==================================== Subj: Re: DNA & Genealogy Date: 4/18/2005 1:27:44 A.M. CDT John, Thanks for the timely message. I forwarded most of it to the Croatia list at Rootsweb as the last few postings have been about DNA testing. Are you....bidding on the collection of the Landlord's Game at E-Bay? ...... Ashley ==================================== Re: National Geographic's new GENOGRAPHIC PROJECT Ashley's note above made me think that I should send the following on to a few RootsWeb lists to which I haven't submitted much for a long time. This info below is a reformatting of some PDF material that a brother of mine sent me yesterday via email attachment. I'm not sure-- but I'm hopeful the following is essentially "on topic." No, I'm not participating in the Landlord's Game (or Monopolygate) auction. But I am pleased that my formerly obscure cousin Lizzie J. Magie (1866-1948), AFN 12KM-18C, recently identified as the true (ca. 1903) originator of Monopoly (the world's most popular board game), is getting so much Internet attention these days. I see that this "Monopolygate" auction is apparently ending in less than FIVE hours-- at 9:30 pm tonight (CDT): http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5185126771 I'm really more interested in historical facts than historic (and historical) memorabilia. Thus, I'm interested in, for example, in Babe Ruth's life & times-- but have very little desire to possess his bats, undergarments, etc.-- probably unlike the late [see below] Malcolm Forbes (and his silly son [or sons?]). But fortunately the wealthy Forbes family has some real attachment to this kind of thing (along with old Forbes tartans, ancient haggis recipes, etc.)-- just as the US government has mercifully not tossed out insect-contaminated original copies of the Declaration of Independence. .......John __________________________________________________________________ http://www.ajc.com/hp/content/auto/epaper/editions/sunday/news_242670e9a29b314 3006b.html The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sunday, April 17, 200 ----------------------------- WAY PAST THE FAMILY TREE Science: National Geographic project hopes to trace genomes to beginning of species BY Mike Toner [email protected] The National Geographic Society has begun what may be the ultimate search for human roots. For $99.95 and a swab of spit, anyone can join in and get a whole new perspective on the family tree. The society last week launched a five-year project to seek the origins of the human species and map the migration of ancient peoples out of Africa as they populated the globe. The $40 million Genographic Project will collect blood samples from 100,000 indigenous peoples throughout the world, analyze them for genetic markers and try to determine their geographic origins. "Our DNA tells a fascinating story of the human journey, how we are all related and how our ancestors got to where we are today," says population geneticist Spencer Wells, who will head the project. To generate public interest, Geographic also is offering a test kit that will allow anyone to take a swab of saliva and send it to a laboratory for DNA analysis. For assisting in the project's finances, participants will get a "personalized genetic analysis," a peek at their "deep ancestral history" --- and assurances of total privacy. The kits can be ordered at www3.nationalgeographic .com/genographic. Individual test results are expected to take about six weeks. Lest anyone be seeking proof that their ancestors came over on the Mayflower, National Geographic cautions that the test will "not provide names for your personal family tree or tell you where your great-grandparents lived." The society does promise, however, that everyone will get a genetic profile that will tell them something about their "deep ancestors." Really deep. Most fossil evidence suggests that modern humans appeared in Africa between 100,000 and 200,000 years ago and began migrating to other continents about 60,000 years ago. Some scientists say there was a single migration; some say more. Asia, Europe and Australia were the next to be populated. The Americas were the last. If scientists are right, all 6 billion people living on the planet today have ancestors who lived in Africa a long time ago. That concept has prompted some scientists to suggest that an African "Adam and Eve" --- or at least a small group of genetically similar hunter-gatherers --- lie at the base of what is now a many-branched human family tree. "We have some indications from prior studies about the migration of people in the last 50,000 to 10,000 years," says Ajay Royyuru of IBM's Computational Biology Center, which is collaborating on the project. "What's missing is the detail, the ability for everyone on the planet to be able to see, understand, exactly how they got to be where they are." Ten research centers around the world will receive funding from the Waitt Family Foundation --- founded by Gateway computer magnate Ted Waitt --- to collect and analyze the DNA samples. Each individual, from hair color to susceptibility to certain diseases, is the result of the unique combination of their parents' genetic code. But some genetic material, the male Y chromosome and maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA, is passed to the succeeding generations essentially unchanged, except for rare natural mutations that enable researchers to identify lineages extending back for thousands of years. "Once a particular marker appears by mutation in a man, all of his descendants will also carry that marker," Wells says. "If we compile information on a large set of markers and project them back in time using computer algorithms, the trail of mutations coalesces in a single Y-chromosome whose owner lived between 40,000 to 140,000 years ago in Africa." Because that mutation, named M94, is now carried by every man on the planet, Wells likes to call this man "Genetic Adam." But even he concedes the term may be misleading. He says there were certainly other humans living at the same time. Their lineages simply didn't make it to the present. DNA road maps Subsequent random mutations define later branches of the human family tree: lineages that crept out of Africa into Mesopotamia, some that headed east to Asia, and others that moved north, with the advent of agriculture, into the Caucasus and Europe. American Indians still carry marker mutations that first occurred among the natives of Siberia, and their genetic fingerprints came with them when their ancestors crossed the Bering Strait more than 12,000 years ago. Wells says the dozens of other random mutations that have accumulated in the DNA of contemporary humans --- in addition to Genetic Adam's M94 mutation --- constitute a kind of genetic fingerprint that can reveal whether their distant ancestors passed through the Middle East or the land bridge from Siberia or crossed the ocean from Europe to America. Initial efforts to use DNA to track human migrations, a project headed a few years ago by Stanford University population geneticist Luca Cavalli-Sforza, sampled the DNA from 52 indigenous groups and found five clusters of lineages that closely matched their ancestors' continent of origin. With a goal of collecting more than 100,000 DNA samples representing every indigenous group on the planet, the National Geographic effort hopes to paint a much more detailed picture of human migration. The society also hopes to avoid the political fuss that, more than a decade ago, prompted the federal government to withdraw support for a similar project that was intended to study the human genome. Urgency to project Unlike the federally funded effort, which was criticized for overtones of racism in looking for genetic differences among populations, National Geographic will not gather any information on genetic diseases and will make all of its anthropological data freely available. Wells says he feels a sense of urgency in the project. He says as political upheavals, environmental disruption and air travel prompt more people to move, the world is becoming less genetically diverse. Indigenous populations in particular are under pressure. "We need to take a genetic snapshot of who we are as a species before the geographic and cultural context are lost in the melting pot," he says. =============================================== .........are lost in the melting pot," he says. __________________________________________________________________ http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/journey.html Did you ever wonder about your most ancient ancestors? The Genographic Project will introduce you to them, and explain the genetic journeys that bond your personal lineage over tens of thousands of years. STEP 1: TEST Once you have purchased your own Genographic Project Public Participation Kit, you can begin the exploration into your deep ancestry. The first step involves a painless cheek swab to acquire a DNA sample. Once you have completed the cheek swabbing process, you will secure the swabs inside the transport tubes and mail the tubes off to the lab using the supplied envelope. It's that simple, and guaranteed anonymous. STEP 2: TRACK The exploration continues here in the Genographic Project Web site where you can track your test kit, step by step, through the various stages of DNA sequencing and processing. Along the way, multimedia presentations explain how scientists actually decode the information found in the molecules of your DNA. STEP 3: EXPLORE When your results are ready Project Director Dr. Spencer Wells will introduce you to your earliest human relatives—the members of your specific haplogroup. You'll receive a personalized genetic analysis, including an online overview of your deep ancestral history. The analysis reveals where and when your haplogroup originated and how they lived. You'll also receive a dynamic map, specific to your lineage, on which to trace your relatives' journeys across the planet. Your haplogroup's story may evolve as the Genographic Project collects thousands of DNA samples during the next few years. When it does, tantalizing new chapters will be added to this website and your information will be updated. The entire online process is completely anonymous so no one, including project scientists, will ever be able to access your results. But, if you choose, you can share them. A printable, hi-resolution certificate of participation, map, and haplogroup overview serve as compelling documentation of your deep ancestry. The Genographic Project is an exciting exploration of your personal genetic background. But it also has a broader mission. If you choose to anonymously contribute your genetic results to the project database you'll participate on a global scale—and help further define the vast scope of the human genetic journey. __________________________________________________________________ _http://events.skyteam.com/sisp/skyteam/?fx=event&event_id=32380_ (http://events.skyteam.com/sisp/skyteam/?fx=event&event_id=32380) FORBES MAGAZINE GALLERY The late Malcolm Forbes, successful magazine publisher and a passionate collector, filled this small museum in Greenwich Village with an astonishing array of toys, games and kick-knacks that will delight adults and children alike. [Collections include:] ......the original Monopoly board (displayed alongside the Landlord's Game that inspired it) and Abraham Lincoln's stovepipe hat and spectacles. There's also a selection of presidential papers, 500 rare toy boats, tootling toy trains....[etc.] Tours, which take place every Thursday, provide a fascinating background to the man himself and his somewhat obsessive dedication to acquisition.... When: Daily; not Mon or Sun Cost: Free Opening Hours: Tue, Wed, Fri & Sat 10am-4pm; Thu reserved for tours only Name: Forbes Magazine Gallery Address: 60, 5th Ave, New York City, USA, 10011 Tel: +1 212 206 5549 __________________________________________________________________ http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5185126771 HISTORICAL MONOPOLY COLLECTION - Unique!! The evidence that proved Darrow did not invent Monopoly Item number: 5185126771 ......Current bid: US $13,100.00 (Reserve met) Time left: 4 hours 51 mins 7-day listing, Ends Apr-18-05 19:30:00 PDT Start time: Apr-11-05 19:30:00 PDT Seller information tttata4now ( 1 ) Feedback Score: ( 1 ) Positive Feedback: 100% Member since Apr-20-03 in United States [in die deutsche Sprache: Angaben zum Verkäufer tttata4now ( 1 ) Bewertungsprofil: ( 1 ) Positive Bewertungen: 100% Mitglied seit 20.04.03 in Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika] __________________________________________________________________