For years we have known about mitochondrial Eve, the so called last common ancestor that all women share traced through their mitochondrial DNA, but what is not often discussed in the mainstream media is 'Genetic Adam'. Unlike Mitochondrial Eve, Genetic Adam stems from the Y-chromosome DNA of living men. While some researchers used to think that genetic Adam lived around 350KYA, a recent study done by deCODE Genetics points to a date of about 250KYA, about 100,000 years earlier than previously thought. Using a population of 753 Icelandic men who were grouped in 274 paternal lines they used the molecular clock method of analysis to attempt to discover when this Adam possibly lived. While the terms Adam and Eve are slightly deceitful, (Adam and Eve were not the only humans living, nor are they likely the only one who contributed to future generations), the discovery of a date that puts Adam and Eve at a date that is closer together is a great discovery.
The article goes on to further discuss that a University of Wisconsin study shows that humans are likely to have split from our most recent ancestor about 6MYA which is more recent then expected as well which means that our evolution is progressing much faster than previously anticipated.
Work Cited
- Devlin, Hannah. "Study Shows Humans Are Evolving Faster than Previously Thought."Science. Science, 25 Mar. 2015. Web.
- "HOME - DeCODE Genetics." DeCODE Genetics. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
- Poznik, G. David. "Sequencing Y Chromosomes Resolves Discrepancy in Time to Common Ancestor of Males Versus Females." Science 341.6145 (2013): 562-65. JSTOR. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
By Kathryn Leonard
Sorry it's late, totally blanked.
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