Who We Are and How We Got Here: Ancient DNA and the New Science of the Human PastA groundbreaking book about how ancient DNA has profoundly changed our understanding of human history. Geneticists like David Reich have made astounding advances in the field of genomics, which is proving to be as important as archeology, linguistics, and written records as a means to understand our ancestry. In Who We Are and How We Got Here, Reich allows readers to discover how the human genome provides not only all the information a human embryo needs to develop but also the hidden story of our species. Reich delves into how the genomic revolution is transforming our understanding of modern humans and how DNA studies reveal deep inequalities among different populations, between the sexes, and among individuals. Provocatively, Reich’s book suggests that there might very well be biological differences among human populations but that these differences are unlikely to conform to common stereotypes. Drawing upon revolutionary findings and unparalleled scientific studies, Who We Are and How We Got Here is a captivating glimpse into humankind—where we came from and what that says about our lives today. |
Contents
The Deep History of Our Species | |
How the Genome Explains Who We | |
Encounters with Neanderthals | |
Ancient DNA Opens the Floodgates | |
How We Got to Where We Are Today | |
The Making of Modern Europe | |
The Collision That Formed India | |
In Search of Native American Ancestors | |
The Genomic Origins of East Asians | |
Rejoining Africa to the Human Story | |
The Genomics of Inequality | |
The Genomics of Race and Identity | |
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Common terms and phrases
Admixture African Americans analyzed ancestral population ancient DNA ancient DNA data ancient DNA revolution Ancient North Eurasians archaeological archaeologists archaic humans Asia Basal Eurasians bones Cavalli-Sforza Cave chromosome colleagues contributed Corded Ware culture Denisovans descendants diversity East Asians eastern Eurasians Europe expansion farmers fifty thousand five thousand FOXP2 frequency genes genetic data Genetic Evidence genetic variation geneticists genome genome revolution Genome Sequence genome-wide groups Guineans Human Genetics human populations hunter-gatherers India individuals Indo-European languages interbreeding islands Journal of Human laboratory Lazaridis lineages males migration mitochondrial DNA mixed modern humans mutations National Academy Native American Native American populations natural selection Neanderthal ancestry Neanderthals Neanderthals and modern non-Africans northern occurred origin Pääbo past patterns percent population bottleneck population history possible present-day humans Reconstructing region Reich samples separated shared showed skeletons Skoglund South southern spread steppe thousand years ago traits Upper Paleolithic West Eurasians whole-genome Y chromosome Yamnaya