30.8% Irish, That's based on a bit of DNA that science associates with some--but not all--of the people who live in Ireland. The company that did this claimed to be naming my "ethnic mix."
Actually I am 100% American, but that's not a category like English or Irish. Apparently.
DNA tells you something about a person's physical characteristics. For example, it might tell you which racial category Americans will put you in, if you don't already know.
Your ethnicity refers, for the most part, to cultural factors, to the social groups you inhabit. You might be a fourth generation Inner Mongolian Catholic in Dublin, which would make you ethnically Irish, but that wouldn't show in your DNA, which might put you in NE Asia.
The company that analyzed my saliva claimed to be able to name my "ethnic mix," but that was false. They named places where parts of my physical mix were common. My "mix" rests on what philosophers call a category mistake. That is, it confounds physical characteristics with social characteristics.
Humans share 50% of their DNA with bananas, say the experts. I'm not sure--does that make my ethnic mix fruit-based?
Actually I am 100% American, but that's not a category like English or Irish. Apparently.
DNA tells you something about a person's physical characteristics. For example, it might tell you which racial category Americans will put you in, if you don't already know.
Your ethnicity refers, for the most part, to cultural factors, to the social groups you inhabit. You might be a fourth generation Inner Mongolian Catholic in Dublin, which would make you ethnically Irish, but that wouldn't show in your DNA, which might put you in NE Asia.
The company that analyzed my saliva claimed to be able to name my "ethnic mix," but that was false. They named places where parts of my physical mix were common. My "mix" rests on what philosophers call a category mistake. That is, it confounds physical characteristics with social characteristics.
Humans share 50% of their DNA with bananas, say the experts. I'm not sure--does that make my ethnic mix fruit-based?
No comments:
Post a Comment