What's your haplogroup? (NG's Genographic Project)

[imcarthur]

Is anybody participating in National Geographic's Genographic Project?

Genographic Project

The gist of it is: You buy a kit & swab some DNA & send it to the study. They analyze it to 12 markers to add to their genetic migration study. And you get to see the results.

Like this:



It is only very old history with your ancestor's very ancient migratory patterns. It would seem that I must have some Viking in me . . .

My haplogroup is R1A1 (Wiki R1A) which places me in the steppes of the Ukraine. The Vikings are thought to have brought the strain to Scotland.

Fascinating stuff IMHO.

Ian

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I believe this is the same study that's referenced in "A History of Man" which airs occasionally on that channel. Excellent little documentary to see if anyone happens to be able to catch it. VERY interesting stuff.

[imcarthur]

One & the same. Spencer Wells is the project leader.

here's a quote from the docs for R1A1 . . .

M17: The Indo-Europeans of the Steppes of Asia

Fast Facts

Time of Emergence: 10,000 to 15,000 years ago
Place of Birth: Ukraine or southern Russia
Climate: Glaciers are retreating
Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: A few million
Tools and Skills: Possibly the first people to domesticate the horse

Your genetic trail ends with a marker that arose between 10,000 to 15,000 years ago when a man of European origin was born on the grassy steppes in the region of present-day Ukraine or southern Russia.

His descendents became the nomadic steppe dwellers who eventually spread as far afield as India and Iceland. Archaeologists speculate that these people were the first to domesticate the horse, which would have eased their distant migrations.

Ian

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Your DNA is now on file with some uber-secret government lab too as part of an alien/human hybridization project ya know...

[island911]

Next application, I'm checking the box that reads "African American."

[imcarthur]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

Your DNA is now on file with some uber-secret government lab too as part of an alien/human hybridization project ya know...

Yeah, I heard my mutant was in the next wave to go to the unobtanium mines on the moon.

Ian

[TerryH]

A few months ago a news show, maybe "60 minutes", followed up on a woman that paid 3 or 4 different agenices to trace her ancestral DNA. They all came to different conclusions. As accurate as DNA for matching specimens to donors, it looked like it wasn't nearly as accurate for tracing ancestory.

It appeared that those that participated were somewhat duped into believing that each trace was 100% accurate when it wasn't. The 1 in 100 billion doesn't exist here like it does in solving crimes.

[RWebb]

I keep planning to do that...

think my haplogroup is pretty obvious tho -- I love mountains, cold weather & snow and can't stand what is normal bathing suit weather for most folks (despite growing up in So. Louisiana). I have light skin, blondish hair, used to have a red beard, and my head is squared off.

If I hear bagpipes it makes me want to march & fight - esp. if there are any English in my direct line of sight. Romans will do also.

[svandamme]

either that or an ancestor of yours had a thing for mountain goats and sheep

then again, that could still be one and the same thing you thought of

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by TerryH

A few months ago a news show, maybe "60 minutes", followed up on a woman that paid 3 or 4 different agenices to trace her ancestral DNA. They all came to different conclusions. As accurate as DNA for matching specimens to donors, it looked like it wasn't nearly as accurate for tracing ancestory.

It appeared that those that participated were somewhat duped into believing that each trace was 100% accurate when it wasn't. The 1 in 100 billion doesn't exist here like it does in solving crimes.

Haha....that's pretty amusing actually.

[dhoward]

Originally Posted by imcarthur

Snipped.......
It would seem that I must have some Viking in me . . .Snipped

Why? Been hanging around Viking bars?

[imcarthur]

Originally Posted by dhoward

Why? Been hanging around Viking bars?

No, but I have an urge to rape & pillage.

NG is partnering with a company called FamilyTree DNA. Family Tree They do the lab work for the study but they have their own DNA research that they offer for a price. I think this is where it starts getting funky. They claim to have the largest DNA database (in the field of Genetic Genealogy) but they only have 205,541 specimens. Obviously that's not many DNA samples to try to do any meaningful DNA family research. You can spend a lot of money to get results that mean very little unless you are an egghead research scientist & even then it is just an interpretation with a bunch of supposition thrown in.

Ian