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Erika Hagelberg

  • The Seven Daughters of Eve: The Astonishing Story that Reveals How Each of Us Can Trace Our Genetic Ancestors by Bryan Sykes
  • Mapping Human History: Unravelling the Mystery of Adam and Eve by Steve Olson
  • The Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey by Spencer Wells

Until recently, the study of human prehistory relied on the material collected by archaeologists and palaeontologists. Bones, stones and pottery are not the only evidence now available to prehistorians, however: the DNA of living humans contains a record of the DNA of their ancestors. Molecular genetic techniques, developed originally in medical, agricultural and industrial research, have been seized on by scientists interested in the history of our species, and have led to spectacular advances in our understanding of human evolutionary history.

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Erika Hagelberg is a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Oslo.

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