More than you wanted to know Mitosis and Meiosis

"Mitosis is the process in which a cell duplicates its chromosomes to generate two identical cells.    It is generally followed by cytokinesis which divides the cytoplasm and cell membrane.    This results in two identical cells with an equal distribution of organelles and other cellular components.    Mitosis and cytokinesis jointly define the mitotic (M) phase of the cell cycle, the division of the mother cell into two sister cells, each with the genetic equivalent of the parent cell."¹


"During meiosis, the genome of a diploid germ cell, which is composed of long segments of DNA packaged into chromosomes, undergoes DNA replication followed by two rounds of division, resulting in haploid cells called gametes.    Each gamete contains one complete set of chromosomes, or half of the genetic content of the original cell.    These resultant haploid cells can fuse with other haploid cells of the opposite sex or mating type during fertilization to create a new diploid cell, or zygote."²