DNA

Many...well, no, probably "most" of my posts here are about DNA. When I got started with this blog I was also getting started with DNA testing. It seemed very simple. I'm a man. I have Y DNA. I need to find the parents of my third great grandfather Levi Thompson. He had Y DNA. We should match with other Thompsons and POOF, I jump the gap and assign us to a known Thompson family.



AND that has happened...for some people. Not so much for me though. I stepped into a confusing world where myth and fact were coming together and I didn't fit either of them. That led to autosomal DNA and switching Y companies and yet more upgraded tests and endless personal analysis of each of these until I am where I am as I put together this page.

Which is to say, no closer to finding the parents of that third great grandfather. In fact it's becoming clear that I'm not related to him genetically at all. Not exactly what I set out to learn, but informative none the less.

So I put up this page with DNA as part of our cast of characters in the story of who we are. It's not the only member. It's not the most important member, but it's there.



As a tool, it still holds great promise to jump these gaps and I've seen it work again and again. Members of my Seelye and Campbell families are lining up exactly where you would expect. I've found matches for them. It does work and eventually make some sort of sense, but it can be really hard to decipher and there are many obstacles.

So there is no "POOF". No magic. Just work.

And you can see that in my blog, from the beginning. It's been a struggle, but it's been one of those "good" struggles that build knowledge and make us better for it.

Quick Links:

No comments:

Post a Comment