this area will be included to better understand the future and impact of this controversial science. Goals and Implications of Nutrigenomics and Nutrigenetics According to Mariman (2007) one of the primary goals of nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics is to pinpoint nutrient-dependent health characteristics and nutrition-dependent diseases. This revolves on the fact that certain genetic disorders are triggered by particular food or be relieved by certain supplements. These areas on important nutrient-dependent genetic conditions are the ones gaining foremost attention but there are other research fields that are equally important and can be considered part of nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics. An example is the search for nutritional strategies to prevent or manage overweight or obesity. The purpose is to find food types that can easily induce satiety to affected persons while providing the needed nutrients at the same time. Another example is studying mechanisms involving food fermentation by primitive organisms in the digestive tract and in an artificial condition. Such information will be enlightening regarding better and efficient digestion. The other area connected to nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics concerns food composition and performance of quality assessment by studying the interconnectivity of the proteomic and metabolic pathways that will be explained next (Burton & Stewart, 2004; Mariman, 2007). Undoubtedly, there will be a large impact on the food industry, genetics and disease research all around the world when the direct and exact mechanisms and applications of nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics are laid down through scientific and intensive research (Burton & Stewart, 2004). Effects of Nutrient on the Genome, Proteome and Metabolome Nutrition is believed to be influencing the genetic and metabolic makeup of an organism in three basic levels. These are on the level of the genome, proteome and metabolome. Genome is the overall genetic blueprint of an organism. It includes all the genes and other regions of the nucleotide sequences in all the chromosomes that are transferred from the parent to the offspring. According to studies concerning nutrient and genomics, certain genes are either turned on or off by the presence, abundance or absence of a particular nutrient. Severe imbalance in nutrition adversely affects an individual due to the expression of genes that makes that individual susceptible to chronic diseases (Paturel, 2006). According to Paturel (2006), antioxidants are an example of molecular food components that can extensively affect the genome and gene expression of an individual. Certain diseases such as cancer and health conditions such as aging are believed to be associated to the lack of antioxidants in the diet of affected persons. Another very important nutrient that can severely affect the genome is folate. Folate and folic acid, which are forms of vitamin B9, play a very important role in the deoxynucleotide acid (DNA) synthesis, replication and repair. This means that absence of this said nutrient can lead to depletion of genetic material, errors in DNA replication and damage to the genome. This lack of folate in the diet can result to severe healthcare problems such as birth defects and cardiovascular disease among important genetic disorders (Meshkin & Blum, 2007). On the proteome and metabolome level, nutrition also has large impact. An example is the inability to process or digest milk proteins. This condition is attributed to lactose intolerance in persons with disruptions in intestinal enzyme needed to digest dairy products. This condition induces the body to synthesize morphine-like compounds which triggers autism and schizophrenia when absorbed by specific regions of the brain. The goal, therefore, is to design food supplements that would prevent lactose intolerance and consequently prevent autism and schizophrenia (Paturel, 2006). Differences between Nutrigenomics and Nutrigenetics Nutrigenomics is defined as a set of technological research and applications involving the elucidation of the mechanisms wherein the genetic program functioning in cells and tissues of an organism is supposedly influenced by the organism’s diet. Muller and Kersten (2003) defines nutrigenomics as the application in nutrition research of high throughput genomics tools by analyzing dietary signals in cells and tissues towards clarification of the impact of nutrition on homeostasis. Simply put, nutrigenomics is the merging of nutritional environment and cellular or genetic functions (Kaput & Rodriguez, 2004). Nutrigenetics, on the other hand, is the use of genetic variation data correlated with dietary health risks. Nutrigenetics is based on the assumption that there is genetic variation in human populations and that an individual’s response to nutrition is governed by various genes. Thus, nutrigeneticists claim that individuals may react differently on different diets which imply that nutrition-related disorders can be treated and prevent by modifying diet. This includes identifying those genes that are involved, the differences of these genes in every individual and the applications for health and disease in the population setting. The above definitions give a clear view of the differences between nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics. Nutrigenomics looks at the whole response of the genome on particular diet or nutrition. Studies conducted under nutrigenomics use a set of individuals who are largely dissimilar in metabolic responses to particular diet. For example, research related to obesity uses those that are not susceptible to the said condition versus individuals that have obesity or chronic obesity. Using different types of nutritional setup or specific food groups, scientists aim to provide the metabolic pathways that are specific to developing obesity or resistance to such tendency. Another example is diabetes or cardiovascular disease wherein individuals who are found to have high risks on such diseases are examined on their reaction to particular diet or nutrition. Other examples of single gene traits that have large healthcare impacts are those involved in phenylketonuria and galactosemia (Kaput & Rodriquez, 2004). Nutrigenetics, on the other hand, looks on the population response to diet or nutrition. Sequence variations are detection through molecular studies. An example of such molecular tool is the study of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). These changes in the nucleotide sequence of subjects can lend an explanation on the reaction of particular individuals in relation to the reaction of other individuals. Persons with this changes or SNPs may have crucial substation leading to a health care condition. For example, a cytosine-to-thymidine substitution may cause an increase in the levels of homocysteine in the plasma which increases a person’s risk of acquiring venous thromboembolic disease and neural tube defects (Subbiah, 2006). Since the two areas of research differ on the part and extent of patient characteristics, therefore the tools and applications largely vary. Nutrigenomics involve various technological implements to ascertain the expression of target genes. Nutrigenomics uses mRNA profiling, protein profiling, metabolite profiling, gene expression tests and other molecular tools. The goal is to determine the presence of a particular enzyme, protein, by-product or metabolite in the cells, tissues or system in the subjects subjected to nutrients being tested (Mariman, 2007). On the other hand, nutrigenetics requires the use of genetic polymorphism tests such as isozyme or nucleotide sequencing. The aim is to detect changes or polymorphisms in a person that is divergent from that of the population. Of important interest is placed in cases of known conditions arising from nucleotide changes such as the one mentioned above involving cytosine-to-thymidine substation which resulted to neural tube defects (Kaput & Rodriguez, 2004; Subbiah, 2006) Obviously, since the target areas of nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics are very different from each other, the intervention strategies or treatments should also be divergent. Whereas personally-tailored nutrition and supplements should be given to patients in nutrigenomics the nutrients or supplements to be given to nutrigenetics subjects may be less specific. For example, for those suffering from galactosemia and phenylketonuria, appropriate foods are to be given to avoid or prevent the negative effects of these health conditions (Wallace, 2006; Kaput & Rodriguez, 2007). Nutrigenetics, on the other hand, covers a large portion of the population wherein functional foods and supplements may be made available to the market for people who have the risk, as tested by polymorphism detection, of a disease or health condition such as cardiovascular disease or obesity. Supplements that lower cholesterol that adversely affects certain groups may be taken as prescribed by physicians (Meshkin & Blum, 2007; Subbiah 2006). Current Research in Nutrigenomics and Nutrigenetics Novel research on folate nutrigenomics research highlighted the importance of this vitamin in the development of humans such that absence can invariably lead to birth defects. Research by Meshkin & Blum (2007) found high association between folate and cardiovascular disease and birth defects reduction. They were also to able to find the genetic influence on folate. Studies such as this led to the review of current policies regarding one-size-fits-all government approach of folate and folic acid supplementation. Chen et al. (2007) found chromium picolinate to have anti-obesity nutrient traits since it affects body composition and reduces weight in humans. They achieved this by genotyping the dopamine D2 receptor gene using standard polymerase chain reaction techniques. Using placebo and different treatment of chromium picolinate, the authors found the significant therapeutic effect of the said nutritional compound in influencing weight loss and reduction in body fat. Their results established the need for DNA testing for this application. Heuvel (2007) conducted a research regarding the effects of pistachios on cardiovascular disease risk factors. His research included effects of pistachios on lipoproteins and lipids, apolipoproteins, insulin, blood pressure and genetic expression of various genes among other related factors. Results showed that cholesterol reduction diet with pistachios greatly improved the efficiency. In addition, increasing pistachio dose also increased the benefits in decreasing the cardiovascular disease risk on subjects. The said research was achieved by considering the different risk factors in a nutrition genomics experiment. Aside from this study, the author has other proposed experiments including the effects of walnuts on hypercholesterolemia and peanuts on cardiovascular health. Holick (2006) reiterated available and extensive evidence on the importance of vitamin D related to prevention and treatment of rickets, osteoporosis, type 1 diabetes mellitus, many common cancers and hypertension. His paper put importance on sun exposure and vitamin D supplements to avoid vitamin D deficiency and avert succumbing to various diseases which apart from the above, includes also psoriasis, multiple sclerosis and cardiovascular disease among others. Researchers from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) are currently in search for answers regarding celiac disease, a disorder wherein a person cannot tolerate a protein in wheat, rye, barley and oats called gluten. Aside from designing diet that would be beneficial for patients suffering from celiac disease, these researchers are also in the hunt for the responsible chemicals in the destruction of the function of the immune system. They are engineering enzymes   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   that can neutralize or destroy immunotoxic peptides produced in affected persons by establishing the environmental and genetic aspects of the disease (NIDDK, 2007). Above advances in the nutrigenetics and nutrigenomics research are indeed fast paced and covers multiple fronts due to the large impact of their results to the food, genetics and healthcare industry. What is very noticeable is the specific focus of each research team on particular areas in individual disease or disorder. Their studies are more focused because the causes already been identified by the involved pathways or gened. This is due to the fact that causes have been pinpointed to the key genes or pathways involved. For example, folate, chromium picolinate and vitamin D in the enumerated researches above have been isolated by workers in these fields. One noticeable pattern, however, is the prominence of nutrigenomics over nutrigenetics. There are more research activities being conducted tackling the effect of nutrition on the genome reaction. More gene expression, metabolic pathways and proteomic analyses are being performed than genetic diversity tests in relation to nutrition. In other words, the approach of nutrition genomics is currently more adapted to personalized diet design since this can be considered a quick fix. However, the trend is not towards the dominant use of nutrigenomics. Instead, there is a need for nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics to be used in combination. This is because nutrigenomics can put solutions on the gene, protein and metabolic level of the disease but those that are suffering from various disorders are not isolated or few. There are large proportions in the population who are affected by diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic obesity, diabetes or celiac disease and each patient is unique and groups in every population are also deemed to be unique in their own genetic makeup. Since nutrigenomics can be used to develop quick-fix diet but not in a population level. This is where nutrigenetics should come in. In summary, nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics are two differing fields of modern nutrition and health science with a very large impact on the food and healthcare industry. Nutrigenomics aims to help individuals overcome disorders or disease by identifying key genes, proteins and metabolic pathways and providing appropriate diet or supplements while nutrigenetics tackles the variations in populations related to diet and nutrition dependent disease or disorders. Current researches delve into the specific effects of food and nutrition to the risks and development of known disorders such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, birth defects and many others. Although there have been more work being conducted in nutrigenomics, combination with nutrigenetics is seen to have more beneficial results for patients and other people that are at risk to the said healthcare problems. Works Cited Burton, H. and A. Stewart. (2004). Nutrigenomics. The Nuffield Trust. Available from: www.leatherheadfood.com/nutrigenomics/nutrigenomics07.pdf [18 November 2007] Chen, T., Blum, K., Kaats, G., et al. (2007). Chromium picolinate (CrP) a putative anti-obesity nutrient induces changes in body composition as a function of the Taq1 dopamine D2 receptor polymorphisms in a randomized double-blind placebo controlled study. Gene Ther. Mol. Biol. (11) :161-170. Available from www.dnasoa.com/2006/pdf/cpp.pdf [17 November 2007] Holick, M.F. (2006). High prevalence of vitamin D inadequacy and implications for health. Mayo Clin. Proc. 81(3). Available from   [17 November 2007] Kaput, J. and R. Rodriguez. (2004). Nutritional genomics: the next frontier in the postgenomic era. Physiol. Genomics (16): 166-177. Available from physiolgenomics.physiology.org/cgi/content/full/16/2/166 [17 November 2007] Kaput, J., Perlina, A., Hatipoglu, B., Bartholomew, A. and Y. Nikolsky. (2007). Nutriggenomics: concepts and applications to pharmacogenomics and clinical medicine. Pharmacogenomics 8 (4). Available from: www.genego.com/PubFTP/PharmacogenomicsKaput.pdf [18 November 2007] Mariman. E..C. (2007). Nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics. Research Institute NUTRIM. Maastricht University Department of Human Biology. Available from:   [18 November 2007] Meshkin, B and K. Blum. (2007). Folate nutrigenetics: A convergence of dietary folate metabolism, folic acid supplementation, and folate antagonist   pharmacogenetics. Drug Metabolism Letters. (2): 55-60. Available from: www.bentham.org/dml/samples/dml1-1/Blum.pdf [18 November 2007] Muller M, Kersten S. (2003). Nutrigenomics: goals and strategies. Nat Rev Genet. 4(4):315-22. NIDKK. (2007). Celiac disease. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. National Institutes of Health. Available from: digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ ddiseases/pubs/celiac/ [18 November 2007] Paturel, A. (2006). Does your diet fit your genes? IDEA Fitness Journal. Available from: www.dswfitness.com/docs/2006IDEANutrition1.pdf [18 November 2007] Subbiah, M.T. (2006). Nutrigenetics and nutraceuticals: the next wave riding on personalized medicine. Translational Research. Available from: www.mdl-labs.com/documents/Nutrigenetics.pdf [18 November 2007] Vanden Heuvel, J.P. (2007). Regulation of gene expression by nuclear receptors: Role in toxicology, chemoprevention and nutrition. Penn State University Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences. Available from  [17 November 2007] Wallace, H. (2006). Your diet tailored to your genes: Preventing diseases or misleading marketing? GeneWatch UK. Available from:[19 November 2007]