About the DNA testing, I am not sure at all about the use of DNA testing. With three pretty good matches, all I have found out is that someone is 350 bucks richer! Where is the scientific data to support the testing? On the website, it even says that if you match up with people who have a different last name, to disregard it, that it isn't really a match. I asked myself,...what if you match up with someone with the same last name, how do you know if you are really related....then there is the whole timeline thing. Come on! 700 years ago is a long time to try to match up with ancestors! Certainly, for the price they are charging, they could get us connected a little more recent than that! I have always been told that my family are descendents of President Adams. I am no closer than before to proving or disproving that, even with DNA testing, at least in my opinion. Sue Adams Diaz

Sue It is true that different people have different results and not every one gets all they want from it. Every family situation is different and there are success stories in many of the Surname Projects. The Adams Project has one success story posted on the web site. Sue wrote "Where is the scientific data to support the testing? " There is a significant number of scientic articals in journals on DNA testing for those that wish to read them. There are peer review science articals in the field of DNA testing and goverment, NIST, standards for the test used by the companies. The issue on the value of the last name as a part of this matching business is just now being understood. In the past there were theories on people changing surnames, and adoptions and other non-parental events. But they were just theories. Now with the DNA testing some of these issus can acutully be quantified. And from what I see there is a lot of credit to be given to a matcing last name. I see the last name match as being at least equal to the DNA match. If you remove one or the other then you have dimished the confidence in the matching by half. Sue wrote "I have always been told that my family are descendents of President Adams. I am no closer than before to proving or disproving that, even with DNA testing, at least in my opinion." The scientific facts are your group of 3 Adams men supports you paper genealogy back to the 1700s [or is it 1600s?]. And the documented Presidential line 3 Adams men supports that back to the son of Henry in the 1600s The DNA between the two are so different they cannot have a common ancestor for over 10,000 years. So in my opinion your Adams family, just like my Adams family, cannot be related to the Presidential Adams family through the male line. We both could have maternal connections but that is not what the Y-DNA tests. John Walden Volunteer Project Manager Adams Surname Y-DNA Project

I have a few quick thoughts on the subject of Adams DNA and John Walden's hard work and web site. I hear and understand Sue's frustration. It is easy to have high expectations. But, we are pioneers in this early period of DNA testing. What this means to me is that the sample size for the Adams population or any other surname group is still very, very, very small. But, the sample will grow, and as it does, we all stand to gain from the process. And, our sample results will stay on record far into the future, with matches possible at any time. In my case, as I believe I've mentioned before on the Adams list, there were two very significant Adams matches for my research. I and other cousins had been trying for a long period to document what was oral tradition in the family of Francis Adams (1763 Ireland to 1846 MS). We might have continued this search for many years without learning what we did from the Y-chromosome DNA testing. So, this was lucky for us, but these two men were tested as part of a larger, more traditional genealogical research effort. Without the latter, work done by many over the years, the DNA would have meant little. In addition three matches between my maternal uncle, Sue's brother and another cousin in Texas led us back to Ireland and the common ancestry there. But, we do not know who that most recent common ancestor (MRCA) is. However, as the international testing effort continues, descendants of this MRCA in Ireland and England could add greatly to our data and understanding of family history. From my more traditional Adams research, the line goes back about 300 years; for Sue it's a bit shorter, yet there are common ancestors probably at about 350 years. Time is on our side. Please keep testing and recruit others to do the same. When I submitted the first DNA sample several years ago (for my father), I did not expect much. But, his advanced age guided me to get his DNA on record quickly. Perhaps others will find that a useful thing to do for similar reasons. My best regards, Barbara McDaniel Ray Atlanta, GA ----- Original Message ----- From: <TeacherG4@aol.com> To: <ADAMS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, November 05, 2005 8:23 PM Subject: Re: [ADAMS-L] Re: Anyone related to the Pres John Adams or John Q. Adams? > About the DNA testing, > > I am not sure at all about the use of DNA testing. > > With three pretty good matches, all I have found out is that someone is 350 > bucks richer! > > Where is the scientific data to support the testing? On the website, it > even says that if you match up with people who have a different last name, to > disregard it, that it isn't really a match. I asked myself,...what if you > match up with someone with the same last name, how do you know if you are really > related....then there is the whole timeline thing. Come on! 700 years ago > is a long time to try to match up with ancestors! Certainly, for the price > they are charging, they could get us connected a little more recent than that! > > I have always been told that my family are descendents of President Adams. > I am no closer than before to proving or disproving that, even with DNA > testing, at least in my opinion. > > Sue Adams Diaz > > > ==== ADAMS Mailing List ==== > To UNSUBSCRIBE in MAIL mode use: Adams-l-request@rootsweb.com > To UNSUBSCRIBE in DIGEST mode use: Adams-D-request@rootsweb.com > List-Manager's Address: Adams-admin@rootsweb.com > Archives: http://resources.rootsweb.com/surnames/a/d/ADAMS > For Virus help: http://www.wvi.com/~wb/virushelp.html > >