I love biology, so some of you may be wondering why I don’t post lots of biology facts and principals. Well, even though I have knowledge and interest in this topic, I would hate to spread any sort of misinformation. But, one topic my grade is learning about in social studies class is the journey of humans, where we learn about how our species migrated to almost every corner of the world. But this topic corresponds to genetics (think about it as the study of  heredity). And this has triggered an unquenchable interest in this study, so I’m learning about it at school, and in my free time. Since I feel confident enough to not spread any misinformation, I will tell you lots of interesting facts about how geneticists have tracked where the human species has originated and the places we have gone.

Your DNA is a the code that tells your body how to function. But since DNA is such a large molecule, there is bound to be glitches in the system. Those glitches are known as genetic mutations. And in a males Y chromosome, these glitches can be noticed more easily than any other chromosome. Geneticists can track these mutations and their origins.

There is a group of people in the Kalahari desert, Namibia, known as the San bushmen (bushmen is slang for hunter gatherer). These people have genetic mutations that people all over the world have, but the people all over the world don’t have there’s. That is how geneticists know that the San are the oldest tribe on earth (without the contradiction of any other new information). A long time ago, global temperatures got colder and colder until there was a large ice age. Since water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, ice encompassed large sections of the earth, sucking up all the water. This was a recipe for lower sea levels. This fluctuation in the sea caused a massive drought in Africa, (were the San live) causing deserts to expand. This inhospitable environment caused an exodus of some of the San’s ancestors to venture out and populate the world. Incredible. Genetic mutations, archeological evidence, and cultural evidence have led scientist to track the movements of long ago peoples all over the world. I could spend hours writing this, but I rather not. I would rather educate people on ways scientists can figure of the movements and places ancient peoples went, and why. (By the way, I never gave dates because new evidence always contradicts dates).

thank you, and goodbye.