Olivia Doyle
Mr. Ippolito
AP Biology
14 December 2017
Page, Thomas. “DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians.” CNN, Cable
News Network, 23 June 2017,
This week, I read a CNN article that talked about a study done on ancient Egyptians revealing new details on their genetic history. The study was conducted by Researchers from the University of Tuebingen and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Jena, and is seen as the “first reliable data set obtained from ancient Egyptians”. The study concluded that ancient Egyptians closest genetic relatives were of Neolithic and Bronze Age populations from the Near East. This has revolutionized the field of egyptology, as Professor Johannes Krause describes: “people expected through time, Egypt would become more European, but we see the exact opposite”. The article describes how contamination has been a problem in examining DNA from bones, to the extent that “When you touch a bone, you probably leave more DNA on the bone than is inside [it]” (Krause). Only in the past few years have scientists had the technology to make the distinction between ancient DNA and that of modern organisms. Researchers analyzed samples that were obtained from Middle Egypt, and found that the “sample set showed a strong connection with a cluster of ancient non-African populations based east of the Mediterranean Sea.” They then compared these origins with those of modern day Egyptians and found that modern Egyptians “inherited 8% more ancestry from African ancestors”. This is thought to be due to increased long-distance commerce along the Nile as well as the era of the trans-Saharan slave trade.
The findings from this study are thought to be breakthroughs for the study of egyptology and human genomes as a whole. Professor Krause says that he “expects there will be a ton of ancient Egyptian mummy genomes (mapped) in the next couple of years”. These findings are essential to our understanding of the ancestry of ancient Egyptians, who are the most investigated peoples of antiquity. Aside from this breakthrough, though, the study also unlocked new tools for scientists working in the field, such as new techniques for DNA analysis that preserves the bones. With this new technology, we can investigate the genetic origins of hundreds of different cultures and thus gain a new understanding of where we came from.
Overall, I think the author, Thomas Page, did a good job of outlining the results of the study and how it was done. He did a good job of presenting the preconceived facts on the genetic history of ancient Egyptians, and how this new discovery has changed those ideas and served as a breakthrough to the study of egyptology. He included quotes from researchers, which validated his argument and made it more interesting to readers. However, although his article was very informative, there were some areas for improvement. I think he should have gone into more depth on the findings from the study, and why they were so revolutionary. He could have included more information on what researchers previously thought about ancient Egyptians’ genetic history. Overall, though, I found the article to be very informative, and I am interested to see what other discoveries researchers make on ancient Egyptian’s genomes.
Citations:
ReplyDeletePage, Thomas. “DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians.” CNN, Cable
News Network, 23 June 2017,
www.cnn.com/2017/06/22/health/ancient-egypt-mummy-dna-genome-heritage/index.html.
Doyle, Olivia. “‘DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians.’” Review of CNN. CNN.com,
www.cnn.com/2017/06/22/health/ancient-egypt-mummy-dna-genome-heritage/index.html.
Comment:
Olivia Doyle wrote an exceptional review on “DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians” by Thomas Page. In her review, Doyle was successful in multiple aspects of her writing and comprehension of the article she was reviewing. One notable aspect that was well done can be found in both her summary of the article and her connection to society. In both these paragraphs, Doyle included many quotations. However, she made sure they did not overcrowd her writing by taking small parts of the quotes she wished to use and incorporating them with her sentences. This way, she provided evidence from the text to aid her reader’s in understanding the topic of the article without flooding her review with full, paragraph-long quotes. Another part of her review that was expertly done is located in Doyle’s connection to society. Here, she connects the study of the genes of ancient egyptians to the entire genepool of the world’s population. By using inclusive words like “we,” Doyle is able to impact her readers and grab their attention to the subject at hand. She proves that all humans are involved with this study as the research of egyptian genes will help explain were our origins lay. Lastly, Doyle effectively critiqued the article’s lack of background information. As there is information about the studies on the ancient egyptian genes now, there is no information given about past research and why scientists were motivated to study these genes. Along with critique, Doyle also provides a solution to the issue, such as adding “more information on what researchers previously thought” (Doyle, 1) of the egyptians genetics, giving the reader something to compare this study to. If the author followed this critique, the article would provide more depth on the subject.
Although Doyle’s review was well done, there were a few areas where improvement could occur. For example, in her summary, Doyle left a few terms undefined, such as “egyptology” and “Middle Egypt.” Some readers may not be familiar with these terms and as a result become increasingly confused as they read. To fix this issue, Doyle could quickly research the terms and include a few sentences explaining the time period of “Middle Egypt” and what the study of “egyptology” is. Another area that would be improved can be found in the summary, where she mentioned technology being used to differentiate ancient DNA from modern DNA but does not elaborate on what the technology is. To give her review more detail, Doyle could do research about this technology and explain how it works.
From this review, I learned that the genetic origin of ancient civilizations is not always what it seems to be. I grasped this understanding from the data presented in Doyle’s review quoted from the article along with her explanation of its significance in her connection paragraph. As we are learning about genetics in class, it was interesting to learn about genetic studies in the present. My perception of careers involving genetics has changed in that I no longer see it as being strictly scientific. Genetic research is history in science as well as in history.
Amanda Shkreli
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
Current Event #12
January 1st, 2018
Page, Thomas. “DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians.” CNN, Cable
News Network, 23 June 2017,
www.cnn.com/2017/06/22/health/ancient-egypt-mummy-dna-genome-heritage/index.html.
Olivia Doyle’s review of “DNA Discovery Unlocks Secrets of Ancient Egyptians,” summarizes new findings that reveal the ancient Egyptians genetic history. In this review, Doyle includes three aspects that make her review well written. Firstly, Doyle describes what researchers concluded from the studies. She explains that the study was conducted by Researchers from the University of Tuebingen and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Jena. In this study scientists discovered the first reliable data set obtained from the ancient Egyptians. It was found that the closest relatives of the ancient Egyptians were of the Neolithic and Bronze Age populations from the near East. By including this information, Doyle helps the reader understand what was deduced from the study. Secondly, Doyle excellently explains why these findings are relevant today. In doing this, she includes a quote from Professor Johannes Krause, “people expected through time, Egypt would become more European, but we see the exact opposite.” By including this quote, Doyle not only secures her argument, but helps the reader understand that these findings have revolutionized the egyptology. Lastly, Doyle reiterates how remarkable these findings are, especially since contamination has been an issue when conducting experiments in this field. She explains how only in the past few years scientists have been able to use technology to make the distinction between ancient DNA and that of modern organisms.
Though Doyle’s review is well written, there are certain areas where there is room for improvement. For example, in the first paragraph, there is a incohesion regarding the information in the study. When first introducing the study, Doyle fails to explain what happened in the study until the end of the summarization paragraph. In order to fix this incohesion, Doyle could easily move the information about the study to the beginning, before telling the conclusion. Lastly, Doyle could improve her current event by explaining why studying Egyptology is important. This would help the reader understand why the information is relevant to today’s society.
After reading this review, I’ve learned that a new study has concluded that ancient Egyptians closest genetic relatives were of Neolithic and Bronze Age populations from the Near East. I’ve also learned that this study is important, especially because most people have believed that Egyptians were more European. I chose to read this article because I am very interested in the history of ancient Egypt. These findings have helped me realize that it is wrong to assume the genetic background of a group without solid evidence supporting the claim.