Evolution Of Immunity And The Invertebrates :: essays research papers

Evolution of Immunity and the Invertebrates "Article Summery" Name: "Immunity and the Invertebrates" Periodical: Scientific American Nov, 1996 Author: Gregory Beck and Gail S. Habicht Pages: 60 - 71 Total Pages Read: 9 The complex immune systems of humans and other mammals evolved over quite a long time - in some rather surprising ways. In 1982 a Russian zoologist named Elie Metchnikoff noticed a unique property of starfish larva. When he inserted a foreign object through it's membrane, tiny cells would try to ingest the invader through the process of phagocytosis. It was already known that phagocytosis occurred in specialized mammal cells but never in something less complex like a starfish. This discovery led him to understand that phagocytosis played a much broader role, it was a fundamental mechanism of protection in the animal kingdom. Metchnikoff's further studies showed that the host defense system of all animals today were present millions of years before when hey were just beginning to evolve. His studies opened up the new field of comparative immunology. Comparative immunologists studied the immune defenses of past and current creatures. They gained further insight into how immunity works. The most basic requirement of an immune system is to distinguish between one's own cells and "non-self" cells. The second job is to eliminate the non- self cells. When a foreign object enters the body, several things happen. Blood stops flowing, the immunity system begins to eliminate unwanted microbes with phagocytic white blood cells. This defensive mechanism is possessed by all animals with an innate system of immunity. Innate cellular immunity is believed to be the earliest form of immunity. Another form of innate immunity is complement, composed of 30 different proteins of the blood. If these mechanisms do not work to defeat an invader, vertebrates rely on another response: acquired immunity. Acquired immunity is mainly dealt by specialized white blood cells called lymphocytes. Lymphocytes travel throughout the blood and lymph glands waiting to attack molecules called antigens. Lymphocytes are made of two classes: B and T. B lymphocytes release antibodies while T help produce antibodies and serve to recognize antigens. Acquired Immunity is highly effective but takes days to activate and succeed because of it's complex nature. Despite this, acquired immunity offers one great feature: immunological memory. Immunological Memory allows the lymphocytes to recognize previously encountered antigens making reaction time faster. For this reason, we give immunizations or booster shots to children. So it has been established that current vertebrates have two defense mechanisms: innate and acquired, but what of older organisms ? Both mechanisms surprisingly enough can be found in almost all organisms (specifically

TTTC Essay

Vietnam in the form of stories that change the reader's outlook on a variety of topics. One Of O'Brien chapters, â€Å"How to Tell a True War Story† truly exemplifies his role as a storyteller in the unique way he retells each of his stories. O'Brien alters his style with each recount to emphasize the different ways a story can affect a reader. Through his specific style of storytelling, O'Brien is able to describe his different experiences of Vietnam while explaining his perspective of the human situation.O'Brien alternation between narrating a story and commenting on its exceptive effects explicitly expresses his role as a storyteller in this chapter. In doing this, he is also able to point out the influence it had on his view of human disposition and the true nature of war. He explains the traits of a true war story while giving examples of his own. His strategy of retelling a war story with multiple different approaches emphasizes the power of his storyteller position.He c laims that ‘A true war story is never to depict his recount of the incident in a specific way, thus characterizing one of his many experiences . Just like most soldiers after war find a way to cope with their sufferings, O Brine relays his own experiences by stating that â€Å"In any war story, but especially a true one, it's difficult to separate what happened from what seemed to happen†(63). This chapter is unique in the sense that it takes the minutiae of a certain war memory, twists it to invoke certain emotions, and stimulates a reaction in the reader.Throughout the chapter he illustrates how incredibly the meaning and the effect of a story can change with the smallest adjustment to details . The different ways that O'Brien tells a story help us realize the power of his practice. O'Brien analyses of true war stories, followed by his real life account strike the reader in the heart and change their view of the war as a whole. Brine's storytelling is a powerful mediu m through which he expresses his thoughts on the war.Aside from relaying the incidents during the war, O'Brien also aims to point out his observations Of human nature relating to war. Whether we realize it or not, war has a large influence in all of our lives – O'Brien aims to bring out hose realizations through his storytelling. During this chapter O'Brien repeatedly shares the many characteristics of a true war story. He describes many different traits such as: a true war story â€Å"never seems to or â€Å"a true war story cannot be believed â€Å"(64). Then O'Brien gives an example of how that certain trait rings true in a story of his own.The effect produced is eye opening and causes the reader to adapt the same mindset that O'Brien takes towards his revelations. With his continued explanations of why war stories are so complex, O'Brien moves into the realm of legacies. His vivid description of Curt Lemon's Death is a poignant reminder of the gruesome and tragic, yet sudden end to a great man's life. Even though Lemon perished in the snap of a finger, O'Brien urges us to realize that his creative style of storytelling keeps Curt Lemon alive.Just like Ted Lavender and Kiowa, Curt Lemon left behind a legacy that lived among the memories of the soldiers. This is how O'Brien is able to keep him alive along with all of the others who he does not want to let go of. This novel can be viewed as simply a novel that describes a war experience room the point of a soldier; however, the way it's portrayed makes it much more. Not only does O'Brien express what it was like to be in the Vietnam war, but also he gives us a deep analysis of our race in relation to common struggles among us.Often when a soldier has a hard time coping with their return, it is because he or she does not feel like they belong. It's as if no one believes what they say is true because of how terrible it sounds. O'Brien explains that if â€Å"somebody tells a story, let's say, and afte rward you ask, ‘Is is true? ‘ [then] if the answer matters, you've got your There are any people who are ignorant to the lengths that soldiers go to for protecting this country, and when those people fail to appreciate those actions, it is heartbreaking.When O'Brien says that â€Å"if the answer matters, you've got your answer he is emphasizing the point that all war stories can be true even if they never actually happened. The experience Of war as a whole is so unbelievable that any story is true in some sense if it helps the reader understand what the narrator went through. His depiction of war is gruesome to say the least, but it explains to us how war impacts a man. He also expresses the importance off legacy like those of Curt lemon's, Kiosk's, and Ted Lavender's.O'Brien has the potential to be scarred for life from these death incidents; however, he uses the power of his stories as a coping mechanism, and in turn is able to keep the souls of his comrades alive. He does this with Timmy preserve his innocence, and in the same way, he does this to his friends to aid the hurt the war has caused him. All in all, O'Brien strategy of storytelling achieves the multiple goals intended: to portray his tragic war experiences, to explain the human notation in relation to the war, and to portray the strength of a legacy preserved in a Story.

Night, By Elie Wiesel - 1087 Words

Night by Elie Wiesel The aim of this book review is to analyze Night, the autobiographical account of Elie Wiesel’s horrifying experiences in the German concentration camps. Wiesel recounted a traumatic time in his life with the goal of never allowing people to forget the tragedy others had to suffer through. A key theme introduced in Night is that these devastating experiences shifted the victim s view of life. By providing a summary, critique, and the credentials of the author Elie Wiesel, this overview of Night will reveal that the heartbreaking events of the Holocaust transformed the victims outlook, causing them to have a lack of empathy and faith. Wiesel began by describing his life as a child in the town of Sighet, Transylvania. He was devoutly religious, and, after dark, would receive lessons about the Kabbalah’s revelations and mysteries from the poorest citizen of Sighet, Moishe the Beadle. Soon, Moishe was taken away from his home town when all foreign Jews were expelled from Sighet by the Hungarian police. Wiesel, along with all of the other people remaining, thought nothing of this. After many months, Moishe the Beatle returned. He had miraculously escaped the Galician Forest and came back a changed man. â€Å"The joy in his eyes was gone. He no longer sang. He no longer mentioned either God or Kabbalah. He spoke only of what he had seen.† (Wiesel, 7). Moshie was only one of the many men in Night to be transformed by the horrors of the Holocaust; eventually, evenShow MoreRelatedNight by Elie Wiesel646 Words   |  3 PagesTen years after WWII, Elie Wiesel’s novel Night was published in 1955. Night describes â€Å"his memories of life inside four different Nazi death camps,† as he was one of the few Jews to survive the Holocaust during WWII (Sanderson). Wiesel’s autobiographical novel makes him â€Å"the best-known contemporary Holocaust writer and novelist,† and reveals the impact of the concentration camps on humanity and for the individual (Sibelman).As a negative Bildungsroman, Night depicts â€Å"a coming of age story in whichRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel Essay1276 Words   |  6 PagesNight is a first-hand account of life for Elie Wiesel as a young Jewish teenage boy living in Hungary and eventually sent to Auschwitz with his family. The moment his family exits the cattle car the horror of Auschwitz sets in. His mother and sisters become separated from him and his father immediately, their fate sealed. Elie stays with his father and right away a stranger is giving them tips on how to survive and stay together. Immediately told to lie about their a ges, making Elie a little olderRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel1372 Words   |  6 Pageselse† (Wiesel ix). Years after he was liberated from the concentration camp at Buchenwald, Elie Wiesel wrote Night as a memoir of his life and experiences during the Holocaust, while a prisoner in the Nazi concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Scholars often refer to the Holocaust as the â€Å"anti-world†. This anti-world is an inverted world governed by absurdity. The roles of those living in the anti-world are reversed and previous values and morals are no longer important. Elie Wiesel portraysRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel1083 Words   |  5 Pagesthe 1960 novel, Night, Elie Wiesel utilizes several literary devices, including the symbology of nighttime, motif of religious practices, and theme of father-son relationships, in order to emphasize the atrocities of the Holocaust specifically for Jews. Wiesel’s first hand experience in concentration camps allows for a vivid retelling of what many people had to endure. The symbolic portrayal of the nighttime helps to add a deeper meaning to the text. The title of the novel, Night, brings the symbolRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel1476 Words   |  6 PagesIn Night, by Elie Wiesel, one man tells his story of how he survived his terrible experience during the Holocaust. Wiesel takes you on a journey through his â€Å"night† of the Holocaust, and how he survived the world’s deadliest place, Auschwitz-Birkenau. Elie Wiesel will captivate you on his earth shattering journey through his endless night. Elie Wiesel’s book Night forces you to open your eyes to the real world by using; irony, diction, and repetition to prove that man does have the capability toRead MoreNight By Elie Wiesel1661 Words   |  7 PagesNight Sequel Proposal Night is an account of the Holocaust and persecution of the Jewish people, written by Elie Wiesel. Elie Wiesel wrote, â€Å"Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky† (Night). Remembering the events of the Holocaust andRead MoreThe Night By Elie Wiesel996 Words   |  4 Pagesunderstand how deeply literal and symbolic the book entitled Night by Elie Wiesel is. The novel brings light to the reader about what the Jews faced while in the fire, hell and night; nonetheless, the author portrays each and every day during this year as a night in hell of conflagration. Were this conflagration to be extinguished one day, nothing would be left in the sky but extinct stars and unseeing eyes. (Wiesel 20). When Wiesel arrived a t the camp he counted the longest dreadful ten stepsRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel809 Words   |  4 Pagespractically unbearable. Everyday you wake up with this feeling that you’re going to die; sometimes you don’t even fear this happening. In the book â€Å"Night† the author Elie Wiesel takes the reader to a place in time that they wouldn‘t ever want to journey to. He gives you a picture of the real gruesomeness and terrifying circumstances that came from the Holocaust. Wiesel tells of his time spent at the Auschwitz concentration camp, and then to Buchenwald. Though the book is only a little over one-hundred pagesRead MoreThe Night By Elie Wiesel1636 Words   |  7 PagesElie Wiesel s Night chronicles his experience surviving in a concentration camp. He, along with every other Jew in his town, and many more throughout Europe, were sent to concentration camps for no fault of their own. Hitler, the fascist dictator of Germany and most of Europe, hated t hem because of their religion. He considered them a separate, inferior race and created the concentration camps to kill them all. Elie lost his mother, little sister, father, and nearly everyone he knew to these factoriesRead MoreNight, By Elie Wiesel842 Words   |  4 Pagesthemes of Night and the imagery that the author, Elie Wiesel, uses to create them. The themes we will discuss are identity, silence, and night. !!!About the Book If you were an observant Jew who believed in a loving God, then you and your family were captured by a group of ill-intentioned people, causing the death of your family, what would you think about whether God and humans are good or not? That is the main concern of Eliezer, the main character in Night. Night was written