The Seven Daughters of Eve: The Science That Reveals Our Genetic Ancestry

Much more than a metaphor, the seven daughters of Eve represent the seven women that Sykes, (genetics, Oxford U.) has identified as the maternal ancestors of 95% of all modern Europeans. He recounts his work with a particular mitochondrial gene, which passes down the maternal line undiluted, in reconstructing the genetic paths that ethnic groups have travelled from these seven original "clan mothers." The first half of his account discusses both the science and his investigations into genetics, …