Humata
2010-08-31, 05:25
This thread is intended as an advisory for genetic enthusiasts, as this site keeps cropping up on message boards despite a lack of support from credible forums or users.
The Genetic Atlas (http://www.thegeneticatlas.com/) has been used as a source by amateur genetic genealogists in the past few years.
The authors made the 'novel' decision of combining pseudo-anthropology terms with specific Y-DNA haplogroups and subclades. Presumably, this approach is favoured by anthropology fans who wish to pin specific phenotypes onto specific lineages.
One tremendous shortcoming with their approach is; The Genetic Atlas has invented its' own pseudo-anthropology terms. None of the established anthropologists used terms akin to "Meditid". Phrases like "Meditid" are typically found in lower-end amateur anthropology forums, blogs and Youtube pages (i.e. the cesspool of human knowledge).
Furthermore, The Genetic Atlas has erroneously showcased data for particular ethnic groups that does not exist.
They claim a paper was released by Yonan et al. (http://www.thegeneticatlas.com/study_yonan2009.htm) which investigated Y-DNA diversity in Assyrian communities. Several users, such as myself and the forum's biggest contributor to Assyrian genetics (Humanist) have searched in vain for it.
Instead of showing links to the article from PubMed or Springerlink, a Google search for "Yonan et al. Assyria" reveals common online chatter about this paper.
This paper does not exist and The Genetic Atlas has fabricated genetic information on Assyrians, which is dishonourable to say the least.
In addition to the Assyrian case, The Genetic Atlas have also cited papers which have absolutely nothing to do with Y-DNA.
They cite a study by Asadova et al. (http://dienekes.50webs.com/blog/archives/000433.html) from 2003 on Azeri ethnic groups. To quote part of the abstract;
In these populations gene frequency distributions for the immunological (AB0, MN, Rhesus-D, -C, -E, P, Lewis, and Kell-Chellano) and biochemical (HP, GC, C′3, TF, 6PGD, GLO1, ESD, ACP1, and PGM1) gene markers were determined
Immunological and biochemical markers are not typically found on the Y-Chromosome and there is no mention of Y-DNA STR's or SNP's. Clearly, this study was used to statistically "beef up" their citation list, giving their page a false impression of scientific authenticity.
Lastly, some members of another forum decided to investigate the site's management and discovered a connection with the largest nationalist forum on the Internet.
Considering the above, The Genetic Atlas is a horrendously inaccurate site which applies its' own self-invented anthropology terms and even fabricates its' own data.
Regardless of the intended purpose, any genetic enthusiast who wishes to learn more about Y-DNA diversity or use it as a source should stay well away.
The Genetic Atlas (http://www.thegeneticatlas.com/) has been used as a source by amateur genetic genealogists in the past few years.
The authors made the 'novel' decision of combining pseudo-anthropology terms with specific Y-DNA haplogroups and subclades. Presumably, this approach is favoured by anthropology fans who wish to pin specific phenotypes onto specific lineages.
One tremendous shortcoming with their approach is; The Genetic Atlas has invented its' own pseudo-anthropology terms. None of the established anthropologists used terms akin to "Meditid". Phrases like "Meditid" are typically found in lower-end amateur anthropology forums, blogs and Youtube pages (i.e. the cesspool of human knowledge).
Furthermore, The Genetic Atlas has erroneously showcased data for particular ethnic groups that does not exist.
They claim a paper was released by Yonan et al. (http://www.thegeneticatlas.com/study_yonan2009.htm) which investigated Y-DNA diversity in Assyrian communities. Several users, such as myself and the forum's biggest contributor to Assyrian genetics (Humanist) have searched in vain for it.
Instead of showing links to the article from PubMed or Springerlink, a Google search for "Yonan et al. Assyria" reveals common online chatter about this paper.
This paper does not exist and The Genetic Atlas has fabricated genetic information on Assyrians, which is dishonourable to say the least.
In addition to the Assyrian case, The Genetic Atlas have also cited papers which have absolutely nothing to do with Y-DNA.
They cite a study by Asadova et al. (http://dienekes.50webs.com/blog/archives/000433.html) from 2003 on Azeri ethnic groups. To quote part of the abstract;
In these populations gene frequency distributions for the immunological (AB0, MN, Rhesus-D, -C, -E, P, Lewis, and Kell-Chellano) and biochemical (HP, GC, C′3, TF, 6PGD, GLO1, ESD, ACP1, and PGM1) gene markers were determined
Immunological and biochemical markers are not typically found on the Y-Chromosome and there is no mention of Y-DNA STR's or SNP's. Clearly, this study was used to statistically "beef up" their citation list, giving their page a false impression of scientific authenticity.
Lastly, some members of another forum decided to investigate the site's management and discovered a connection with the largest nationalist forum on the Internet.
Considering the above, The Genetic Atlas is a horrendously inaccurate site which applies its' own self-invented anthropology terms and even fabricates its' own data.
Regardless of the intended purpose, any genetic enthusiast who wishes to learn more about Y-DNA diversity or use it as a source should stay well away.