Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project

Front Cover
National Geographic Books, 2007 - Science - 247 pages
Travel backward through time from today's scattered billions to the handful of early humans who lived in Africa 60,000 years ago and are ancestors to us all.

In Deep Ancestry, scientist and National Geographic explorer Spencer Wells shows how tiny genetic changes add up over time into a fascinating story. Using scores of real-life examples, helpful analogies, and detailed diagrams and illustrations, he explains exactly how each and every individual's DNA contributes another piece to the jigsaw puzzle of human history. The book takes readers inside the Genographic Project--the landmark study now assembling the world's largest collection of DNA samples and employing the latest in testing technology and computer analysis to examine hundreds of thousand of genetic profiles from all over the globe--and invites us all to take part.

From inside the book

Contents

Introduction
1
The Block
9
Odines Story The Exception
27
Margarets Story The Hearth
55
Phils Story The Ice
85
Virumandis Story The Beach
115
Juliuss Story The Cradle
133
Epilogue
163
Haplogroup Descriptions
175
Glossary
229
Further Reading
235
About the Author
238
Author Acknowledgments and Illustration Credits
240
Index
242
Copyright

Other editions - View all

Common terms and phrases

About the author (2007)

Spencer Wells is an Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society and the director of the Genographic Project. After studying under genetic pioneer Luigi Cavalli-Sforza at Stanford University, he began an unusual career that mixes science, writing, and filmmaking. His acclaimed first book, The Journey of Man, combined his own DNA research with the work of archaeologists, paleoanthropologists, paleoclimatologists, and linguists to show how modern humans came to populate the planet.

Bibliographic information