Contents
Why are the Jamaicans so good at sprinting?
Jamaicans have a genetic advantage to be fast – One of the prime factors that make Jamaican runners so fast is their genetics. Studies from the University of the West Indies show that young runners from West Africa have an edge over their counterparts from other parts of the world.
Are Jamaican people friendly?
Come back to your best self in Jamaica! – When you visit Jamaica, you’ll meet friendly smiling faces and will be welcomed with warm hospitality wherever you go. As proud Jamaicans, we are ready and eager to introduce you to our culture – to who we are, our warm hospitality, the beauty of our country, and to the best of Jamaica, to bring you back to your best self. What are you waiting for? We’re waiting! Make it official with a destination wedding in Jamaica! Then make it unforgettable with a romantic honeymoon that starts Tee off on some of the Caribbean’s finest championship golf courses. With stunning ocean views, you’ll find it hard to Soak up the sun on our beautiful beaches, whether the pristine white sands of Montego Bay or the soft golden shores of Feel the vibe of Jamaican music with a night on the town at our favourite hangout spots. Eat your heart out in Jamaica! We’ve got everything from jerk to world famous ice cream. Come experience world-class Whether you work up a sweat or simply bask in the beauty of it all, these outdoor adventures explore the lush landscape
Are Jamaicans mixed?
Main languages: English, patois Main religions: Christianity (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian), Rastafarianism (Boba Shanti, Nyahbingi, Twelve Tribes) Main minority groups: Rastafari (10%, source: http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk ) The majority of the population (90 per cent, 2006 Census) is of Jamaica is of West African origin.
- The rest are people of mixed heritage with combinations that include European-African, Afro-indigenous, Chinese-African and East Indian-African.
- There are also small well-established minority populations of Lebanese, Syrians, Cubans, Europeans and South Asians, some of whom wield significant political and economic influence in the country.
About half the population lives in rural areas. The legacy of slavery is evident in the existence of three small communities of Maroons, the descendants of Africans who escaped from enslavement and established independent settlements in isolated rural districts.
Where is Jamaica in?
Jamaica is a large island in the Caribbean Sea. It lies 630 kilometres north-east of mainland Central America. Its close neighbours are Haiti, to the east, and Cuba, to the north.
Why are Jamaicans so fast genetics?
1. Genetics – Taken from verywellfit.com Jamaican sprinters have been found to have genetic advantage. The “D allele” variant of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene makes it more likely for one to have a larger than average heart capable of pumping highly oxygenated blood to the muscles more quickly than the average human.
- Jamaicans have been found to have the highest proportion of this gene compared to other studied populations.
- It is theorized that the presence of this gene made it more likely for a slave to survive the Middle Passage en route to Jamaica, the final stop for Caribbean slave ships.
- This gene has been passed down through generations, a process known as natural selection.
A second gene linked to Jamaica’s athletic prowess is the 577RR variant of the ACTN3 gene. This gene encodes instructions to create a protein called alpha-actinin-3, which helps “fast-twitch” muscles generate strong, repetitive contractions. A 2010 study found that 75% of Jamaicans possess this 577RR ACTN3 gene variant whether they are athletes or not.
Why are Jamaicans so muscular?
Rutgers-led study measures symmetry in elite track and field athletes – Why is Jamaica, with a population smaller than that of Los Angeles, home to so many of the world’s elite sprinters – runners who compete in the 100, 200, 400 and 800-meter races? Jamaica’s share of the world’s best sprinters is out of all proportion to its size. The country’s secret may be in the symmetry of the sprinters’ knees. Robert Trivers, an evolutionary biologist and professor of anthropology and biology in the School of Arts and Sciences, set out with his colleagues to find out if there was something about the symmetry of their knees that might partly explain this phenomenon.
- They already knew from their earlier research that the symmetry of children’s knees at age 8 predicts how fast a person runs 14 years later in life.
- We then asked, “Is the degree of symmetry positively associated with sprinting ability among the very best sprinters?'” Trivers says.
- The answer to that question is yes.
Within all sprinters, those with the most symmetrical knees have the best times and this was particularly true of the 100-meter sprinters. “You can easily imagine why,” Trivers says. “If you watch someone running a 100-meter race, you can see his or her knees continually churning up and down, propelling the sprinter forward.
Symmetry is very efficient.” Trivers and his co-authors – Bernhard Fink of the University of Gottingen in Germany; Kristofor McCarty and Mark Russell of Northumbria University in England; Brian Palaestis of Wagner College in Staten Island, New York; and Bruce James of the MVP Track and Field Club in Kingston, Jamaica – have published their work in the journal PLOS ONE,
For their study, the researchers measured the knees of 74 elite Jamaican sprinters and a control group of 116 non-sprinting Jamaicans of the same age and sex and similar in size and weight. They discovered that the sprinters’ knees were much more symmetrical than the knees of people in the control group.
The 74 sprinters were all members of the MVP Track and Field Club, and included Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce, who holds two Olympic gold medals in the 100-meter sprint, and Nesta Carter, the man with the fifth fastest 100-meter runs ever recorded. The 30 sprinters who specialized in the 100-meter race, which does not require turns, had the most symmetrical knees of all.
Trivers attributes this finding to the fact that sprinters in longer races have to make left turns each time they run, and this turning may lead to or favor asymmetry over time, just as unbalanced wheels may lead to uneven tire wear on a car. “So far as we know, this is the first time anyone has isolated a variable that predicts sprinting speed in the future as well as among the very best adult sprinters now,” Trivers says. Robert Trivers, professor of anthropology and biology. Scientists have long understood that bilateral symmetry is associated with advantages in animals that have it, including humans. Symmetrical individuals tend to be stronger, healthier and better-looking.
- Symmetry also makes movement easier and saves energy.
- While this study establishes a relationship between knee symmetry and running speed in elite sprinters, it does not establish a causal relationship.
- We don’t know for sure whether the sprinters are great sprinters because their knees are symmetrical, or whether their knees are symmetrical because of all the time they spend practicing,” Trivers says.
In the future, he wants to study the differences in the strength of sprinters’ right and left legs, to see whether the symmetry between them changes over time, and whether the race times of the sprinters change over time. Farther into the future, Trivers is interested in isolating the particular genes that make for great sprinters.
Why do Jamaicans say respect?
Respect, everytime Duchess of Cambridge Catherine (left) has an exchange with Opposition spokesman on foreign affairs and foreign trade Lisa Hanna on arrival at Norman Manley International Airport inKingston. Also pictured is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Kamina Johnson Smith (partially hidden).
(Photo: Naphtali Junior) What I told the British people: Let’s talk about justice, not personalities On March 22, 2022 the United Kingdom’s Daily Mail published articles that purported that I shunned the Duchess of Cambridge. The global media frenzy which followed was deeply concerning, as at no time during our pleasant exchanges would I have needed to shun and or ignore the Duchess.
That form of behaviour is not consistent with my personality or value system. The world is interconnected, and what may seem like fun and games to one party can cause significant damage to people’s lives and reputations, especially when we position them as the protagonist to further manipulative agendas and readership.
There are too many global problems that have been caused by misinterpretation and an inability to understand the truth. And the truth, in this case, is that we had amicable interactions, and there was no negativity between us whatsoever. We only solve problems when we dare to speak out. And this week I spoke to the British people.
Here is what I said: “In Jamaica, we often use the word ‘respect’ when we greet or part ways with other people, no matter who they are or where they come from. We say this word because we mean it. We respect you as a person because we are all made in God’s image, and we seek to show appreciation for your value.
The word respect does not mean that we always agree with that person; it is simply an acknowledgement of their humanity and their value. “Much ado has been made of my supposed snub of Duchess Catherine because of a two-second manipulated video clip taken out of context. I have nothing but respect for the Duchess as a person, and I treated her with that respect and cordiality, as evidenced by many, many other photos and videos of our interaction.
What is more, I do not have any quarrel with the Duchess herself, the people of the United Kingdom, or the Government. “However, what’s at stake here is bigger than the personalities, bigger than Lisa Hanna and Prime Minister Andrew Holness, bigger than the Leader of the Opposition Mark Golding, and bigger than Duchess Catherine and Prince William.
- This is about justice for you, the people of Jamaica, and the wider Caribbean.
- The more significant issue at play is the current global reality that our institutions have created over the centuries.
- We all know the history of wars of conquest, slavery, subjugation, and colonisation.
- We all know about the extraction of resources and the exploitation of lands and labour.
Sadly, too many of us do not know that it was the slave masters, not the slaves or their descendants, who received reparation after slavery ended and the plantations collapsed. We know many of these things, and we all know deep in our hearts that these things were, are, and always will be wrong.
- All of us in the Caribbean Community (Caricom) are united across our myriad national, political, ethnic, and regional differences in the belief that the issue of reparation must be taken seriously.
- We have studied the topic extensively, held conferences, developed a clear policy framework on the way forward on implementing a reparation policy in the 21st-century reality.
What we now need is for the West, especially the United Kingdom, to seriously engage with us on this matter. And, it’s not just lip service that we require. Flowery words and artful symbols not only do not placate us, but words without action will also offend us.
- Therefore, we need leaders in civil society, leaders in politics, and in the monarchy to acknowledge the consequences of historical exploitation and begin to take concrete steps to rectify them.
- The work has already been done.
- The Caricom Reparations Commission has outlined a clear 10-point action plan with tangible goals for creating justice.
The leaders of this commission and the region are ready to, in good faith, engage on this plan and implement a framework for moving forward. I sat on this commission in 2014, and I am proud of the work that was done. “But that work was done by Caricom alone, and the reality is that it takes good faith on all sides if we genuinely want to achieve the justice we all know deep down is needed.
- Therefore, we cannot continue to do it alone anymore.
- Furthermore, this process is not merely something we must pass off on our Diaspora to lead on.
- It will take bold leadership in the United Kingdom and, indeed, across the Western world to have the bravery, humanity, and political courage to stand up and agitate for the issue of reparative justice for our people.
“I was delighted when Barbados became a republic, and I am heartened that Jamaica is taking steps to become truly independent by removing the Queen of England as our head of State, towards republic status. However, this is just a step, and we must not rest on our laurels.
Our friends in the United Kingdom should be under no illusion that the journey to justice is now complete because these moves have been made. Far from it. “If we are honest with ourselves, we know that becoming a republic does very little for the mother in Trelawny who is struggling to put food on the table, neither does it help the taxi driver in Kingston who is struggling with high gas prices.
However, the evils of slavery cannot be forgotten, nor can the wealth gained from it by a few, including the wealth acquired by the institution of the monarchy, which cannot be overlooked. “Indeed, Prince William and Duchess Catherine have a unique opportunity to define their issues and advocacy.
I hope that their visit to the Caribbean will stir their emotions and thoughts and that, as they ascend, they will refine the monarchy’s perspective with enthusiasm towards building a fairer and more just global society. “Condemning slavery with no action, as both Prince Charles and Prince William did, however, is not particularly bold, nor does it show courage.
I would hope that this rhetoric is a start and not an end to their journey on the issue of reparation and justice. “When we in Jamaica say ‘respect’ we mean it. We respect you. We respect Prince William and Duchess Catherine. We respect the British people; we respect your leaders.
- So when you visit Jamaica, we are polite to you and cordial to you.
- We give you the time of your life on holiday.
- We will laugh with you, and we will cry with you.
- It’s time for reciprocity by taking our advocacy seriously so that together we can right the historical wrongs and reset the political, economic, and social system for future generations.” Lisa Hanna is Member of Parliament for St Ann South Eastern, People’s National Party spokesperson on foreign affairs and foreign trade, and a former Cabinet member.
: Respect, everytime
What are Jamaicans most known for?
What is Jamaica known for? – Jamaica is known to be the birthplace of reggae, Bob Marley, world’s fastest sprinters, Blue Mountain coffee, Red Stripe beer, Jamaican rum, beautiful beaches, jerk dishes, luxurious all-inclusive resorts and majestic waterfalls.
What is the DNA of most Jamaicans?
The gene pool of Jamaica is about 80.3% Sub-Saharan African, 10% European, and 5.7% East Asian ; according to a 2010 autosomal genealogical DNA testing.
What percentage of Jamaica is white?
The Ethnic Identity of Jamaica In 2010 90.9% of the Jamaican population was Black, 1.3% East Indian, 0.2% White, 0.2% Chinese, 7.3% mixed ethnicities and 0.1% other ethnicities (Oxford AASC, 2010).
Where are Jamaicans originally from?
History of Jamaica Introduction The history of Jamaica over the past 500 years has been marked by the courage of the Jamaican people in their triumphant struggle for freedom and justice and by their unrelenting resistance and determination in the face of adversity and discrimination.
Modern Jamaica is built on a historical legacy of genocide perpetrated against the island’s indigenous peoples, on the experience of over three hundred years of slavery and oppression suffered by the Jamaicans of African origin and on the interplay between Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East in the building of a proud, free and progressive nation in the heart of the Caribbean.
The First Jamaicans The first Jamaicans were the Taino Indians who settled in Jamaica around 600 AD. They were stone–age peoples who had migrated to Jamaica from the northern coast of South America. After living continuously in Jamaica for almost 900 years, the Tainos were wiped out within 50 years of the Spanish conquest in 1494, due to exploitation by the Spanish settlers, starvation and a lack of resistance to European diseases.
Many Tainos fiercely resisted the Spanish occupation of their land and some even committed suicide rather than serve as slaves. The Arawak language spoken by the Tainos survives in many words such as ‘hammock’, ‘hurricane’, ‘tobacco’, ‘barbeque’ and ‘canoe’. The word Jamaica actually derives from the Arawak word Xaymaca, meaning “Land of wood and water”.
The Spanish Period Christopher Columbus was the first European to set foot on the island when he claimed it for Spain on May 3rd, 1494, during his second voyage to the New World. Jamaica was settled by the Spanish in 1510 and the indigenous Taino people were forced into slavery and eventually exterminated.
In the early years of the 16th century the practice of importing slaves from West Africa to work in Jamaica began. Jamaica’s first town was built by the Spanish in Saint Ann’s Bay and was called Sevilla Nueva. In 1538 the Spanish moved the capital of Jamaica to Spanish Town. Jamaica was, however, never heavily populated by the Spanish, for they found no gold on the island.
Instead, plantations were established to supply food for the Spanish ships that sailed between Europe and the Americas. Spain remained in control of Jamaica for more than 150 years and the legacy of this period can still be seen in the historic buildings of Spanish Town and in the many Spanish names assigned to Jamaican rivers, mountains and towns. Spanish dominance of the region and to disrupt their lucrative trade in gold and silver. While many of the first English settlers in Jamaica were land owners, others were pirates who operated with the consent of the British. Buccaneers like Sir Henry Morgan joined with mercenaries and adventurers to attack the Spanish galleons that carried gold and silver from Central and South America to Spain.
Their headquarters at Port Royal soon became rich with stolen Spanish gold and was known in the seventeenth century as the “wickedest city in the world”. Port Royal was almost completely destroyed in 1692 by a devastating earthquake, and further damaged by a series of hurricanes over the next thirty years.
By then, England and Spain had signed a peace treaty and the need for the buccaneers had vanished. Jamaica became more involved in trade and the exportation of sugar, cocoa and other agricultural products. The decline of the buccaneers, coupled with the destruction of Port Royal by earthquake, led to the rise of the nearby fishing village of Kingston which offered a natural harbour on the more sheltered southern side of the island.
Ingston eventually became Jamaica’s capital in 1872. The Maroons During the upheaval caused by the transition from Spanish to English rule in 1655, many of the West African slaves formerly owned by the Spanish escaped into Jamaica’s hilly interior and pioneered the resistance to slavery that would continue in Jamaica for most of the ensuing 200 years.
These escaped slaves developed their own separate culture based on their West African roots. Known as the Maroons, the British were never able to recapture or subdue them, and they were granted political autonomy in 1739. Their descendants and culture still exist today in modern Jamaica, a testament to their skill and tenacity.
Africa in the Caribbean and the Resistance to Slavery The importation of African slave labour, begun by the Spanish, continued under the British with much greater intensity, and grew steadily in volume as sugar production increased in extent and value. Most Jamaican slaves came from the region of modern day Ghana, Nigeria and Central Africa, and included the Akan, Ashanti, Yoruba, Ibo and Ibibio peoples.
By the 18th century, Jamaica had become one of the most valuable British colonies. But the conditions endured by the slaves were horrendous. Families were routinely separated. Housing and sanitary conditions were abysmal. Beatings and torture were rampant.
- Many died from overwork and starvation.
- Life expectancy of a West African slave in Jamaica was 7 years.
- The slave trade was abolished in 1807.
- By then, almost 2 million slaves were traded to Jamaica, with tens of thousands dying on slave ships in the brutal middle passage between West Africa and the Caribbean.
Then, after almost 250 years of rebellion and resistance, emancipation from slavery was finally won in 1838. Over two hundred years of inhuman bondage was ended through the fierce resistance of the West African slaves, and thanks to the support of enlightened members of the British parliament and to Christian dissenters in Britain.
A great contribution was made also by the Christian missionaries in Jamaica who treated the slaves as human beings and awakened them to the Christian Gospel in which ” there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus “. The end of slavery brought about the collapse of the plantation system, as the West African slaves who had fought for their freedom were no longer prepared to work for their former masters.
This, together with other factors, including unemployment, heavy taxation and droughts produced a crisis in 1865 that changed the old social and economic patterns decisively and quickly. In October, 1865, an uprising known as the Morant Bay Rebellion was put down with terrible severity and its leaders were hanged.
The handling of the crisis by the British Governor led to his recall to London, but before leaving he induced the frightened House of Assembly to vote for its own extinction. In its place a crown colony form of government, in which the Governor wielded the only real executive or legislative power, was established by an act of the British Parliament in 1866.
Asia and the Middle East in the Caribbean The Jews were among the first ethnic group to settle in Jamaica, arriving in the early sixteenth century to work in sugar manufacturing. After completing their period of indentured labour, they moved into business and other professions, and although small in number they still have significant influence in Jamaica in these areas.
In 1845 the first Indians arrived in Jamaica to work as indentured servants on the sugar plantations that had been abandoned by the African-Jamaicans after the abolition of slavery. The first labourers came from Northern India, but others arrived later from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, the Central Provinces, Punjab and the North West Frontiers.
In 1854 the first Chinese migrants arrived as indentured labourers. Most were from Hong Kong and from the Kwang Tung Province in southeast China. In the early years of the twentieth century migrants from Palestine and Lebanon settled in Jamaica, fleeing political and religious persecution in their home countries and in search of a better way of life.
- The peoples of the Middle East, India and China have retained many of the cultural values from their places of origin and have enriched Jamaica with their contributions to farming, commerce and other professions, while integrating with their own traditions and expertise into the Jamaican society.
- Transition to Independence By 1938, dissatisfaction with the crown colony system, sharpened by the hardships and suffering brought on by a worldwide economic depression, erupted in serious and widespread rioting.
These events resulted in the formation of the first lasting labour unions, as well as of political parties linked to them. A growing demand for self-determination also became apparent Political agitation by Jamaican activists and trade union leaders led to the granting of a new constitution in 1944, providing for a two-party House of Representatives, the appointment of Ministers and universal adult suffrage.
- Further constitutional advances took place in 1953 and 1957, and full internal self-government was obtained in 1959.
- In 1958 Jamaica became a founding member of the Federation of the West Indies, from which it seceded in 1961, after a referendum.
- On August 6, 1962, after 300 years of British colonization, Jamaica became an independent nation with full dominion status within the Commonwealth.
Jamaican Identity The legacy of Africa lives on in Jamaica in countless ways. It is most evident in the ethnic composition of the Jamaican people; in the Jamaican language called patois whose grammar and pronunciation are heavily influenced by the Twi language spoken in West Africa; in Jamaican music and dance; in religious worship and rituals; and in food and dress.
- The legacy of Britain also lives on in Jamaica in many ways.
- For example, English is the official language; Her Majesty the Queen is the Head of Jamaica’s Parliament; Jamaica’s system of government is based on the Westminster parliamentary model; Jamaica’s jurisprudence is based on English common law and practice; and the game of cricket is the national sport.
The Jamaican national motto “Out of many, one people” reflects the fact that peoples of different races and creeds have lived side by side for centuries to forge a unique Jamaican identity and a common destiny as a nation. Important Dates in Jamaica’s History
A.D.600 – 800: Tainos settled in Jamaica and lived there for some 900 years before being exterminated by the Spanish.1494: Christopher Columbus landed in Jamaica and claimed the island for Spain 1510: Colonised by the Spanish 1655: Captured by the British 1670: Officially ceded to the British under the Treaty of Madrid.1692: Earthquake destroyed Port Royal 1739: Peace Treaty signed between the British and the Maroons, after years of violent struggle.1807: Slave Trade was abolished 1832: Western Liberation Uprising, the largest mass rebellion against slavery, led by Sam Sharpe.1838: Slavery Abolished.1845: First Indians arrive in Jamaica as indentured servants.1854: First Chinese arrive in Jamaica as indentured servants.1865: Morant Bay Rebellion 1884: New constitution for local authority.1914: Marcus Garvey launched the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) to create an international awareness of the right of the black race to coexist with other peoples of the world as equals. Garvey awakened black consciousness and pride in millions of blacks in Africa and the African Diaspora.1938: The People’s National Party (PNP) was formed by The Right Honourable Norman Washington Manley.1943: The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) was formed by The Right Honourable Alexander Bustamante.1944: Jamaica Labour Party won elections for the House of Representatives, in the first general elections under universal adult suffrage.1958: The West Indian Federation was formed, uniting ten English-speaking countries of the Eastern Caribbean and Jamaica.1959: People’s National Party won elections for the House of Representatives and The Right Honourable Norman Washington Manley appointed first and only Premier.1961: Jamaica withdrew from the Federation of the West Indies, as mandated in a referendum that year.6 August 1962: Jamaica became an Independent Nation 1962: The Jamaica Labour Party won the general elections to the House of Representatives and Sir Alexander Bustamante became the first Prime Minister of Jamaica. Between 1962 and 1989 the two major political parties alternated in power, with each party serving two consecutive terms.1989 to September 2007: The People’s National Party (PNP) remained in power for four (4) consecutive terms under three (3) different Prime Ministers, namely The Most Honourable Michael Manley, The Most Honourable P.J. Patterson and the Most Honourable Portia Simpson-Miller, who was sworn in as Jamaica’s seventh Prime Minister on 30 March 2006. September 3, 2007: General elections were held. The opposition Jamaica Labour Party gained 33 seats in Parliament and the People’s National Party 27 seats. September 11, 2007: The Honourable Orett Bruce Golding was sworn in as Jamaica’s eighth Prime Minister.
For the list of Cabinet Ministers please click here: http://www.jis.gov.jm/Minister%20Profiles/html/preview1.htm
What is the nickname of Jamaica?
Etymology – The indigenous people, the Taíno, called the island Xaymaca in their language, meaning the “Land of Wood and Water” or the “Land of Springs”. Yamaye has been suggested as an early Taino name for the island as recorded by Christopher Columbus,
What is the Jamaican motto?
The Jamaican national motto is ‘Out of Many One People’, based on the population’s multiracial roots. The motto is represented on the Coat of Arms, showing a male and female member of the Taino tribe standing on either side of a shield which bears a red cross with five golden pineapples. The crest shows a Jamaican crocodile mounted on the Royal Helmet of the British Monarchy and mantling.
Can you see Cuba from Jamaica?
You might be able to see Cuba from Jamaica, but it’s not a sight you get to witness every day or everywhere. On a sunny day, you may get to see the outline of Cuba from a far distance and in order to grab this view, travellers must climb up Jamaica’s longest mountain range – Blue Mountain,
Are Jamaican men tall?
Oceania – Oceania, a region comprised of the Pacific islands, Australia, and New Zealand, is celebrated for its stunning beaches, unique wildlife, and vibrant cultures, all of which contribute to the range of average heights among men and women. From the Great Barrier Reef to the rolling hills of New Zealand, this region’s diverse backgrounds and rich history play a part in the unique height variations observed in its people.
Australia: Men – 5 feet 10.5 inches (179 cm); Women – 5 feet 5 inches (165 cm) Fiji: Men – 5 feet 8.5 inches (174 cm); Women – 5 feet 4.6 inches (164 cm) New Zealand: Men – 5 feet 10.1 inches (178 cm); Women – 5 feet 5 inches (165 cm) Papua New Guinea: Men – 5 feet 4.2 inches (163 cm); Women – 5 feet 1.8 inches (157 cm) Vanuatu: Men – 5 feet 6.1 inches (168 cm); Women – 5 feet 3 inches (160 cm)
Are Jamaicans very direct?
Building Relationships & Communication –
Although it is not imperative that you be introduced by a third-party, such introductions can speed up the time it takes to develop the personal relationship so necessary to conducting business successfully. Networking and relationship building can be crucial to long-term business success. While Jamaicans are outwardly warm and friendly, they often appear standoffish at the initial introduction because they are reserved until they get to know someone. Do not appear overly familiar at the initial greeting. Socializing is an important part of developing a relationship. Status is respected in Jamaica. It is quite common to hear someone referred to as “bossman” or “bosswoman” when the person addressing them is not an employee. Jamaicans can be direct communicators and are not afraid to say what they think. They expect others to be equally direct. At the same time, they value tact and sensitivity and dislike overt aggression. They will politely tell you what they think, even if they disagree with what you have said. They value logic and linear thinking. It is imperative to show deference and respect to those in positions of authority. When dealing with people at the same level, communication can be more informal. Jamaicans stand very close when conversing. A man may touch the arm or shoulder of another man, or even finger his lapel while speaking.
What is the dominant race in Jamaica?
Demographics of Jamaica | |
---|---|
Major ethnic | Afro-Jamaicans (92.1%) (2011) |
Minor ethnic | Mixed (6.1%), Indian (0.8%) (2011) |
Language | |
Official | English |
Which race has best muscles?
However, it is already widely known that blacks, despite having a superior muscle quality compared to other ethnic groups, have greater muscle loss from the age of 60, reaching up to 28% greater than that observed in white people.
What is unique about Jamaicans?
Music Is Number 2 – One of the most fun facts about Jamaican culture is that they love music, and they produce the most music per capita. They do much more than just reggae, even though they are widely known for that genre of music. Other music types like ska, mento, calypso, folk, rub-a-dub, soca, and more are also very popular in the country.
Why do Jamaicans have so many kids?
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH – “We know this from anecdotal evidence. I think we would need to do much more in-depth qualitative research to really explore the extent to which these attitudes still exist and how pervasive they are,” added Chevannes.
- She said that she has also heard of cases where men intentionally burst the condom during sexual intercourse in order to impregnate women.
- Chevannes noted that despite the high cost associated with raising a child in today’s society, having multiple children is still desired by some individuals.
- “Fertility is highly valued for both men and women in Jamaica, and for different reasons.”
- She noted that while some women and even adolescent girls have children to prove that they are not ‘mules’, men sometimes have multiple children to prove their masculinity.
- The NFPB is the agency responsible for family and population planning as well as HIV prevention in Jamaica.
: ‘Barefoot and pregnant’ – Some Jamaican men causing their women to hide their use of birth control
Why are Kenyans so fast?
Abstract – Since the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, Kenyan and Ethiopian runners have dominated the middle- and long-distance events in athletics and have exhibited comparable dominance in international cross-country and road-racing competition. Several factors have been proposed to explain the extraordinary success of the Kenyan and Ethiopian distance runners, including (1) genetic predisposition, (2) development of a high maximal oxygen uptake as a result of extensive walking and running at an early age, (3) relatively high hemoglobin and hematocrit, (4) development of good metabolic “economy/efficiency” based on somatotype and lower limb characteristics, (5) favorable skeletal-muscle-fiber composition and oxidative enzyme profile, (6) traditional Kenyan/Ethiopian diet, (7) living and training at altitude, and (8) motivation to achieve economic success.
Some of these factors have been examined objectively in the laboratory and field, whereas others have been evaluated from an observational perspective. The purpose of this article is to present the current data relative to factors that potentially contribute to the unprecedented success of Kenyan and Ethiopian distance runners, including recent studies that examined potential links between Kenyan and Ethiopian genotype characteristics and elite running performance.
In general, it appears that Kenyan and Ethiopian distance-running success is not based on a unique genetic or physiological characteristic. Rather, it appears to be the result of favorable somatotypical characteristics lending to exceptional biomechanical and metabolic economy/efficiency; chronic exposure to altitude in combination with moderate-volume, high-intensity training (live high + train high), and a strong psychological motivation to succeed athletically for the purpose of economic and social advancement.
Why are blacks so good at sprinting?
In a paper published online in the International Journal of Design and Nature and Ecodynamics, Bejan, and co-authors Edward Jones, a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell University currently teaching at Howard University, and Duke graduate Jordan Charles, argue that the answer lies in athletes’ centers of gravity,
That center tends to be located higher on the body of blacks than whites. The researchers believe that these differences are not racial, but rather biological. And: “Blacks tend to have longer limbs with smaller circumferences, meaning that their centers of gravity are higher compared to whites of the same height,” Bejan said.
“Asians and whites tend to have longer torsos, so their centers of gravity are lower.” Bejan and Jones cite past studies of the human body which found that on average, the center of gravity is about three percent higher in blacks than whites. Using this difference in body types, the researchers calculated that black sprinters are 1.5 percent faster than whites, while whites have the same advantage over blacks in the water.
- The difference might seem small, Bejan said, but not when considering that world records in sprinting and swimming are typically broken by fractions of seconds.
- The center of gravity for an Asian is even more advantageous to swimming than for a white, but because they tend not to be as tall, they are not setting records, Bejan said.
Source In the past many assumptions about differences between races were motivated by hatred and were flat out inaccurate. For an interesting exploration of those check out The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould. I did a deeper dive on the subject of discrimination here,
- I’m curious to read this book: Race: How Blacks and Whites Think and Feel About the American Obsession,
- It’s by Studs Terkel, author of the classic, Working,
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Why are West Africans better at sprinting?
Ferdinand Omanyala, the Commonwealth Games 100m champion has become a sensation in Kenya. Last weekend he clocked a world lead time of 9.81 seconds in 100 metres at Athletics Kenya meet at Nyayo Stadium. Why has it taken Kenya and East Africa this long to produce sprinters? Scientists have proved that the best sprinters come from West Africa.
The irony is no West African has ever held a sprint record. Most of the records have been held by athletes of West African descent who hail from the Americas, Jamaica, Canada and USA. These are descendants of the slaves who were shipped majorly from West Africa to the plantations in Americas. The 100m race is the shortest outdoor race in athletics and has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1928 for women.
IAAF Competition Rules determined by the first athlete with their torso which does not including limbs, head, or neck over the nearer edge of the finish line. When the placing of athletes is not obvious, a photo often derived from the video, called a photo-finish is used to determine who was first to cross the line.
- Headwinds can interfere with sprinters’ speed, hence why indoor races clock faster timings.
- Altitude is known to affect sportsmen but sprinters perform better at high altitudes because the air is thinner air thus less resistance.
- The thin air would also make breathing slightly more difficult but this difference is negligible for sprinters because all the oxygen they need for the short dash is already in the muscles and bloodstream when the race starts.
IAAF does not put limits on altitude but performances made at altitudes above 1000 m are marked with an “A”.
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The 10-second barrier The 10-second was considered a barrier for the 100 metres in men’s sprinting just like two hours has been held for men’s marathon. American Jim Ray Hines became the first man to break the 10-second barrier at the 1968 Summer Olympics where electronic timing clocked 9.86 seconds but was later adjusted to 9.95 seconds.
- Since then, several sprinters have clocked sub-10 seconds timings.
- The current men’s world record is 9.58 seconds, set by Jamaica’s Usain Bolt in 2009, while American Florence Griffith-Joyner is the women’s world record holder at 10.49 seconds set in 1988.
- Over the last nine Olympics until 2020 in men’s 100-meter races, all 72 finalists have been of West African descent except Frankie Fredricks of Namibia, Akani Simbine of South Africa and Bingtian Sun of China.
Italian Marcell Jacobs the reigning champion is the son of an African American father. Why is the West African gene dominant in sprints? It is good to note that the gene only performs when it meets a good environment where facilities are world-class. This is the reason West Africans have not won gold in the sprints but a few of their sprinters have reached the finals.
It has also been noted that Africans have longer legs and Caucasians have a longer torso. In a study on USA army recruits, when they sat down, African Americans appeared shorter because their legs account for more in height. This is the reason why Africans have struggled in swimming where a longer torso is advantageous.
Bengt Saltin, director of Copenhagen Muscle Research Institute, concluded that an athlete’s “environment” accounts for no more than 20-25 per cent of athletic performance ability. The rest is down to genetics. Black sprinters benefit from the presence of alpha-actinin-3 protein or ACTN3 gene dubbed the “speed gene”.
- It makes muscles twitch fast which is critical for sprints.
- Lacking the ACTN3 protein does not have any negative health effects but improves running ability.
- Scientists have concluded that it is next to impossible for someone without the ACTN3 protein to become an elite sprinter.
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The countries where sprinters thrive have built a culture around sprints where sprinters are respected and they have invested in facilities for training. In as much as we may not have many people with ACTN3 protein in muscle fibre, we can find a few like Omanyala who most likely has a variant of this gene.