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The Shallow Roots of the Human Family Tree

An anonymous reader writes to mention an AP story about research discussing the relatively recent origins of every human on earth. Despite the age of our species, every human on earth can trace their ancestry back to someone who may have lived as recently as the Golden Age of Greece (around 500 BC). From the article: "It is human nature to wonder about our ancestors -- who they were, where they lived, what they were like. People trace their genealogy, collect antiques and visit historical sites hoping to capture just a glimpse of those who came before, to locate themselves in the sweep of history and position themselves in the web of human existence. But few people realize just how intricately that web connects them not just to people living on the planet today, but to everyone who ever lived."

21 of 760 comments (clear)

  1. futurama... by m1ndrape · · Score: 2, Funny

    I'm my own grandfather...

    --
    Donald Ray Moore Jr. (mindrape)
    Suspected Terrorist
  2. So Python was right? by gbjbaanb · · Score: 1, Funny

    Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries!

    So, this could be true if we changed mother to 'great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-g reat-great-grandmother' ?

  3. Re:Christians claim to be children of Abraham? by mypalmike · · Score: 4, Funny

    This is a song we sang at a Catholic church when I was a kid:

    Father Abraham had many sons
    And many sons had Father Abraham
    I am one of them
    And so are you
    So let's all praise the Lord.
    Right Arm, Left Arm... (There was some weird "hokey pokey"ish dance aspect to it.)

    --
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  4. Beatifully Ambiguous Writing by SpectreHiro · · Score: 3, Funny

    Despite the age of our species, every human on earth can trace their ancestry back to someone who may have lived as recently as the Golden Age of Greece (around 500 BC)

    Well damn, I can trace my ancestry to someone much more recent than that. To boot, I'm pretty sure we all have ancestors that lived during 500 BC... I dare you to find me someone who lacks a living ancestor during anytime past the origin of life on earth and before their own time. I frickin' dare you.

    Ohhhhhh... They mean to say that everyone can trace their ancestry back to a single person who lived during the Golden Age of Greece. That guy must've been a stud.

    --
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    1. Re:Beatifully Ambiguous Writing by tricorn · · Score: 2, Funny

      If you have any children, chances are so did your parents.

  5. Impressive by DuckWizard · · Score: 2, Funny
    Despite the age of our species, every human on earth can trace their ancestry back to someone who may have lived as recently as the Golden Age of Greece (around 500 BC)

    This fellow must have been quite busy with the ladies.

  6. Re:Eww yuck! by bsartist · · Score: 4, Funny
    Or am I related to Kevin Bacon?
    Well I'll be damned - that game really does work. Five steps from me to Kevin Bacon:
    1. My niece is Angel Boris
    2. ... who appeared in Dragon Storm with John Rhys-Davies
    3. ... who appeared in The Great White Hype with Samuel L. Jackson
    4. ... who appeared in Sphere with Dustin Hoffman
    5. ... who appeared in Sleepers with Kevin Bacon.
    --
    Lost: Sig, white with black letters. No collar. Reward if found!
  7. Re:Eww yuck! by bsartist · · Score: 4, Funny
    There is no rationale behind it whatsoever and having a pedigree to show that say, (for the most common example) a white supremacist and Martin Luther King Jr. share common ancestors 60 or so generations back would not change their attitudes.
    You're right, it wouldn't change any attitudes. But it would get you a beating from a bunch of pissed-off skinheads.
    --
    Lost: Sig, white with black letters. No collar. Reward if found!
  8. So our family tree has no forks? by mrmeval · · Score: 4, Funny

    WE'RE ALL REDNECKS!

    --
    I'd go on a Vegan diet but the delivery time from Vega is too long. --brownkitty
  9. Supposed to... by Chmcginn · · Score: 3, Funny

    but I dunno. I mean, they still give me mod points every other week, and I just close my eyes and click.

    --
    Have you been touched by his noodly appendage?
  10. Re:Family Tree Grafting by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yes, hyphenated names are a good way of insuring that a woman bears both her husband's and her father's name.

    I've never understood why anybody of a 'feminist' bent would consider that a good thing.

  11. Re:Christians claim to be children of Abraham? by Triv · · Score: 4, Funny

    (There was some weird "hokey pokey"ish dance aspect to it.)

    He lets the righteous in,
    He kicks the heathens out,
    He lets the righteous in, and he plops 'em on a cloud
    We do the hokey-pokey to prove we're all devout,
    That's what God's all about.

    --Triv

  12. Re:Christians claim to be children of Abraham? by alexo · · Score: 1, Funny


    > [...] the Christian church has always grown the fastest when it has been under the greatest persecution.

    Strange, I always thought that the Christian church has grown the fastest when it was doing the persecution.

  13. Re:We All Descend from Noah by KingSkippus · · Score: 2, Funny
    Or could it?

    No.

    And now that you mention it, yes, that is a foul. Please confine yourself for 10 minutes in the Slashdot penalty box.

  14. Re:Not me by MMC+Monster · · Score: 4, Funny

    You only had one ancester in the 1600s?

    Maybe you had some others that you haven't found out about yet. :-)

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  15. Re:Family Tree Grafting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
    If you go x generations back, there are 2^x "ancestors" (1 generation before you: 2^1 = 2 parents, etc).
    Not down South.
  16. It was only ONE time! by SnarfQuest · · Score: 2, Funny

    You know, it was on a Saturday night, after a really long week, and I have never drank that much before, and I honestly don't remember what all happened for the rest of that weekend. I swear, they told me they were over 16...

    --
    Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
  17. you are devil-people by flacco · · Score: 1, Funny

    evil devil people! every body know that we was all come downe from adam and the whore eve who rode to church on dino-saurs on sundays! this is what jesus teches us.

    --
    pr0n - keeping monitor glass spotless since 1981.
  18. Re:Eww yuck! by Dlugar · · Score: 3, Funny

    Angel Boris actually has a Bacon Number of 2:

    1. Angel Boris was in Suicide Blonde (1999) with Robert Deacon
    2. Robert Deacon was in Wild Things (1998) with Kevin Bacon

    (Source: The Oracle of Bacon at Virginia)

    Which makes three steps from you to Kevin Bacon. HTH, HAND!

    Dlugar

    --
    Computer Go: Writing Software to Play the Ancient Game of Go
  19. Re:Indeed, 20% of fathers, aren't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    it seems to vary from about 5%, but rates of 20% - 30% are common. So... Guys... have you had a DNA test?

    Er.. this is slashdot. DNA tests in this matters are obviously not needed.

  20. Re:Somewhat misleading by WedgeTalon · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is where a "+1 Pwned" modding would come in handy.