Video Link    When genetic genealogy websites hand you lemons, write your own programs. What tools should we consider to be the minimum standard for genetic genealogy?  

  Artificial    There's no such thing as artificial intelligence. No true AI. But what if it were possible to combine traits from the children to build a visual composite of someone using AI tools?

  Intro Video    The Genealogy Channel. A video channel dedicated to all things DNA and family history, with content for all levels.

  Finding Family    Adoptees are not alone in facing unique challenges in tracing their biological roots, every non-parental event comes with a challenge. We'll use DNA testing to provide essential clues and connections to unravel these events going back multiple generations.

  Validate    So, you think you’ve got a rock-solid family tree. Think again. You will never know how good or bad your family tree is until you validate with DNA matches.

  Skeletons    Would you like to uncover hidden family relationships, dredge up ancestral secrets, or expose the skeletons in your family tree? DNA can help.

  Stone Walls    Sometimes you run into a stone wall in your family tree. You can use DNA to go around those stone walls.

DNA Reference    Creating a DNA reference tree involves using your DNA matches to establish a framework that shows their genetic relationships.

  Video Link      Get your DNA tested.   This is where the adventure begins.   If you’re taking a DNA test just to get your ethnicity, you’re in for a rude awakening and you’re missing out on 99% of the fun and excitement that testing provides.   Depending on who you test with, your ethnicity results will literally be all over the map and the testing company will change your ethnicity every year, good luck with that.       The best part of DNA testing comes from the cousin matches that you’ll get. Those matches will help you validate your family tree and shake all the skeletons out of the closets.   Even if you’re not interested, get tested for that special someone in your life who is documenting your family history.

  Video Link    DNA never lies.  Some people would like to think that the labs can make mistakes (they don’t) and some people would like to hope that the DNA results are wrong (sorry).  DNA can make the connections when paper records don’t exist.  The answers you want won’t be found in any dusty old books.  DNA can reveal the facts that may have been intentionally hidden and explain how you are related to everyone else.      Because DNA never lies.

  Video link     We are all cousins.   We are all descended from the same small pool of individuals who were the first modern humans. We are all from Africa.  If anyone tells you a different story, then they have an agenda.  I don’t care what your skin color is, or your religion or your politics, we are literally family.  We need to start acting like a family. OK, I’m done here.

  Video link     You are genetically unique, even if you are a twin.   At conception, you were dealt a random set of DNA.  Sometimes that set of DNA matches other people, like your cousins.  And sometimes your DNA doesn’t match, even though you expect it to.  DNA inheritance is not perfect.  That’s why you don’t look exactly like your siblings (unless, of course you are an identical twin).  Your mom and dad will always give you 50% of their DNA, but there are some random events.     Let’s represent mom’s DNA with 100 cards, 50 red and 50 blue (her DNA inheritance from her parents).  She’s going to shuffle them and randomly give you 50 of those cards.  Dad is going to give you 50 of his cards.  Together, that’s you.  Now pick up all the cards and reshuffle.  Pass out 50 cards from each parent to your sibling.  It’s highly unlikely that they will get the same cards as you.      Wh...

  Video link     The amount of DNA you share with a match is measured in centiMorgans, represented with a little c and a big M.   This amount can be roughly translated into how you are related to your match.  For example, a parent and child share about 3400cM.  Third cousins share about 53cM.  There is a great chart at the International Society of Genetic Genealogists that provides a reference.  Link  DNA Reference .      Say that you and your match share 106cM.  If you are the same generation as your match, you may be half second cousins.  If you are different generations, then you are second cousins once-removed (your parent’s second cousin).  What if you have a 265cM match?  This falls between cousin categories.  This amount of DNA could represent a double cousin.  One portion of the match at 212cM, representing a second cousin.  Plus 53cM, representing an additional third cousin match...

  Video link     More DNA matches means more adventures and more opportunities to solve family history mysteries.   All DNA testing companies will allow you to download your DNA results.  And you should, just for safe keeping. There are a number of companies that will allow you upload your DNA results for free.  Ancestry is not one of them.      The three that I use are Family Tree DNA, MyHeritage and GedMatch.  GedMatch provides the most tools for comparing and analyzing your DNA for free.  For an extra fee, you get even more tools.  The testing companies, that we actually pay for, should git off their collective asses and learn from Gedmatch to provide more analysis tools.  More uploads to more sites means more matches, period.

  Video Link     Family trees are the core of genealogy and they let you journey back in time.   I like Ancestry because it has the largest number of DNA users and the largest number of family trees.   I dislike Ancestry because most of the family trees are crap.      That said, the family tree interface at Ancestry is still better than every other DNA testing site. So, I use Ancestry to fix and build family trees for everyone else.  Ancestry allows me to create as many family trees as I want and I do.  If I find a DNA match with a partial tree, I add any good connections from that tree to one of my scratch-pad trees.  Then I build a full tree for my match.      The only way I’m going to figure out how my match is related to me is by extending their tree until it intersects with my own.  If you are having trouble building your tree, ask for help.  There are a ton of people and resources out there that w...

  Video Link     You need a DNA reference tree.   This can be your main family tree or a specially built tree.   It contains you and all your DNA matches and serves as a map to all your interconnecting family members.  With your reference tree and the use of Shared Matches, you will be able to identify that next mystery DNA match that has no family tree.  Who do they match?  How close in centiMorgans is their match?  Refer to your reference tree and bingo that’s where they go.

  Video Link     Imagine your next DNA match is an adoptee.   You need to, “Adopt and Adoptee” and take them under your wing.   They are absolutely a cousin and that means they are family.      Adoptees only turn to DNA when all other avenues fail.  You may be their best chance at figuring out who their birth parents are.  I’ve helped dozens of adoptees, many of them starting out as my own DNA match.  Helping them has been some of the most exciting adventures I’ve ever been on.

  Video Link     You need to be tenacious and never stop researching.   I don’t always find what I’m looking for, but that doesn't deter me.  I’ll take a break and come back later.      Perhaps I just need to wait for another DNA match or another set of documents to get digitized.  But I always come back.  Some of the brick walls or non-parental event puzzles have taken me years to solve.  Eventually I get there. And will you too.  Don’t ever stop, because there will always be more family to find.

  Video Link     How do you tell someone that they have a non-parental event in their family?   Gently, if possible.      If that person is adopted, they probably already know they are part of an ‘event’.  For every adoptee, there is another family or two who may not know that the event ever took place.  In cases of hanky-panky, the child of that infidelity may not even know.      I find that I need to lead them to the conclusion for themselves.  In the case where someone asks me to help find more information on their grandfather using DNA, I might find that there is no genetic connection to that grandfather.  I start with, “You don’t have any matches with those surnames.”  Then let that sink in.  Or when talking to an adoptee’s bio-family, I’ll say, “I’m working with an adoptee with a very strong DNA match to your family” (keeping it vague).  And let that sink in.  Let them ask the next ...

  Video Link     Get settled. In today’s class we’re going to talk about the Transitive Law of Genetic Genealogy.      Imagine you have a DNA match to person A, let’s call him Andy.  You also match person B, let’s call him Bob.  When you look at your Shared Matches for Andy, you see Bob on the list of people with DNA in common.  If A=B and B=C (you’re C), therefore A=C.  There is a very high probability that you, Andy and Bob all share a common ancestor.  If Andy and Bob have good family trees, somewhere back in time you will find a common great-grandparent.  Their common great-grandparent is probably your ancestor also.     Most of the time when we process these connections it’s an obvious relationship that we already know about.  Sometimes though, you stop and say, “Wait a minute, I know all my great-grandparents and that’s not one of them.”  Surprise. You’re going to need a bigger tree. ...