Gram staining lab report Essay Example

Gram staining lab report Paper Gram Staining Lab Introduction Gram staining is a very important technique used in biology labs all over the world. It is a technique used to differentiate types of bacteria using certain physical and chemical characteristics Of their cell walls. Gram positive bacteria (which show up purple after the gram staining process) have a very thick layer of epidemiological where gram negative bacteria (Which show up pink after the gram staining process) have a much thinner layer of epidemiological. One thing to note is that not all bacteria are gram positive or gram negative, some are Nan-reactive o this type of staining. Bacteria that are non-responsive to this technique are known as gram insensitive. Hypothesize that in the cultures used in this lab for gram staining will contain many gram negative and gram positive bacteria. Material and Methods The following things are needed to run a gram staining experiment: 1, Bacterial cultures . Glass slides . Cover slips . Ammonium Oxalate-Crystal Violet stain . Grams Iodine Solution Ethyl Alcohol Seafaring Solution paper towels . Water I (I Bunsen Burner (Lighter will suffice) 11. Microscope I _ Prepare and heat-fix smears. 2. Stain the slides as follows: a. DOD the crystal violet for one minute. B. Pour off excess dye and wash gently in tap water and drain the slide against a paper towel. Expose the smears to Grams iodine for one minute by washing with iodine, then adding more iodine and leaving it on the smear until the minute is over. D. Wash with tap water and drain carefully. (Do not blot. ) e. Wash with 95% alcohol for 30 seconds. F. Wash with tap wat er at the end of the 30 seconds to stop the decentralization. G. Countersink with 0. 25% seafaring for 30 seconds, Drain. H. Wash, drain, blot, and examine under oil. Draw the cells showing morphology, grouping, and relative sizes, Color a few of the cells of each bacterial species to show the Gram reaction. J. Save these slides and the ones from parts B C of this exercise to use at the next lab period. Looking under the microscope after letting the stain set will prove to be quite interesting, Results The gram staining lab was a huge success. Many different types of both gram negative and gram positive bacteria were identified. There were even a few gram insensitive fellows that had some interesting characteristics such as being spiral shaped. We will write a custom essay sample on Gram staining lab report specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Gram staining lab report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Gram staining lab report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In all there were four different kinds of gram positive bacteria, two notably different types of gram negative bacteria, and only one gram insensitive bacteria. Discussion There were many good specimens that ended up beautifully stained. One of the Odd things noticed about the gram sensitive bacteria is that the gram negative bacteria were gigantic compared to the gram positive bacteria (XX-1 OX larger). One Of the gram positive types Of bacteria in the cultures that were interesting to me were some that came in colonies of four. (Not identified yet but have been working on it.

19th Century Bildungsromans

19th Century Bildungsromans Free Online Research Papers The Bildungsromans is used in literature to help describe ones coming of age. It is often used to help describe the problems of the society in which a young individual is coming of age in. The novels The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, By: Mark Twain and Great Expectations By: Charles Dickens, both show how authors use the technique of a bildungsromans to portray the wrongs of a society. Although both novels take place at different setting, both show the development of a youth in the flawed native society. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The main character Huck grows up in the bigoted and traditional south along the Mississippi river. In this traditionalist society there were many flaws that need to be addresses and by using a blidungsromams, Twain was able to address the problems and bring them to light in a tactful manner. Among these issues to be addressed is the issue of slavery. In the novel, Twain uses Huck’s conscious to convince readers that slavery is wrong. During the journey down-river Huck realizes that Jim, the escaped slave, is like a normal white person, just a little slower. During this time he also resolves to treat Jim like a white person and to not treat him any lower. This shocking show of sympathy is used to help tell people that blacks are equals. Twains other major example of the problems of that time are exemplified by the Duke and Dauphin and The Royal Nonesuch plays that they put on. The greed and the selfishness of the Duke and Dauphin are used to help show the social problems of the time. When the Duke and Dauphin put on The Royal Nonesuch plays, the first groups of people who are scammed force the Duke and Dauphin to put it on again because they are too insecure to admit that they were swindled. This shows that the stubbornness of this time ruled over logic and trust. The feud between the Grangerfords and the Shepardsons also represents the flaws of the 19th century Mississippi valley region. The petty feud represents all the stubbornness of the times and the people’s ability to senselessly hate. Lastly, Paps brutal treatment of Huck in the novel is used to convey the horror and dangers of alcoholism. In the novel, Pap uses Huck to try and procure Huck’s fortune from him. He even goes to the extent to kidnapping him to try and get the money, so he can by more booze. This instance of poor parenting and irresponsibility is used by twain to show how the crippling addiction of alcoholism can destroy one’ s self and their family. The novel Great Expectations is also a great example of a piece of literature that uses the story of a developing young adult and the society they grow up in to show the problems of the society they are growing up in. In Great Expectations, while growing up, Pip experiences the cruel class warfare between the upper and lower classes in England. Estella’s brutal treatment of Pip when she first meets him exemplifies the hatred between the two classes. This class hatred had caused much conflict between the two groups throughout history. This part of the book comments on that and suggests that instead of hating each other we should start trying to get along. In the novel, Dickens also comments on the fake gentlemanly class that tries to be something they’re not, such as Mr. Pumblechook. Mr. Pumblechook is pretentious in his efforts and acts solely to preserve some kind of status for himself and put himself above those who do not know any better. This is proven when the serg eant comes over to the house and Mr. Pumblechook entertains him with the wine that was a gift for Miss Joe. When Pip is brought to London to become a gentleman, he experiences firsthand the brutal nature of people in this time period. When he first arrives in London, he is shown the city by Mr. Jagger’s assistant. The assistant, at one point takes him to the square where people are publically executed and crowds gather and make an afternoon of it. This was a common occurrence for England at this time. This, along with the public torture of animals through having dogs attack a bear, and other brutal and ‘inhumane’ practice were considered all in good fun. Pip reacts to this with almost no disdain, and generally accepts it as acceptable. The inhumanity of this time is conveyed by Dickens through using Pips journey to adulthood. Throughout Pips childhood he is treated in a manner that many consider unacceptable and crude for a child to experience. When Pip is living with Mr. and Mrs. Joe he is treated as if he were an unruly, incompetent adult. During this time period it was a common belief that all children were mischievous and fully aware of their actions. This widely held belief caused much bitterness and pain for pip in his early years. While children should be kept under control, they should be punished like an adult would be punished for making the same offense. This harsh style of parenting is portrayed as highly cruel by Dickens, and is done so in an artfully literary fashion. The story of a youth becoming an adult, known as Bildungsromans, is used by the nineteenth century’s two most prominent novelists to convey the problems of their time. Among these problems are slavery, greed, stubbornness, addiction, pretentiousness, cruelty and poor-parenting. These issues are displayed for the reader, in both The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Great Expectations, in an artful and tactful way. The ability to use the coming of age stories of two very different boys, in two very different time periods, to make people aware of the issue of the time, assures the place of Mark Twain and Charles Dickens as the equally leading literary authors of the nineteenth century. Research Papers on 19th Century BildungsromansThe Masque of the Red Death Room meanings19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraTrailblazing by Eric AndersonWhere Wild and West MeetMind TravelHip-Hop is ArtHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andCapital PunishmentGenetic Engineering

Indigenous person or European colonist Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Indigenous person or European colonist - Essay Example It roots from an ethnocentric belief, that one culture is better than the other. It is important, though, to consider that each culture believes in things differently because of the nature of how they were brought up. With this paper, I will try to place myself as part of an indigenous group. In this manner, I will try to explain the differences in both cultures and how one group accepts and rejects other cultures and values. It is important to note that the common ground of both indigenous and colonists is the desire to maintain their own culture and beliefs. When it comes to property, indigenous people have a sense of group ownership and free land. Land is not owned by one but by the entire group. They roam around the land and gather whatever they can gather, they hunt whatever they can hunt, and bring it back to the tribe. And they share it. The roles within the community are exact and defined. Men hunt, women tend to the village. Men are protectors, women are caretakers of the vi llage. They gain additional land and property, including slaves, when they fight another tribe and win. They tend to use violence in order to increase their land, property and people. The value of their properties depends on how strong the other tribe is. The stronger the tribe they defeat, the more they value the things that they gather from that tribe. The reason for this is the loss of lives they have sacrificed in order to gain these properties. Although the European colonists have the same thirst for expansion, they have a different method of doing it. Violence is not the primary key to gather property and land. They use diplomacy, education and religion to expand their property and land. This, the indigenous people can accept and incorporate in their culture. Tribes tend to use violence, which increases the loss of their tribe with the death of their warriors and protectors. To lessen this, indigenous people can learn to use diplomacy in gaining hold of other tribes. Instead o f just going off to war, they can learn how to talk peacefully first and use wealth, power and numbers to defeat the other tribes. The same as European colonists, by which they buy off the other indigenous groups and immerse them into their society as slaves. In the sense, there is a trade-off. One main characteristic of the European colonists is their ethnocentrism. This should be rejected. European colonists believe that indigenous people are stupid, ignorant and easy to be swayed. They see indigenous people as puppets that can be swayed easily because of their lack of modernization. What they don’t understand is they have their own perspective of civilization. That’s why there is an improvement in the indigenous people’s lives. They have their own sense of civilization. They just have a different understanding of it. What is important to them may not be important to the European colonists. An example of this is the value of accessories and clothes that were m ade from animal skins. European colonists have a high value for animal skin clothes but have little value for glass beads. Indigenous people treat glass beads and other accessories because it is a sign of wealth and power for them. We remember that the daughters of tribe leaders wear more accessories and head gears than the others. This goes the same for warriors, the more body paint or accessories they have, the higher their rank is. This is the same concept as with soldiers and their medals. When trading,

Racism and American Low Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Racism and American Low - Essay Example In the United States, in the field of law, there are actions that can impact racism. The murder of Trayvon Martin in Florida recently brought up the topic of racism and the law and made it the center of the conversation. Analysis of the stakeholders and decision makers of four U.S. laws reveals layers of racism. The defense that George Zimmerman, the accused in the murder of Martin, used to explain his case is the â€Å"Stand Your Ground Law.† This law exists in Florida for self-defense where an individual could use force to defend himself in case there is a threat for his life. This is now challenged on moral and legal grounds because an innocent seventeen years old black male, was shot and killed on February 26, 2012 by a 28 years old white man who used the â€Å"Stand Your Ground† law as his reason for shooting Martin (Cloud, 36). The argument now arises that if the situation was the other way around and Martin had shot the white man, he for sure would have been arre sted. However, George Zimmerman was free after just a few explanations. On the other hand, according to Time in an article just last week the law is based on a very old law known by castle doctrine. This ancient doctrine gave people the right to use â€Å"deadly force† if a stranger enters your home and intends to harm. In 2005 though, Florida changed this law so it applies anywhere, not just the home (Cloud, 36). This law is discriminatory in the nature. Since Zimmerman has not been arrested, many people protested and are showing that they believe the law is flawed. The magazine article ended with this comment, â€Å"The case will unfold slowly in court and will offer only agony to Martins parents. But even if Zimmerman is eventually charged, it should be Floridas gun laws that go on trial† (Cloud, 39). There are no fast solutions to this problem of laws that are racist but something could surely be done. It is important for law-makers

Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ralph Waldo Emerson - Essay Example Majority of Emerson’s works are in form of essays and poems. He published his first essay titled Nature in 1836 but he refrained from giving his name to the essay. The author of the essay was given as anonymous. In Nature, Emerson portrayed nature as a divine entity and its significance in the spiritual lives of human beings. He gave a meaning to the role played by nature in human lives. He describes the various facets of nature and its relation with wise man. â€Å"Nature never wears a mean appearance. Neither does the wisest man extort her secret, and lose his curiosity by finding out all her perfection. Nature never became a toy to a wise spirit.† (Emerson Nature). Emerson also states his own experiences when he is in company of the nature. When he amidst nature, he feels the presence of God around him and he perceives himself as a part of God. â€Å"Standing on the bare ground, -- my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space, -- all mean egoti sm vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God.† (Emerson Nature).The spiritual aspect of nature which was a new concept to the American society was put forth by Emerson in his essay. In another essay focusing on nature, Emerson writes about the influence of nature in aiding human beings to free themselves from the bindings of the Church and society.

Effectiveness of International Institutions for Human Rights

Effectiveness of International Institutions for Human Rights Hosea Luy How effective are international institutions in protecting human rights? International institutions face many problems in their effort to protect and promote human rights. They are therefore only moderately effective in their protection of human rights. Although these institutions face limitations to their success, their work and achievements have been crucial to the advancement and promotion of human rights world-wide. It is also important to note that â€Å"until 1945, human rights was generally considered to be a matter within the exclusive domestic sovereignty of states† (Cassel, 2001, p. 134). Consequently international human rights institutions are still young and rapidly growing so we cannot fully analyse their effectiveness. This essay will explore the role and effectiveness of international human rights law through the United Nations, nongovernmental organisations namely Amnesty International and the impact of state sovereignty. It is difficult to pin-point evidence that directly supports the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of international institutions. This is because international institutions work in tandem with other mechanisms to protect human rights, and only together are they successful (Cassel, 2001, p. 123). These mechanisms include the human rights consciousness of the public, nongovernmental organisations and domestic human rights institutions all of which influence each other. This essay will focus on the protection of civil and political rights excluding a major category of human rights, economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights. Progress in these areas has been limited when examined in the context of all those in need of food, medicine, housing and other ESC rights. â€Å"International human rights activists see how little impact they have in taking on matters of purely distributive justice† (Roth, 2004, p. 72), and this is combined with the need for a huge amount of material resources to protect and promote ESC rights (Cassel, 2001, p. 124). The United Nations (UN) is the top global institution and is unrivalled in its capability â€Å"to reach out or into virtually every society, and to establish universally applicable norms† (Gaer, 1995, p. 393). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR) is the primary piece of international human rights law and has been signed and ratified by many countries. Any nation state that has signed and ratified the UNDHR is obligated to: â€Å"make laws that protect and promote human rights for all its citizens support non-government organisations that carry out programs to help people who are victims of human rights abuses† (Human Rights: Organisations and Institutions, 2000, para. 12). However there is no legal obligation exists to force signatories to introduce domestic law to follow the standards set by the UNDHR (Steinerte Wallace, 2009, p. 9). This is combined with the sometimes illegitimate excuses of national security and sovereignty that have often been used to â€Å"conceal, excuse or justify human rights abuses† (Human Rights: Organisations and Institutions, 2000, para. 6). International human rights law has quite short history and has since its inception been useful for the protection of human rights (Cassel, 2001, p. 134). It has been most effective through its indirect impacts, setting global standards for nations to follow. This has then influenced action on the domestic level in important areas such as politics, the media and the public consciousness (Cassel, 2001, p. 122). The UN’s direct mechanisms to enforce human rights also have a beneficial impact although this is much more limited (Haynes, Hough, Malik, Pettiford, 2011, p. 452). These mechanisms, such as the Human Rights Committee designated to enforce the standards documented in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, investigate human rights abuses, communicate with governments for emergencies and publicly present their findings and proposals (Gaer, 1995, p. 393). In 2006, a new body, the Human Rights Council (HRC), was created to replace the poor performing UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) (Haynes, et al., 2011, p. 452). It is hoped that the HRC may be able to advance human rights in the future with several changes, such as meeting three times a year whereas the UNCHR only met once a year (Haynes, et al., 2011, p. 452). The UN performed a significant role in coordinating an international effort to end the human rights abuses arising from the policy of apartheid in South Africa. Evidence suggests that economic pressures and sanctions during the 1980s, played a crucial role to end the discriminatory regime (Grundy, 1991, p. 85). Nel son Mandela confirmed the large role of the UN in ending the apartheid regime when he addressed the UN General Assembly in 1994. â€Å"We stand here today to salute the United Nations Organization and its Member States, both singly and collectively, for joining forces with the masses of our people in a common struggle that has brought about our emancipation and pushed back the frontiers of racism.† (Reddy, n.d.) International law and the treaties established through the UN should be recognised as a â€Å"useful tool for the protection of human rights, and one which promises to be more useful in the future† (Cassel, 2001, p. 135). Nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) are widely understood to be influential players in the field of international relations. They cooperate on a close level with departments of the UN, providing information on human rights situations, giving advice to commissions and committees to set agendas and policy as well as working together with operational agencies to carry out missions (Martens, 2004, p. 1051). Importantly, NGOs seek to be independent of governments and groups attempting to obtain political power (Wiseberg, 1992, p. 372). The primary goals of NGOs include monitoring and reporting on the human rights progress of nation states, especially violations and building pressure on abusers of human rights (Gaer, 1995, p. 394). Amnesty International is one of the largest human rights NGOs (Human Rights: Organisations and Institutions, 2000, para. 15). The creation of the first mechanism that had the ability to take international action in emergencies was a result of detailed NGO repor ts of human rights violations. The Working Group on Forced or Involuntary Disappearances sought to respond to reports in Argentina of the kidnapping and torture of people under the rule of military president Jorge Rafael Videla (Gaer, 1995, p. 392). Following a research mission in 1976, Amnesty International produced a detailed report explaining the existence of detention without judicial order and torture as well as a list of those who had â€Å"disappeared† (Gaer, 1995, p. 392). According to Mariela Belski the Director of Amnesty International in Argentina, â€Å"Argentina led the way in the prosecution of those responsible for the torture, killing and disappearance of thousands of people during the many military governments across Latin America† (Argentina: Death of former military leader who did not escape justice, 2013, para. 2). Amnesty international and other Human rights NGOs have acted as the driving force behind the vast majority of progress in the human righ ts field by the UN (Gaer, 1995, p. 389). They should be considered as crucial elements for the advancement of human rights and they will increase their effectiveness as they grow in the future. A major setback to the effectiveness of international institutions seeking to advance human rights is that national sovereignty overrules international treaties (Human Rights: Organisations and Institutions, 2000, para. 10). The concept of sovereignty was first formally adopted in the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 (Haynes, et al., 2011, p. 29). Westphalia gave state uncontested rule over their nations and legally prevented international interference in a country’s domestic, religious affairs (McCormick, 2012, p. 1). Sovereignty is also stated in the Charter of the United Nations in Article 2-4, barring any attacks on the â€Å"territorial integrity or political independence† of any country and Article 2-7 which limits intervention (McCormick, 2012, p. 1). Each signatory to a global treaty has an obligation to and is responsible and for enacting the international human rights standards in their state’s domestic law (Steinerte Wallace, 2009, p. 12). Often commitmen t to UN treaties leads to an improved respect for human rights. This is mainly true in countries with â€Å"democratically accountable governments or strong civil society† (Neumayer, 2005, p. 930). Although a strong democratic state does not always lead to compliance. Many states, including those that have strong liberal-democratic values continue to use their sovereignty to shirk international law. According to the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Gillian Trigg, Australia’s government has breached international law by placing asylum seeker children in detention. As a matter of very clear international law children should not be detained for anything more than what is absolutely necessary for health checks and security checks. (Children in detention: Is Australia breaching international law? 2014) Recent studies suggest that human rights laws have the least effect on nations that need it most, countries with oppressive governments â€Å" without in ternal advocates for reform† (Hafner-Burton Tsutsui, 2007, p. 408). Taking into account cases where international law has been disregarded, we should not be pessimistic about the ratification of human rights treaties by nations including those ruled by repressive governments. This should raise hopes for future progress. The main factors preventing state commitments to international institutions are not the poor and ineffective design of these institutions but the failure of governments to commit themselves to the treaties they have signed (Moravcsik, 1995, p. 181). Much progress has made by international human rights institutions in their short history and they should be commended for that fact. However many barriers still exist that prevent human rights being upheld across all states. The main of which is state sovereignty. Nations may choose to sign international treaties but compliance to these documents and effecting changes in domestic law is not a legal obligation. As a result, it could be argued that international institutions have been weak in their promotion and protection of human rights. Instead we should understand to see these institutions as growing establishments that are still in their infancy having remarkable achievements in a short amount of time. Institutions, in particular the United Nations and NGOs have a crucial role to play in the advancement of human rights and the full effectiveness of their operations is still to be seen. Reference List Cassel, D. (2001). Does international human rights law make a difference? Chicago Journal of International Law, 2(1), 121-135. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/237215195?accountid=10344 Gaer, F. D. (1995). Reality Check: Human Rights Nongovernmental Organisations Confront Governments at the United Nations. Third World Quarterly, 16(3), 389. Retrieved from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3992883 Grundy, Kenneth W., 1991. South Africa: Domestic Crisis and Global Challenge. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press. Hafner-Burton, E. M., Tsutsui, K. (2007). Justice Lost! The Failure of International Human Rights Law To Matter Where Needed Most. Journal of Peace Research, 44(4), 407-425. DOI: 10.1177/0022343307078942 Haynes, J., Hough, P., Malik, S., Pettiford, L. (2011). World Politics. London: Pearson Education Limited. Martens, K. (2004). An Appraisal of Amnesty Internationals Work at the United Nations: Established Areas of Activities and Shifting Priorities Since the 1990s. Human Rights Quarterly, 26(4), 1050-1070. DOI: 10.1353/hrq.2004.0052 McCormick, C. (2012, September). UNHRC: The Debate over Sovereignty and Human Rights [Lecture Notes]. Retrieved from: http://modelun.ucsd.edu/TopicSynopsis/TritonMUN UNHRC Tibet 9-24-2012.pdf. Moravcsik, A. (1995). Explaining International Human Rights Regimes: Liberal Theory and Western Europe. European Journal of International Relations, 1(2), 157-189. DOI: 10.1177/1354066195001002002 Neumayer, E. (2005). Do international human rights treaties improve respect for human rights? Journal of Conflict Resolution, 49(6), 925-953. Retrieved from: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/612/ Reddy, E. S. (n.d.). Nelson Mandela International Day, July 18, For Freedom, Justice and Democracy. In UN.org. Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/en/events/mandeladay/apartheid.shtml Roth, K. (2004). Defending Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Practical Issues Faced by an International Human Rights Organization. Human Rights Quarterly, 26(1), 63-73. DOI: 10.1353/hrq.2004.0010 Steinerte, E., Wallace, R.M.M. (2009). United Nations protection of human rights. London: University of London Press Wiseberg, L.S. (1992). Human rights non-governmental organizations, in R Claude B Weston, Human Rights in the World Community, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press Wotipka, C., Tsutsui, K. (2008). Global Human Rights and State Sovereignty: State Ratification of International Human Rights Treaties, 1965–2001. Sociological Forum, 23(4), 724-754. doi:10.1111/j.1573-7861.2008.00092.x (2000). Human Rights: Organisations and Institutions. In Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved from: http://www.abc.net.au/civics/rights/organ.htm (2013). Argentina: Death of former military leader who did not escape justice. In Amnesty International. Retrieved from: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/argentina-death-former-military-leader-who-did-not-escape-justice-2013-05-17 (2014). Children in detention: Is Australia breaching international law? In ABC News. Retrieved from: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-31/children-in-detention-is-australia-breaching-international-law/5344022 1

Chemosynthesis :: essays research papers fc

Introduction Synthesis is the process of producing a chemical compound usually by the union of simpler chemical compounds. For example, photosynthesis, the word photo means putting together with light. Photosynthesis is the process of converting sunlight into food for organic organisms such as plants. Photosynthesis is the basis of life for planet earth and without it; not only would we not be able to produce the fruits and vegetables that we consume, but the food to feed the animals that we eat. Plants absorb this sunlight which in turn makes oxygen in a process called respiration. This delicate cycle is what allows us to thrive on this planet. Although much of the life on this planet relies on photosynthesis in one way or another, there is another form of synthesis that is equally as important, chemosynthesis.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The deep sea is considered the largest, yet, least-known habitat on earth and covers about two-thirds of the earth. Every year, and every dive down to the mysterious depths of the deep-sea bring scientist closer and closer to unraveling the secrets of the unimaginable deep. This is where chemosynthesis takes place because there is no sunlight available in order for photosynthesis to take place. How hydrothermal vents work In 1977, in the Galapagos Islands, the first hydrothermal vents were found. Using a submersible called the Alvin, scientist were able to explore this alien world never known to have existed for the first time. Hydrothermal vents are chimney like structures on the ocean floor that release extremely hot, mineral rich water. This process is called Hydrothermal Circulation. Ocean water seeps into the earth, becoming increasingly hotter as it descends downward. As the water passes through the cracks of the earth, it is becoming enriched with metals and minerals until finally turning to a very acidic fluid. When the super heated water reaches about 700˚F (400˚C), the fluid rises and bursts through cracks in the sea floor. The super heated water mixing with the cold sea water causes a chemical reaction and forms particles of metal sulfide to cloud the water. The pieces of metal settle around the area of the crack, and over time, collect to form the chimneys of black smokers. One w ould assume that at the very bottom of the ocean, in 700˚F waters, that nothing could possibly exist here. Surprisingly, over 300 strange and unique species thrive only in these conditions. What lives near hydrothermal vents?