Diamonds aren’t just a girls best friend, they are also one of the hardest minerals created on earth. Created naturally at extremely high temperatures between 900 and 1,300 degrees Celsius and pressures of 4.5 to 6 kilaPascals, so high that these can only be met deep within the earth’s mantle that change Carbon-containing minerals into diamonds over billions of years. The obsession of diamonds and the will to posses and pay for them in society is great. The only way that diamonds can reach the surface of the earth and be put to human use is with powerful volcanic eruptions or deep-earth mining. Volcanic eruptions are rather rare, because most of the pipes in the rock that go to the surface, releasing volcanic material don’t contain enough diamonds to be valuable, and some don’t contain any diamonds within them at all. However, diamonds can also be produced synthetically in a chamber that simulates the pressure and temperature found in the earth’s mantle. Here, they can create the same diamonds with a hardness equal to that nature can provide, and so close molecularly that only a gemologist with specific equipment can differentiate. In these synthetic labs, the diamonds created are usually a yellow color because nitrogen, a key element in the creation, has impurities that are emitted through the color. Therefore, many other colors may be emitted in the synthetics, depending on which elements were used in the creation. Diamonds are world renowned for their amazing physical toughness, beauty and lustrous, originating from their strong bonding. They are used in the industrial world as the as cutting tools because of this superior toughness, and no other earthly mineral has been found to exceed the diamond’s durability. Fuelin... ... middle of paper ... ...nts because of the amount of money they can earn by supporting one of these “blood diamond” groups. Angola has estimated around 10 million land mines. Another source of crime diamonds cause is theft. Since diamonds are so expensive and desirable, occasionally armed robbers attempt to steal millions of dollars in valuable diamonds, escaping with the minerals and hoping to live off the proceeds the act provides. Overall, diamonds are a source of great power, with an unparalleled durability that is unmatched by any other earthly mineral, created deep within the earth at extremely high temperatures and pressures, worth very much money to either create synthetically, discover, or mine, can be found with many colors based upon the elements used to create it, as well as a source of crime and corruption from those that wish to share in the extravagance these diamonds create.
Summary of Source Information: This article talks about the health conditions of many miners and diamond diggers that are affected due to substandard working conditions in sub-Saharan Africa. In these areas, where there are many unregulated mining locations, workers are prone to being exploited to hazardous working conditions. Children are especially vulnerable in these environments because they already suffer from poor health conditions due to lack of care and nutrition. Children have often been exploited in the diamond industry due to their ability to get into small spaces and dig out packs of dirt. Another health effect associated with diamond mining, in which this article talks about, is how diamond deposits have often mixed with vegetated areas, leaving it unsuitable for farming activities. Mining equipment leaves heavy minerals and chemical products that run into the rivers and contaminate vital sources of water for the mining community and people who live in these rural areas. Currently, diamond companies, as well as labor and health activists, are trying to do something to help improve health conditions of workers.
Should diamonds be seen as such highly sought-after, luxury goods, and marketed and sold at such extravagant amounts? While some individuals might be of the impression that diamonds are lavishly priced, because of limited supply, it is of my opinion that a very shrewdly-created cartel disguises the very reason for these “rare” gems seemingly being worth your “pretty penny”.
...t that their sons were child soldiers holding guns and striking down innocent civilians. The horrors and violence that occurred during this ten-year period are unthinkable. Many families are still rebuilding more than ten years later. For a resource that was supposed to bring Sierra Leone out of poverty to leave it in even worse conditions is sad to think about. Though diamonds from conflict areas are banned, some still find their way into the markets. It is up to the buyers of these products to really trace the history of each and every diamond for a stop in this conflict to happen. Consumers can also help by asking for the history of their diamond before buying one. If the world can do this, profit made from diamonds will be going to the right people and the responsibility of violence in conflict areas will no longer be on the diamond industry or the world.
About status within your peer group. Even people on low monthly salaries would buy a high quality diamond: it was a family driven purchase.
The rough diamond that is beneath the surface must undergo several stages of production before being transformed into the diamond that is used in jewellery. These stages of production are costly and this was the shortfall of many of the diamond mining companies, and thus a merger was formed. The agreement b...
Said to be a girl's best friend, diamonds are often seen as a symbol of poverty, war, and death for many Africans. Due to the cruel and inhuman manner by which these diamonds are mined and process, the trade of these illicit gems must be stopped. Conflict diamonds or blood diamonds are often associated with war, forced labor, child labor, and smuggling. Paul Orogun wrote an article for in the journal, World Affairs, where he describes some of the brutal conflicts in recent African history. “Blood Diamonds and Africa's Armed Conflicts in the Post—Cold War Era”, in which he talks about the conflicts associated with the illegal diamond trade. Orogun de...
Only a small amount of natural resources have captured the attention of the world as much as blood diamonds have (Goreux). Conflict or "blood" diamonds are immorally mined and traded diamonds used to fund conflict in war-torn areas, mainly in Africa (Armstrong). Blood diamonds are detrimental because countries in Africa with a lot of these mines are often troubled by violence. The rebels who enforce said violence treat the workers so poorly that it’s even to the point of torturing and killing them. This blood diamond mining has led to over 3 million deaths in total (Statistic Brain). This is why they are called 'blood' diamonds, because they are stained with the blood of the workers who suffered in order to get them.
Deep within African mines, elusive diamonds lay enveloped in the Earth’s crust. Possessing much influence, beauty, and tension, nature’s hardest known substance causes parallel occurrences of unity and destruction on opposite sides of the globe. Diamonds, derived from the Greek word "adamas", meaning invincible, are formed deep within the mantle, and are composed entirely from carbon. Moreover, only under tremendous amounts of heat and pressure can diamonds form into their preliminary crystal state. In fact, diamonds are formed approximately 150km- 200km below the surface and at radical temperatures ranging from 900-1300 C°. When these extremes meet, carbon atoms are forced together creating diamond crystals. Yet how do these gems, ranking a ten on Moh’s hardness scale, impact the individual lives of millions of people besides coaxing a squeal out of brides-to-be? These colorless, yellow, brown, green, blue, reddish, pink, grey and black minerals are gorgeous in their cut state, but how are these otherwise dull gems recognized and harvested? Furthermore, how and why is bloodshed and violence caused over diamonds in Africa, the supplier of approximately 65% of the world’s diamonds? (Bertoni) The environmental, social, and economic impact of harvesting, transporting, and processing diamonds is crucial because contrary to popular belief, much blood has been spilled over first-world “bling”.
To some, the myths and curses of the world hold little power, but to others it formats their entire culture or religion. Over thousands of years people have formulated stories surrounding not only diamonds, but other gemstones as well. It is practiced in religious and symbolic ceremonies that we still believe in today. From offering a diamond ring as a symbol of love and unity to a diamond gift of appreciation for a sixty year anniversary we show that in some form we believe that a diamond can bring unity, love, and longevity. Although the majority of claims happened many years ago, and can be proven false today, they have helped mold the history of the diamond. Diamonds are forever; not only because they are invincible, but because they have a lasting connection to our history.
Diamonds have been identified as being precious but expensive gems for many decades. Diamonds were extremely rare, only found in India and Brazil until the late nineteenth century (Vogelsang, 2005: 5). After the discovery of diamonds in South Africa, the diamond industry began to flourish. Diamonds then became very abundant and cheap to produce. In order for the value of diamonds to remain as high as they were during the phase in which they were still rare, a diamond cartel was introduced. A cartel is defined as a group of firms that gets together to make output and price decisions (Cartel Theory of Oligopoly, n.d.). Hence, the diamond cartel aimed to maintain high prices to maximise the profits of the suppliers by restricting the supply. This essay will analyse the history of the diamond cartel, including diagrams that illustrate what the price of diamonds would be with or without the use of a cartel. The notion that diamonds are the only suitable stone that can be used in engagement rings will also be commented on. Furthermore, specific attention will be placed on the role of the diamond cartel in determining the price of diamonds.
I have chosen to talk about precious gemstones and crystals. There are many people now and days rediscovering the many uses of gemstones and crystals. To my knowledge each, have many different uses. They can be used as adornments, for health, for healing and for spiritual practices. You have probably never even heard of stones or crystals in this fashion before. I am going to take this opportunity to tell you what I know about this fascinating world that I have grown very accustomed to. I am not a gemstone/crystal specialist but, I do know enough about this topic to give you a slight overview about this topic.
The diamond is a carbon allotrope made up of carbons tetrahedrally bonded in a structure called a diamond lattice. The very rigid diamond lattice combined with strong covalent bonding leads to the diamond as having the greatest hardness of any naturally occurring material and the highest thermal conductivity of any bulk material. This quality makes diamonds valuable for its most common use, industrially. Although diamonds are best known for their use in jewelry, 80% of diamonds mined are used industrially. Diamonds are naturally produced in extremely high temperatures deep inside the earth’s mantle over extremely long periods of time. To keep up with demand, diamonds can also be formed synthetically at high pressure temperatures that simulate the Earth’s mantle. Industrially, diamonds intense strength can be used for cutting and grinding tools. Diamonds are used to cut and polish almost any material including other diamonds. Diamonds are commonly used for diamond tipped drill bits, saw...
... rebel fighters and insurgencies. The practice is most often associated with conflicts in Africa. The argument surrounding blood diamonds was brought to light in the early 1990s with civil wars in Sierra Leone, Angola, the Republic of Congo, and Liberia. During this time, blood diamonds comprised about 5 percent of the world diamond market, according to the World Diamond Council’s DiamondFacts.org website.
..., authentic diamonds anymore. Diamond mining has supplied jobs over the years meaning that the people that have relied on mining for an income would be left jobless over time. If artificial diamonds replaced natural diamonds completely the African economy would suffer because diamond mining has been the country’s source of income for many years. Diamonds had helped to fund one of Botswana’s biggest HIV/AIDS programs that helped with the prevention and treatment of the diseases. ‘From a population of 1.6 million people, around 37% suffer from either HIV or AIDS.’
Before the discovery of diamonds in South Africa, a diamond trade had only truly existed in India and Brazil. No sizable deposits had yet been found and as a result of this, diamonds commanded an exorbitant price. However this all changed when the first diamond was discovered in the Kimberly region of South Africa. Soon after mines started springing up all around Kimberly, with the Vaal River ...