I'm willing to participate as a volunteer and as a participant. Charles Knox Massey, III Atlanta, GA ----- Original Message ----- From: "Eleonore Crespo" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2003 11:40 PM Subject: [MASSEY-L] MASSEY DNA > Hi, was wondering if anyone has started a DNA project on the MASSEY line? If > not, is anyone interested in doing so? We would need at least 6 male Massey > descendants to get a discount at the place that does it, the price, I was > told for the 25 marker DNA is $165.00 per person. Please post to the list if > you are interested or know if such a project is already > underway;thanks,Eleonore > below is what I saw on another surname list, and thought it might be helpful > here: > > "No it is NOT a scam. The projects themselves are > run by volunteers and do not make a dime from them. > They are folks like you and I that give freely of > their time, efforts and talents. They are not commercial > entities, nor do they handle money. All fees are paid > directly to DNA testing service providers. > > The DNA testing service provider you mentioned in the > link http://www.ftdna.com is an extremely reputable, > informative and honestly run company. They have an > excellent FAQ page http://www.familytreedna.com/faq.html > Pay special attention to the section on Privacy, if that > may be an issue for you. STRs are used, not anything > on the DNA chain that can tell so much as your eye color, > propensity to drink, or liklihood of getting a disease. > So... employers, insurance companies and law enforcement > or government will find nothing of use in your test results. > > No blood is involved in the testing. As simple as swabbing > the inside of your cheek, stuffing a Q-Tip type of thing in > a bottle, repeating the process hours later and sending it > off to the lab. Nothing to get squeemish over. > > Kevin Duerinck's site lists some 626 surnames that are > being tested as well as other DNA projects. I note that > he lists Murphy as having a project at FTDNA, however, I > did not see it listed on their list of surname projects. > They may not have sufficient numbers of male participants > to have it register on the list yet. Or there may not > be a Project Manager that has come forward to take this on. > > http://www.duerinck.com/surname.html > > Does it cost to be tested? Yes. However, when one > uses other resources to research their genealogy, > it also costs.... trips to Salt Lake City to the > Library are not free, nor are copies of records, etc. > Participating in the Surname DNA studies may actually > save money for folks that are facing brick walls or > perhaps tracing multiple lines as they are unsure > which ancestors are theirs! > It can keep researchers from barking up the wrong > tree and wasting valuable research time and money > by eliminating, if not confirming, their relationship > to another with proven connections to a particular line. > > I manage 4 DNA lists at Rootsweb: > [email protected] > [email protected] > [email protected] > [email protected] > > and subscribe to a 5th: > [email protected] > This is the granddaddy of all DNA lists here at > Rootsweb. I recommend it. But ONLY in digest > form as it is a very busy list. :) > > I just wrote an article on Genetic Genealogy that was > targeted for and published in the Clan Stewart Society > in America, Inc. quarterly newsletter, "The Fesse Chequy." Remember that > surnames follow the males -- and they have Y-DNA, so it would > be an all male project comprised of only males born to males > bearing the surname. Ladies, you will have to ask your surnamed brothers, > fathers, uncles or cousins to participate > > > http://www.familytreedna.com/products.html will > give you an idea of cost. However, bear in mind that any that > participate via a Project, will receive a discount that is not > given to individuals. Just looking at the site, I can say that, > at this moment, the 25 marker test is considerably less -- almost > a 30% difference. I would recommend beginning with 25 markers > instead of 12, as there is greater probability of acsertaining > the Most Recent Common Ancestor (MCRA) generation in genealogicaly > useful time. It is possible to have a 12/12 match and find that > the next 13 allelles are too far mutated to have a meaningful > relationship in genealogic time. One will be seeking to connect > with others that have 25/25 or 24/25 matches. > > There is a good site that explains much in simple terms: > http://blairgenealogy.com/dna/dna101.html > > I had the good fortune of meeting Doug Mumma when his project > was newly established. He is one of the true Pioneers of this > new aspect to genealogical research. His excellent web site will > be found at: > http://www.mumma.org/DNA.htm > > I hope this has been responsive to some of your questions > and I also hope it serves to overcome some skepticism. The use > of DNA in combination with sound science and well documented > genealogy is a most powerful tool." > > > > > >