DALLAS, Nov. 24--A team of scientists can verify that their 5-year long DNA study, currently under peer-review, confirms the existence of a novel hominin hybrid species, commonly called “Bigfoot” or “Sasquatch,” living in North America. Researchers’ extensive DNA sequencing suggests that the legendary Sasquatch is a human relative that arose approximately 15,000 years ago as a hybrid cross of modern Homo sapiens with an unknown primate species. The study was conducted by a team of experts in genetics, forensics, imaging and pathology, led by Dr. Melba S. Ketchum of Nacogdoches, TX. In response to recent interest in the study, Dr. Ketchum can confirm that her team has sequenced 3 complete Sasquatch nuclear genomes and determined the species is a human hybrid: “Our study has sequenced 20 whole mitochondrial genomes and utilized next generation sequencing to obtain 3 whole nuclear genomes from purported Sasquatch samples. The genome sequencing shows that Sasquatch mtDNA is identical to modern Homo sapiens, but Sasquatch nuDNA is a novel, unknown hominin related to Homo sapiens and other primate species. Our data indicate that the North American Sasquatch is a hybrid species, the result of males of an unknown hominin species crossing with female Homo sapiens. Hominins are members of the taxonomic grouping Hominini, which includes all members of the genus Homo. Genetic testing has already ruled out Homo neanderthalis and the Denisova hominin as contributors to Sasquatch mtDNA or nuDNA. “The male progenitor that contributed the unknown sequence to this hybrid is unique as its DNA is more distantly removed from humans than other recently discovered hominins like the Denisovan individual,” explains Ketchum. “Sasquatch nuclear DNA is incredibly novel and not at all what we had expected. While it has human nuclear DNA within its genome, there are also distinctly non-human, non-archaic hominin, and non-ape sequences. We describe it as a mosaic of human and novel non-human sequence. Further study is needed and is ongoing to better characterize and understand Sasquatch nuclear DNA.” Ketchum is a veterinarian whose professional experience includes 27 years of research in genetics, including forensics. Early in her career she also practiced veterinary medicine, and she has previously been published as a participant in mapping the equine genome. She began testing the DNA of purported Sasquatch hair samples 5 years ago. Ketchum calls on public officials and law enforcement to immediately recognize the Sasquatch as an indigenous people: “Genetically, the Sasquatch are a human hybrid with unambiguously modern human maternal ancestry. Government at all levels must recognize them as an indigenous people and immediately protect their human and Constitutional rights against those who would see in their physical and cultural differences a ‘license’ to hunt, trap, or kill them.” Full details of the study will be presented in the near future when the study manuscript publishes. ###
Shouldn't this be in another forum like Pseudoscience? Seems that every 3 to 5 years another woo woo comes out claiming this sort of nonsense.
This is the first report I've seen that's made reference to standard scientific testing of mtDNA and nuDNA as part of the analysis. Kooks don't understand that; biologists do.
Only after AI gets their rights as a person. At least it sounds like they're doing some science, a lot better than the blurry infrared video and yelling in the dark, although it does seem that they're trying to confirm what they want to believe is true, rather than just letting the data speak for itself. What specific samples are they testing, and found where? Is their testing falsifiable? And who is doing the peer review? If it's another group of pro-Bigfoot hunters, that's not going to be as credible as an independent and blind test lab. Doubtful, but I'll wait for more info before I totally dismiss it. One thing that set off my baloney tester was the statement about "while it has human nuclear DNA within its genome, there are also distinctly non-human, non-archaic hominin, and non-ape sequences." Maybe the samples are contaminated. One reason why it's a good idea to find out where they came from, and their history before the sampling.
Until there is a report, news report or website. I don't see any verification. But I do feel IMO they may be closer related to humans, And they do exist. There was a monster quest episode where they tested possible bigfoot DNA. It can back as human like. And thought tainted. But the DNA was not tested against the handlers.
Yes, no verification or independent reports as of yet. The source of the 'hair' is also questionable. Elsewhere I read that they had various other sources of DNA collected over time from various sources. This information would need to be reported, as 'contamination' would seem possible unless excludable. However, they are reporting nuDNA that is 'non-ape' mixed in with hominin markers, so this is weird. Apparently their operating premise is that a member of a related genus (Homo or other genus close to Homo) mated with Homo sapien females circa 15,000 years ago. If there were Homo erectus or other primitive Homo genera already in the Americas, then when the more lovely Homo sapiens females entered into the region from the asiatic land bridge circa 15,000 years ago, they would have indeed been subject to capture and mating. But this presently remains high conjecture unless other studies are done by independent laboratories.
http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/bigfoot-dna/ http://johnhawks.net/weblog/topics/pseudoscience/bigfoot-dna-press-release-2012.html http://www.livescience.com/25047-bigfoot-dna-human-ancestor.html http://neurodojo.blogspot.com/2012/11/sasquatch-dna.html http://blog.chron.com/sciguy/2012/11/like-omg-scientists-have-sequenced-bigfoot-dna/
quote from spidergoat link comment: "What worries me is that it’s a forensics lab doing the analysis, and if all of that is from contamination, then… That is some terrible, terrible lab work which should not be allowed near any kind of contentious case, civil or criminal. *shudder* Heck, we have bad lab conditions, but even we manage to extract only-human DNA from all our samples. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!" Yes, this was reportedly a laboratory that does routine DNA analysis. If it turns out the 'samples' were contaminated, and not simply pure hair as they were leading people to believe, then it calls into question the reliability of Texas (and other states?) standards for private (and public, too) laboratories. Anyone sent to death row/executed based on faulty lab work? But if the derogatory comments are themselves hype (time will tell) and it is actual forensic evidence, then that would be interesting. This is where independent laboratories should be involved to test the same samples.
The results make no since, laboratory error is a more probable explanation then that there are a secret group of hairy human-ape hybrids living in North America that have managed to hid from scientific study to this day! OOOh wait a minute, what if they haven't been hiding in the woods, what if they just shave their hair off and are working jobs like the rest of us?, I would guess lumberjacks... Holy shit Paul Bunyan was a Big foot!
Sorry, must have missed it. Was it this? http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/15/carlos-texas-innocent-man-death or the two executions referenced in this? http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2035260,00.html or these? http://www.prisonerlife.com/deathrow/deathrow17.cfm Sure seems like a lot. Someone's tax dollars at work.
I don't remember any of the particulars. There have been a whole slew of them in the news over the past couple of years. They've finally gotten to the point that they're starting to catch some of them before the execution. I have many objections to capital punishment (in most cases, of course some people are so powerful that they can continue to wreak havoc from inside a prison so they give us no choice), but the one I find most frightening is that you can't undo it if you discover you made a booboo. With the advent of DNA testing they're beginning to mutter shamefully that roughly ten percent of people who have been executed were not guilty of their crimes. A couple of governors have called a halt to capital punishment, even in the states where it's still legal.
When, or if? The chances of this nonsense being published in any reputable journal seem very slim to me. I'll keep an open mind, of course, but I won't be holding my breath. Be sure to post an update when this thing is published, Walter - if it ever happens!
It's self-published -- technically they founded a brand new "journal" to "open-publish" the paper at $30 per view. "Currently, the sasquatch genome report is all you can see. It's the only paper in Volume 1, Issue 1 of De Novo." http://arstechnica.com/science/2013...r-conclusively-proves-that-sasquatch-is-real/ Tooth-fairy science (goal-driven, no check on confirmation bias) at it's most potent. http://arstechnica.com/science/2013...-bigfoot-genome-and-the-woman-who-created-it/
