DNA Sequencing Megathread! Neanderthals, Denisovans and other ancient DNA!

[derspiess]

Ooh, my 19th great grandfather was the first recorded speaker of the House of Commons.

[Valmy]

Ooh, my 19th great grandfather was the first recorded speaker of the House of Commons.

I am descended from Charlemagne and so are you!

[derspiess]

Ooh, my 19th great grandfather was the first recorded speaker of the House of Commons.

I am descended from Charlemagne and so are you!

[jimmy olsen]

Our most interesting ancestor was "half-hanged Mary" - a woman accused of witchcraft and hanged ... who survived.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Webster_(alleged_witch)

An account of her witchery: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/evans/N00392.0001.001/1:6?rgn=div1;view=fulltext;q1=Witchcraft

What better proof of witchcraft is that?

[Ed Anger]

Hey! I claim Normandy for the Hawkins line. Pretenders will be flogged.

I'll relinquish all claims in exchange for Calvados.

I will not knuckle under. Surrender your claim immediately.

[derspiess]

Okay I'll settle for a couple Dayton Dragons tickets.

[katmai]

Ooh, my 19th great grandfather was the first recorded speaker of the House of Commons.

I am descended from Charlemagne and so are you!

All I got was Mitt Romney.

[Eddie Teach]

More proof that intelligence in modern society is being selected against by natural selection

Counter point is the impressive fecundity of BB and I right?

Been around the world and found only stupid people are breeding. The cretins cloning and feeding. And I don't even own a tv.

[Malthus]

Our most interesting ancestor was "half-hanged Mary" - a woman accused of witchcraft and hanged ... who survived.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Webster_(alleged_witch)

An account of her witchery: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/evans/N00392.0001.001/1:6?rgn=div1;view=fulltext;q1=Witchcraft

What better proof of witchcraft is that?

True. 

Her neighbors no doubt regretted messing with her.

On a side note, my wife heard of an actual witch in Ukraine (well, someone *claiming* to be a witch). I don't mean someone into Wicca, which is basically New Age pagan revivalism - I mean someone who claimed to be able to work evil using black magic, for money, old-style - and earned a living at it. It wasn't clear whether she was simply a fraud, or dabbled in providing poison to nasty folks, or a bit of both.

She heard of this person because a work acquaintance of hers was jilted badly by her boyfriend, and went to this person to get revenge on him; then boasted of it. My wife found this utterly unacceptable fro several reasons and dropped them as a buddy.   

[Grinning_Colossus]

Why on earth would anyone pay for that in the age of the internet?

[Valmy]

Some people still appreciate the personal touch.

[derspiess]

The level of service you get from local, independent witches just can't be matched by faceless internet witches.

[derspiess]

I found a Huguenot ancestor.  Also found a guy who was the surgeon for the Londonderry Regiment under siege by the Jacobites in 1689.  He died of exhaustion shortly before the siege was lifted.

I guess my anti-Catholicism goes way back

[Valmy]

I also have a Huguenot ancestor who served in that campaign. Though he went on to be a pirate in the Caribbean. Small gene pool eh?

[Barrister]

My understanding is that if you wanted to trace back my dad's line you hit a huge brick wall as soon as you the generation before they came to Canada - we don't know where precisely in Ukraine (well, Russia or Austria in those days) they came from, and even if we did the records would likely have been demolished in a little tiff called WWII.

SOme day when I have a spare $200 I wouldn't mind seeing what a DNA ancestry check would have to say.