Ramblings

The next Minot Skeptical Society meeting will be 23 of January at 7 PM at the usual location. The theme will be Intelligent Design/Creationism. A great amount of buzz is going on about this meeting in anticipation already.

I have come to a milestone in one of my other interests. Geneology has gotten my attention lately. I have done the DNA testing, both y-chromosome and mitochondrial, but I have also been doing my geneological tree. I have had a professional do some research that I couldn't do or didn't have time for. But the interesting thing is the milestone is 862 ancestors and living relatives in the US and in Scandanvia. I have also just finished a dated book, but one with great insights by Alex Shoumatoff called "The Mountain of Names, A History of the Human Family". I plan to continue to fill in the blanks and add intersting facts and stories to the project, however, the epiphany I have gained is that we are all one small part of our families and that is one small part of the family of human kind. We are all related. By our families to be sure, especially the ones we can trace, but via DNA evidence now and other sources, to each other. A much grander view of ourselves than the petty tribe to tribe, religion to religion, nation to nation fighting and killing that goes on. And yet maybe too that is what it means to be human, mortal, a part of the world and its history. Forgive my mushy philosophizing.

Peace
Skeptical DoDo