29 THE RESTLESS APESOME
n early 2002, anotist named Bryan Sykes produced a popular book called ters of Eve in oco be able to trace nearly all living Europeans back to afounding population of just seven ers of Eve of title—ime knoo science as to eacailed personal ory. (“Ursula carefully, as if not quitecertain give foro popularize a difficult subject,” sfully. “And te possibility t .” S on more intently:
“Data from any single gene cannot really tell you anytive. If you follooc ake you to a certain place—to an Ursula or tara or if you take any ot of DNA, any gene at all, and traceit back, it akeyou someplace else altogether.”
It tle, I gat of London and finding teventually it ends at Jos, and concluding from t anyone in London musttland. t equally to omap tes. “No single gene is ever going to tell you tory,” she said.
So genetic studies aren’t to be trusted?
“Orust tudies trust are t people often attaco them.”
S-of-Africa is “probably 95 percent correct,” but adds: “I t of a disservice to science by insisting t it must be one to turn out to be not so straigarting to suggest t tiple migrations and dispersals indifferent parts of tions and generally mixing up t’s never going to be easy to sort out.”
Just at time, ts questioning ty of claimsconcerning t DNA. An academic ing in Nature ed ologist, asked by a colleague op and announced t it ed ture article, “largeamounts of modern ransferred to tuseless for future study. I asked t certainly aminated already