The Opium Wars

Amitav Ghosh’s new book “Smoke and Ashes” explores the historical significance of opium as a powerful agent that has shaped and continues to shape the world’s history.

The book focuses on the Opium Wars (1839-42 and 1856-60), which were waged by European colonial powers on China.

The Opium Wars:

The wars were a result of Britain’s increasing consumption of tea, which led to a trade deficit with China. To address this, the British East India Company promoted the opium trade, leading to a significant increase in opium production in India for export to China.

As opium addiction spread in China, it caused severe socio-economic crises and weakened the Qing dynasty’s governance. The Chinese attempts to crack down on opium smuggling resulted in conflict with the British, leading to two Opium Wars.

Impacts on India during the 19th century:

Increased Opium Cultivation: With the success of the opium trade in China during and after the Opium Wars, there was a significant rise in opium cultivation in India.

This led to the exploitation of Indian farmers and increased dependence on opium cultivation, often to the detriment of other crops.

Economic Repercussions: As opium production grew, it diverted resources and labour away from other productive activities. The emphasis on opium also had adverse effects on India’s trade and led to a distortion of the Indian economy.

Social Consequences: The increased cultivation and trade of opium contributed to the addiction and widespread use of opium within certain regions of India, leading to social problems and health issues.

British Control: As Britain emerged victorious in the Opium wars, it further solidified British control over its colonies, including India.

Shift in British Policies: The revenue generated from the opium trade played a significant role in financing British colonial activities in India, including the maintenance of their military and administrative apparatus.

Charter Act Regulations:

Charter Act of 1813: The Act granted a monopoly of the opium trade to the British East India Company, allowing the Company to control and regulate the opium business in India.

Charter Act of 1833: The Company continued to maintain its monopoly on the production and sale of opium in India, particularly for export to China.

Charter Act of 1853: It did not address the opium trade directly. The British East India Company still retained control over opium cultivation and trade in India during this period.

Amitav Ghosh’s argument:

Opium played a central role in sustaining colonialism in Asia, bringing immense profits to colonial powers at the expense of Indian labour and the well-being of the Chinese population. The book suggests that opium, with its addictive properties, has had a profound impact on societies across classes and continues to shape history.

Ancient soil from beneath a mile of ice in Greenland offers warnings for the future

Approximately 400,000 years ago, large parts of Greenland were ice-free, and evidence suggests it was covered in spruce trees and scrubby tundra.

Scientists have now determined the precise date of this ice-free period to be around 416,000 years ago, lasting for about 14,000 years.

Researchers extracted frozen soil from beneath the Greenland ice sheet, collected during the Cold War from Camp Century, a unique nuclear-powered base dug into the ice sheet.

The findings have implications for our understanding of climate change and the consequences of rising carbon dioxide levels. During the interglacial period similar to today’s conditions, CO2 levels were much lower, yet they triggered enough warming to melt a significant portion of Greenland’s ice.

To prevent a future of largely ice-free Greenland, it is crucial to take immediate and significant action to reduce carbon emissions and sequester carbon from the atmosphere.

Constitution (STs) Order (5th Amendment) Bill

The Parliament has passed the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Fifth Amendment)

Bill, 2022, with the Rajya Sabha giving its approval after the Lok Sabha had already passed the Bill.

The purpose of the Bill is to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order of 1950. It aims to make several changes:

Inclusion of Communities: The Bill includes the Dhanuhar, Dhanuwar, Kisan, Saunra, Saonra, and Binjhia communities in the list of Scheduled Tribes in Chhattisgarh.

Synonyms Inclusion: The Bill adds Bhuinya, Bhuiyan, and Bhuyan communities as synonyms for the BhariaBhumia community.

Devanagari Versions: Three Devanagari versions of the name of the Pando community are also included.

A mechanism that quietly removes unfit cells before you’re born

Research on the early stages of human embryonic development and the role of specific cells known as the inner cell mass has gained importance recently.

The inner cell mass contains pluripotent cells, meaning they have the potential to differentiate into all the different cell types that make up the human body. These cells are of great interest to scientists as they are responsible for shaping the entire human body.

In a study conducted in 2016, researchers discovered a subset of non-committed cells within the inner cell mass. Unlike the majority of cells in the inner cell mass that go on to contribute to the developing embryo, these non-committed cells seem to die off early in the development process.

Further investigation revealed that the non-committed cells lack the expression of a gene called HERVH, which is critical for maintaining pluripotency in human embryonic stem cells.

Instead, these cells express transposons, also known as “jumping genes,” which can insert themselves into different parts of the genome, potentially causing DNA damage and leading to cell death.

HERVH, despite being a type of transposon itself, appears to protect the pluripotent cells from the harmful effects of other transposons. By the end of this early developmental stage, the cells that express HERVH survive and become the “good” cells that will form the embryo, while the non-committed cells that lack HERVH expression die through cell death.

The study refers to the early human embryo as a “selection arena,” where cells compete to survive based on their gene expression patterns.