Sunday, February 15, 2009

Physical connections - Neanderthal 1st draft of DNA sequence

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100648070
  [opening text]
Morning Edition, February 13, 2009 · Scientists in Germany say they have drawn up a map of about 60 percent of the genetic "letters" in the genome of Neanderthals. The map is expected to shed light not only on what kind of creatures they were, but also what genetic differences allowed humans to leave Neanderthals in the evolutionary dust.
 


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Monday, February 2, 2009

your skin color

from National Public Radio, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100057939
[excerpt]... look at the patch of skin on the inside of your upper arm, the part of you that almost never sees the sun.
Whatever color you see there is what experts call your basic skin color, according to professor Nina Jablonski, head of the Penn State Department of Anthropology.
 
And that color, the one you have now, says Jablonski, is very probably not the color your ancient ancestors had — even if you think your family has been the same color for a long, long time.