Articles
"Sooner or Later Your Cousin’s DNA Is Going to Solve a Murder"
by Heather Murphy (New York Times) // URL: https://nyti.ms/2DMMgDG
There is no doubt that DNA is the current big frontier in genealogical research. Advertisements for services such as 23andme and AncestryDNA dot televisions and digital devices across the nation, extolling the capabilities of their DNA sequencing in determining your ethnic and genetic makeup. It has served many genealogists and family historians well in recent years, allowing them to break through brickwalls by narrowing down their focus of research to specific countries of origin. What many family historians do not realize is that they agree to waive their rights to their own genetic markers, allowing these companies to use their customers DNA to whatever ends they desire. This has recently become widely publicized as more and more police and other law enforcement agencies turn to these genealogy services to provide DNA matches for case files, such as the recent arrest of the alleged Golden State Killer. With the privacy laws in effect for other aspects of genealogical enquiry, it is unknown if this practice will continue.
Citation:Murphy, H. (2019, April 25). Sooner or Later Your Cousin’s DNA Is Going to Solve a Murder. Retrieved from https://nyti.ms/2DMMgDG
"History and Genealogy: a Study of the Relationship between Genealogical Research and Interest in History"
by Jamie A. Patrick-Burns (Journal for the Society of North Carolina Archivists) // URL: https://bit.ly/2Vlto9G
In “History and Genealogy”, Jamie Patrick-Burns explores the connection between genealogical research and general interest in history to better frame the narrative between the two. It should not come as a great shock that those interested in genealogy tend to have an overlapping interest in history as well. After all, “genealogy/genealogist” and “family history/family historian” are often used interchangeably (although this usage proves contentious for some). Both require the ability to critically evaluate primary and secondary sources against one another to paint an accurate (or as accurate as possible) portrayal of historical timelines. This study has some limitations, only comparing the response rates between self-described genealogists and students of the University of North Carolina’s (UNC) Information and Library Science program rather than its history program.