I founded one DNA project (Chandler) and am a co-administrator of two others, all three with <FamilyTreeDNA.com> (www.ftdna.com). While all of the factors mentioned so far have varying degress of weight, eight that to us are among the most important are (1) speed of getting results; (2) ease of use of the reports (i.e., the formating of the website); (3) support; (4) the size of the providers data base; (5) the PRIMARY PURPOSE of the provider (e.g., general vs. special interest); and (6) will the provider's results integrate easily with other data bases; (7) will the provider share/integrate with other data bases and if so is there a fee (cross-check the providers so that you can compare/contrast); and (8) does the provider allow easy transfer of results to YSearch.com, a free service of FTDNA that has linkages to some but not all of the other providers. The National Geo project -- which uses FTDNA as its provider -- is NOT set upn for teh purpose of doing "genealogical DBA" except in an ethnic sense. For this purpose, it only uses the 12-marker test, which is usually inadequate for anything except the most basic genealogical purposes. According to our Chandler Project expert -- a genuine DNA expert -- 12-markers can actually match randomly sufficiently often that one should not place much reliance on a 12-marker test. Moreover, one should investigate whether the MARKERS CHOSEN by a particular website are best suited for "genealogical DNA" or for other purposes, such as ethnic and cultural research. I.e., what kind of information is the owner/manager of the DNA provider trying to gather. If special ethnic identifies are being investigated -- e.g., African American, Native American and Jewish lines -- be especially careful in evaluating what is offered. Contact the provider with specific questions to (1) find out if you get a reply and (2) what the quality of the reply is. Then, ask another, perhaps a more general provider, to find out what it says. These are not all of the caveats, but some good ones. jc --- Sunshine49 <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Do a Google- I had mine done at Oxford Ancestors, on > recommendation > of a friend who had hers done there, too. Some > places are wildly > expensive, some take months for the results. But the > National > Geographic genome project does basically the same > thing, for much > less. But other than telling you what your DNA > results are, the rest > you have to interpret for yourself- there are many > online groups and > websites to help you do this. There are groups that > specialize in > native Am. DNA, as I said. Or African, they have a > databank of DNA > from various tribes in Africa. Jewish lines incl. > the Cohen, which > evidently is a unique line. The male Y chromosome > testing is > different, but Oxford will do that, too. I have read > all kinds of > interesting tales about DNA discoveries. A French > college student was > told she had native American ancestry. No, what she > had was a shared > Hunnish ancestry. I believe it was the National Geo, > who tested a > small group of people from various backgrounds. To > everyone's > surprise, a woman of Greek ancestry shared DNA with > a full-blooded > Cree Indian. It seems that long ago their common > ancestor had lived > in central Asia, where one branch went south, and > one went east and > eventually to North America. I found that I had a > long ago ancestor > who was probably one of the North African cavalry > mercenaries (or the > wife/ slave/ camp follower of one) the Romans had > stationed along the > German frontier. And earlier than that, I share > ancestry with the > modern Kurds, who in ancient times were the Mittani. > > Nancy > > ------- > Believe those who seek the truth; > Doubt those who find it. > > -Andre Gide > > > > > ------- > I was never lost, but I was bewildered once for > three days. > > --Daniel Boone > > > > On Jan 24, 2007, at 11:06 AM, Jessica Welton wrote: > > > On the subject of DNA testing, who has tried it > and what do you > > look for in companies that do it? > > Some of my Native American friends expressed an > interest, and I > > have no idea what to tell them. > > > > thanks, > > > > Jessica > > On Jan 24, 2007, at 10:43 AM, Sunshine49 wrote: > > > >> Nothing to do with Virginia history, but a very > interesting > >> article about humanity's mixed ancestry. I had my > maternal DNA > >> done last year, the results were very > interesting. The National > >> Geographic genome project will do it for just > $99, and there are > >> places that specialize in African, Jewish, native > American and > >> other ancestries, but they cost a bit (or a lot) > more. > >> > >> Nancy > >> > >> ------- > >> I was never lost, but I was bewildered once for > three days. > >> > >> --Daniel Boone > >> > >> > >> > >>> ** Yorkshire clan linked to Africa ** > >>> People of African origin have lived in Britain > for centuries, > >>> according to genetic evidence. > >>> < > http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/6293333.stm > > > >>> > >>> > >>> ** BBC Daily E-mail ** > >>> Choose the news and sport headlines you want - > when you want > >>> them, all > >>> in one daily e-mail > >>> < http://www.bbc.co.uk/email > > >>> > >>> > >>> ** Disclaimer ** > >>> The BBC is not responsible for the content of > this e-mail, and > >>> anything written in this e-mail does not > necessarily reflect the > >>> BBC's views or opinions. 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