DNA USA: A Genetic Portrait of America - Bryan Sykes

 

This is another book in my goal of reading all of the books by this author, who died in 2020.

I've read his other books: Saxons, Vikings and Celts, Adam's Curse, and The Seven Daughters of Eve.

While they are now somewhat out of date, it was fascinating to see the evolution of our understanding of using DNA to trace biogeographical ancestry, human migration patterns and the differences between the genders.  

In this one, Sykes travelled across the U.S. to research the origins of the U.S. population.  While we're familiar with Christopher Columbus and the Pilgrims, he takes a deeper dive that explores the Native Americans that were here first and the slaves that were brought here against their will. 

He explains the origins of chromosome painting from the HapMap scientists that had worked on the Human Genome project.  He takes us through gathering samples (sadly, they appear to no longer be available after his death and the shuttering of his company, Oxford Ancestors) and identifying where the testers ancestors had come from. 

An interesting read that makes me sad he is no longer with us.

Quote:

"...whether from an endo- or exogamous ancestry, there will inevitably come a point where one person is the ancestor of everyone alive. "

Published: 2012  Read: November 2023  Genre: Science

Do You Remember Being Born? - Sean Michaels

This book addresses a rising technology, artificial intelligence.  The story follows an older woman poet who is invited to collaborate with an AI driven computer to write a poem that will be promoted nationwide.  She is hesitant but they offer money she needs to help her adult son buy a home in a bid to heal their relationship.  Throughout the story, she interacts with the computer, forming an unsettling partnership to create the poem.  

The author explains at the end of the story that he utilized AI to write and edit the book in the same way as the poet collaborated with AI.  The highlighted text that appears on most pages, mostly a word or phrase, was generated using AI.    

It did not feel like a cohesive, flowing narrative but rather an experiment of man and machine. 

Quotes:

"It takes a few decades to know what we really like; the two decades after that are for learning how often those preferences are obstacles to our happiness."

"...a diary's function is not to show you who you are but who it is you have ceased to be."

Published: 2023  Read: November 2023  Genre: Fiction

Signal Fires - Dani Shapiro

 I'd previously read Dani Shapiro's story of her adoption and chose this at the airport to read during the ride home.  I finished it in the 3 hour flight and layover.  It's the story of a family unwittingly caught in a tragedy and its affects on their lives and the lives of those in their neighborhood.  She uses the popular (and annoying, IMHO) device of skipping from character to character and from timeframe to timeframe. That aside, once the stories merge we see the long range impact of a moment's mistake.  A sad book and a commentary on how intertwined our lives can be with those on the fringe of our days.

Published:          Read: November 2023   Genre: Fiction