University of Minnesota Duluth
 
 
MyU | Search | People | Departments | Events | News

 A    B    C    D    E    F    G    H    I    J    K    L    M    N    O    P    Q    R    S    T    U    V    W    X    Y    Z
~ Google advanced 
 
~ Google scholar  
 
~ Google books 
 
~ Google images  
 
~ Google Translate 
 
~ Google URL Shortener 
 
~ Blenco Search 
 
Wikipedia 
 
Wiktionary 
 
The World Fact Book  -- CIA 
 
UMD Library Main Catalog 


Anthropology in the News

Canvas
TR HomePage
TR Courses

Monday, 18 March 2024, 23:02 (11:02 PM) CDT, day 078 of 2024

Prehistoric Cultures

Fall 2012 Calendar -- DAY  [archive]

Fall 2012 Calendar  -- EVENING [archive]

Dates and Times to Remember 

class slides on-line 

Tuesday, 19 March 2024, 04:02 (04:02 AM) GMT, day 079 of 2024
. . . in History 
  . . . in Headlines
 

      Babel Fish Translation 
~ translate this page
 

OWL logo, Online Writing Lab, Purdue University.

top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

DNA

In the News

 DNA molecular structure.
Wikipedia

see also genetics

DNA -- Wikipedia


In the News . . .

top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

DNA, especially "mitochondrial DNA" is important in Prehistoric Cultures.
Have a look at the following WebSites:

top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

 
latimes.com

<http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-politics19-2008sep19,0,514047.story>

 

From the Los Angeles Times

Are you a born conservative (or liberal)?

A new study suggests that your political attitudes are wired in from the beginning.

By Denise Gellene
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 19, 2008

Die-hard liberals and conservatives aren't made; they're born. It's literally in their DNA.

That's the implication of a study by a group of researchers who wanted to see if there was a biological basis for people's political attitudes.

They found to their surprise that opinions on such contentious subjects as gun control, pacifism and capital punishment are strongly associated with physiological traits that are probably present at birth.

The key is the differing levels of fear that people naturally feel.

"What is revolutionary about this paper is that it shows the path from genes to physiology to behavior," said James H. Fowler, a political science professor at UC San Diego who was not involved in the research.

The researchers, whose findings were published today in the journal Science, looked at 46 people who fell into two camps -- liberals who supported foreign aid, immigration, pacifism and gun control; and conservatives who advocated defense spending, capital punishment, patriotism and the Iraq war.

In an initial experiment, subjects were shown a series of images that included a bloody face, maggots in a wound and a spider on a frightened face. A device measured the electrical conductance of their skin, a physiological reaction that indicates fear.

In a second experiment, researchers measured eye blinks -- another indicator of fear -- as subjects responded to sudden blasts of noise.

People with strongly conservative views were three times more fearful than staunch liberals after the effects of gender, age, income and education were factored out.

Kevin B. Smith, a political science professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a study author, said conservatives were more vigilant to environmental threats, and he speculated that this innate tendency led them to support policies that protect the social order.

Fowler said the study added to the growing research suggesting that over millions of years, humans have developed two cognitive styles -- conservative and liberal. Cautious conservatives prevented societies from taking undue risks, while more flexible liberals fostered cooperation.

"For the species to survive, you need both," he said.

But Jon Krosnick, a political science professor at Stanford University, said it was impossible to draw any conclusions from a study with so few people, all from a small Midwestern town. What's more, he said, it's just too squishy interpreting people's reactions.

"I don't believe any of this," he said. "The people who are most scared are less in favor of gun control. Why wouldn't they be more in favor? Because they need guns to fight the bad guys? You can make up a story in either direction."

The study is the latest to challenge the long-standing dogma that upbringing and environmental factors determine political attitudes. Recent studies have found that identical twins -- who share the same genetic inheritance -- think alike on political issues more often than other siblings.

Last year, researchers reported that the brains of conservatives and liberals process information differently.

None of this, however, suggests that people are slaves to their biology, researchers agree.

The latest study "does not mean that people can't sit down and think about the issues and come to some logical compromise," Smith said. "What it does mean is that it is going to be hard work."

denise.gellene@latimes.com
top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

 
Structure of a generalized eukaroytic cell, illustrating the cell's three-dimensinal nature. . . .

"Structure of a generalized eukaroytic cell,
illustrating the cell's three-dimensinal nature. . . ."
Understanding Humans: Introduction to Physical Anthropology and Archeology 10th Ed., p.39
top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

 
Part of a DNA molecule. The illustration shows the two DNA strands with the sugar and phosphate backbone and the bases extending toward the center.
"Part of a DNA molecule.
The illustration shows the two DNA strands
with the sugar and phosphate backbone
and the bases extending toward the center."
Understanding Humans: Introduction to Physical Anthropology and Archeology 10th Ed., p. 40
top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

 
DNA double helix.

DNA double helix.
Understanding Humans: Introduction to Physical Anthropology and Archeology 10th Ed., p. 41
top of page /\ A-Z index

 Canvas

 
A model of a human chromosome, illustrating the relationshiopof chromosomes to DNA.

"A model of a human chromosome, illustrating the relationshiopof chromosomes to DNA."
Understanding Humans: Introduction to Physical Anthropology and Archeology 10th Ed., p. 45

 


© 1998 - 2023 Timothy G. Roufs — All rights reserved   Envelope: E-mail
Page URL: http:// www.d.umn.edu /cla/faculty/troufs/anth1602/pcdna.html
Site Information / Disclaimers ~ Main A-Z Index


View Stats 

© 2024 University of Minnesota Duluth
The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.
Last modified on 04/07/21 12:08 AM
University of Minnesota Campuses
Crookston | Duluth | Morris
Rochester | Twin Cities