'nuf said?

Scientists discover that all humans come from the same mother who lived 200,000 years ago in Botswana

The study of mitochondrial DNA has enabled scientists to trace a family tree that connects all of humanity to a single female ancestor who lived 200,000 years ago in present-day Botswana.

by Mariano To ar
AS.com, April 2, 2025

If someone were to stand on a pulpit and say that all humans come from a first woman, Eve, and that this is an indisputable biblical truth, we would probably pay little or very little attention. But if a team of researchers were to publish in the prestigious scientific journal Nature that mitochondrial DNA proves that all of today’s humanity comes from a single woman, we would certainly not be so quick to dismiss it.

The findings are not even current. That famous article, “Mitochondrial DNA and human evolution” was published in 1987 and was the first study to uncover the family tree of human evolution. Moreover, it came to that puzzling conclusion: all human beings come from a single woman, who was quickly christened “Mitochondrial Eve”.

Inside every cell of the body there is an organelle called mitochondria that has a DNA distinct from that of the cell itself. It has 37 genes of its own and is descended solely from the mother’s mitochondrial DNA. Scientists sequenced that DNA in individuals from all over the world, analyzed their mutations, and came to the universally accepted conclusion that the original mitochondrial DNA came from a single individual, a woman. The study of the genetic mutations that this mitochondrial DNA has undergone has also served to understand human migrations throughout history.

Where did Mitochondrial Eve live?

Many studies have tried to place that first woman in time and on the map. And from what is known so far, she lived in southern Africa, in what is now Botswana, some 200,000 years ago. The problem is that the earliest evidence of Homo sapiens goes back 300,000 years, so before that woman there were many other women. How do we understand this?

The only scientific explanation is that all women with different mitochondrial DNA had their gene transmission interrupted because they only generated males or had no offspring at some point in history. It seems a little difficult to understand, but the theory of genetic drift explains that in small populations of any species with different versions of a DNA sequence, the less frequent versions tend to disappear and the majority one ends up becoming fixed in 100% of the population after a series of generations. This is something that occurs randomly, without taking into account natural selection, mutations or any other external factor, which also have an influence in deciding the dominant sequence.

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https://en.as.com/latest_news/scientists-discover-that-all-humans-come-from-the-same-mother-who-lived-200000-years-ago-in-botswana-n/

of their "white European blood" to their fellow klansmen. To their immense embarrassment, many of them discovered their sub-Saharan African ancestry.

Hilarious.

23andMe is potentially selling more than just genetic data – the personal survey info it collected is just as much a privacy problem

by Kayte Spector-Bagdady
The Conversations, April 2, 2025

Excerpt…

What kind of data does 23andMe collect?

While the saying goes “If you’re not paying, you’re the product,” 23andMe managed to convince its consumers to both pay for AND be the product. It did this by selling genetic testing kits to consumers as well as collecting a massive amount of their valuable data.

And 23andMe collected more than just genetic data generated from consumers’ spit. Eighty-five percent of customers consented to 23andMe research, allowing their individual-level data to be used for studies. The company then collected information from survey questions about their personal health and beyond, such as drinking habits and risk tolerance.

This means that not only does 23andMe possess the genetic data of 15 million people, but it also possesses almost a billion additional data points associated with this genetic information. This makes the 23andMe dataset potentially very private – and very valuable.

At first, drug companies seemed to agree. For example, in 2018, 23andMe granted pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline an exclusive license to use consented customer data to develop new drugs. GlaxoSmithKline also made a $300 million equity investment in 23andMe. When 23andMe went public in 2021, its $6 billion valuation reflected the promise of this business model.

But for over a decade, scholars, including me, have been warning that allowing 23andMe to collect and use personal data was not one that customers fully understood, or were actually comfortable with.

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https://theconversation.com/23andme-is-potentially-selling-more-than-just-genetic-data-the-personal-survey-info-it-collected-is-just-as-much-a-privacy-problem-253220

The Evolution of the Human Face: Why It Became Smaller and More Delicate

Muhammad Tuhin
Science News Daily, March 27, 2025

The human face is strikingly distinct from that of our closest evolutionary relatives, such as Neanderthals and other ancient hominins. It is significantly smaller, more refined, and less robust compared to our fossil ancestors. While it is well known that our facial structure has evolved over thousands of years, the reasons behind this transformation have remained largely elusive.

A groundbreaking study led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology has shed light on this mystery, revealing that the human face became smaller due to a fundamental shift in growth patterns. Unlike Neanderthals and chimpanzees, whose faces continue to grow for a prolonged period, human facial growth halts much earlier—around adolescence. This shift in development has played a crucial role in shaping the unique facial characteristics of modern humans.

The Role of Development in Facial Evolution

“Our findings reveal that a change in development—particularly during late growth stages—led to smaller faces,” explains Alexandra Schuh, the study’s first author. “Compared to Neanderthals and chimpanzees who continue growing longer, human facial growth stops earlier, around adolescence, resulting in a smaller adult face.”

This difference in developmental timing, known as heterochrony, is one of the primary factors that differentiate Homo sapiens from our fossil cousins. By stopping facial growth earlier, humans developed a more gracile (delicate and refined) face, which contrasts sharply with the robust and protruding faces of Neanderthals.

Source: https://www.sciencenewstoday.org/the-evolution-of-the-human-face-why-it-became-smaller-and-more-delicate

Several cartoons

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=1206619
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Link to tweet

Evolution and genetics are always messy (that's a good thing). My fair skinned blue eyed daughter is only about 40% European. Her sister who otherwise looks a lot like her is several shades darker and has brown eyes.

Each one perfect in their own way.