Blood will tell (won't it?)

A century of molecular discourse in anthropological systematics

Dados Bibliográficos

ID8312337
AutoresJonathan Marks (0000-0002-2594-7191)
Ano1994
Volume94
Fascículo1
Páginas59-79
Data de publicação1994-05-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoAmerican Journal of Physical Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0002-9483 • E-ISSN: 1096-8644
EditoraWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/ajpa.1330940106
PMID8042706
OpenAlexW1982297480
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas15
Referências citadas110

Being derived from the hereditary material, molecular genetic data are often assumed to be a source of sounder inferences about evolution than data from other kinds of investigations. This, however, tends to be taken in the absence of a clear knowledge of the evolutionary processes at work, the technical shortcomings, and the manner of deriving the specific conclusions. The history of biological anthropology shows that, from the beginning of the 20th century, grossly naive conclusions have been promoted simply on the basis that they are derived from genetics, without having been fully thought‐out. A balanced consideration of the shortcomings as well as the advantages of genetic data are necessary for its proper integration into the field. When molecular and morphological data disagree, both must be reexamined carefully, for genetics has been used irresponsibly as a form of scientific validation, both in American society and in American science. Contemporary data bearing on the molecular relationships of the apes are noteworthy for their diversity in quality, and need to be evaluated in the light of molecular and microevolutionary theory. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc

Biology · Data science · Diversity (politics) · Epistemology · Evolutionary biology · Field (mathematics) · Genetic data · History of science · Molecular genetics · Quality (philosophy) · Sociology · Systematics · Taxonomy (biology) · Zoology · Anthropology · Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques · Computer Science · Demography · Genetics · Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies · Mathematics · Nutrition, Genetics, and Disease · Philosophy