BBC TV: Controversial claim about Chinese evolution.

silktown
May 17, 2009, 04:30 PM posted in General Discussion

"Controversial claim about Chinese evolution: that the Chinese do not share the same African ancestry as other peoples".

Quote from publicity for "The Incredible Human Journey", 17/05/2009 2130 UK BBC2 TV, presented by Dr Alice Roberts of University of Bristol’s Department of Anatomy. It will be available later on the BBC IPlayer, for those that can access it.

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What's the point of this? I'd rather we all forgot about this stuff and got on with living together, but millions find it central to their identity, so we have to be interested.

The "controversial claim" is probably only a few minutes of an hour long programme, I hope the theory isn't too "dumbed-down".

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Tal
May 17, 2009, 05:08 PM

I haven't seen the program, sounds most interesting. I'll mark it down as one to watch.

As for the 'controversial claim', well clearly they'll need to have some very good evidence to make it stand up, and I would guess that will be very difficult given the evidence we already have from DNA.

As for 'what's the point' etc, well personally I believe (to quote the poet) that the proper study of man, is man. I cannot understand how anyone cannot be amazed and filled with wonder by the scientific investigation of our origins and by all that such knowledge can tell us about ourselves and our history, but then I can be a bit odd in many ways perhaps.

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silktown
May 17, 2009, 05:49 PM

@raygo

My concern is that some people will use such research for racist purposes.

What happens when one group of people can say "we developed separately from the rest of humanity, we truly are exceptional". Even worse, what if there's proof that one race really is cleverer than the others? Maybe it's best if some things are unknown.

But you're absolutely right, it's most interesting and I'll be watching BBC2, this evening!

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silktown
May 17, 2009, 10:38 PM

I've just watched the broadcast. Very briefly, according to this TV programme

- there is a theory that the Chinese are descended from Homo Erectus ("Peking Man", fossil remains in cave system near Beijing), a branch of humans that separated hundreds of thousands of years ago, and died out elsewhere. Modern Chinese share facial features with Homo Erectus. This was taught in Chinese schools (???).

- however, Professor Jin Li has taken over 10,000 DNA samples from people of various groups all over China. He has found genetic markers known to originate in the much more recent exodus from Africa in ALL the samples. This Chinese professor says DNA evidence proves that the Chinese are from the same group as all other modern humans.

Wikipedia article on Jin Li.

Sorry if this is old hat. I'm pretty ignorant about antrhopology.

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pchenery
May 17, 2009, 10:57 PM

Agree with dogupatree .

There is already plenty of evidence to suggest that we all evolved from the same origin.

Mitochondrial DNA samples taken from all over the world allow us to trace back modern day populations to the same point.

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antony73
May 17, 2009, 11:21 PM

I saw the program but was a little distracted by other things going on so missed much of the detail.

@dogupatree

For different reasons I agree in part with you, that we all came from the same origin/stock.

A race is simply one of the partially isolated gene pools into which the human species came to be divided during and following its early geographical spread.

We can measure and study the results of [the genetic] divergence in what remains today of the old geographical races. Roughly one race has developed on each of the five major continental areas of the earth. As we would expect, [genetic] divergence appears to be correlated with the degree of isolation. Heredity and Human Life. H. L. Carson

 

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silktown
May 17, 2009, 11:36 PM

@pchenery, @antony73

thanks, but just to be clear, the second bullet point (about Jin Li's genetic proof that we're all from the same African root) isn't MY view, it comes from the BBC broadcast! I was rather relieved to hear it, though.

I'm not a geneticist, I'm afraid.

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miantiao
May 18, 2009, 12:00 AM

some classic retorts from the girlfriend of your's truly in response to my goading.

宝贝儿,为什么你们中国人的头发都是黑色的?你们长得都差不多!

狗屁!还是你们外国人的样子都看起来差不多嘛!干嘛有那么多毛,像猴子一样, 哼!

为什么你们外国人长得那么胖?

为什么你门外国人的眼睛那么大?

为什么你们外国人的鼻子长得那么长?

哼,我看,你们外国人长得太奇怪,你们到底是人吗?

哼,再说,还是我们中国人最好看!你们长得那么丑干嘛!

哼,那么笨的你们,你不觉得不好意思吗 还是我们中国人最聪明!

 

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Tal
May 18, 2009, 12:11 AM

真搞笑, sport! Good to see the two of you have a jolly old time together, you're clearly a terrible tease.

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mikeinewshot
May 18, 2009, 07:13 AM

I watched the programme too.  Incidentally I found it rather unstructured and unsatisfactory especially at the beginning - The part in Russia with the animals didn't seem to fit with the Chinese theme ...  [my critical faculties will out :-( ]

Of couse I was most interested in the Chinese origin stuff, and almost disappointed to find that we are all close cousins after all.  I wonder whether this will be taught in Chinese schools.

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antony73
May 18, 2009, 08:29 AM

@dogupatree

No worries!