Fanfic Helpdesk: Technical and Scientific Help for Writers

[WraithRichard]

don't quote me on this, but I think in France or Spain, they traced some people back and could tell which present day people could trace their lineage back to cromagnon/neanderthal man (no, they're not the same group, but some people are literally descended from people that old)

Don't nearly all people of European or Asian descent have a chunk of Neanderthal or Denisovans?

[Whytewytch]

they hve traced it back

that's one way they can kinda figure which races migrated where

don't quote me on this, but I think in France or Spain, they traced some people back and could tell which present day people could trace their lineage back to cromagnon/neanderthal man (no, they're not the same group, but some people are literally descended from people that old)

they've been able to study the dna in mummies in egypt and use it to figure out who's who

I've actually just started reading the links you & Feast sent me--really interesting stuff! Well, the stuff I understand, anyway. It's been really helpful. Not sure yet how I'm going to work it into the story, but it will at least help me to understand my character more.

[WraithRichard]

I've actually been reading the links you & Feast sent me--really interesting stuff! Well, the stuff I understand, anyway. It's been really helpful. Not sure yet how I'm going to work it into the story, but it will at least help me to understand my character more.

I'm going to be posting a chapter for BiAA sometime this week that goes into genetics close to this. While it's not about tracing, it does get into endogenous retroviruses and dead DNA. Hopefully it'll all be on laymen's terms too.

Want a head-up when it's posted?

[SF_and_Coffee]

they hve traced it back

that's one way they can kinda figure which races migrated where

Well, not races, but which groups of prehistoric humans.

don't quote me on this, but I think in France or Spain, they traced some people back and could tell which present day people could trace their lineage back to cromagnon/neanderthal man (no, they're not the same group, but some people are literally descended from people that old)

We're ALL descended from people that old (unless aliens really did plop some of us down here more recently ). Cro-Magnon man was Homo sapiens, the same as modern humans. Homo neanderthalensis was another human species which, near the end of its run, co-existed for a while with Homo sapiens.

they've been able to study the dna in mummies in egypt and use it to figure out who's who

I saw a show on that several months ago, and it was fascinating.

[Whytewytch]

I'm going to be posting a chapter for BiAA sometime this week that goes into genetics close to this. While it's not about tracing, it does get into endogenous retroviruses and dead DNA. Hopefully it'll all be on laymen's terms too.

Want a head-up when it's posted?

Sure--maybe it'll spark my muse into knowing how she wants to use the info. ITB is a romance, but I would like to bring Stargatey elements into the story instead of just having the relationship between the two protagonists.

[Whytewytch]

My LOL moment of the day (and believe me, I need it already ) :

Was just re-reading the posts about the hidden weapons & was a bit disturbed at how our creative minds came up with such dastardly ways to hide the weapons.

[Skydiver]

We're ALL descended from people that old (unless aliens really did plop some of us down here more recently ). Cro-Magnon man was Homo sapiens, the same as modern humans. Homo neanderthalensis was another human species which, near the end of its run, co-existed for a while with Homo sapiens.

\

I guess what I meant was, they knew which modern day people were descended from the ancient humans in the area vs modern people descended from other groups

making up numbers, you could take a modern village of 1000 people and find out that 589 of them were descended from local ancient humans vs 411 that came from elsewhere

[WraithRichard]

My LOL moment of the day (and believe me, I need it already ) :

Was just re-reading the posts about the hidden weapons & was a bit disturbed at how our creative minds came up with such dastardly ways to hide the weapons.

And that's the stuff you don't build. Flamethrowers, chlorine gas, fiery paint, and you can even build a crude version of a rocket launcher (potato gun that shoots bottles of napalm that you rig to explode on impact).

You can also make an exploding weather balloon, but I'm not sure how that'd be a weapon.

[SF_and_Coffee]

I guess what I meant was, they knew which modern day people were descended from the ancient humans in the area vs modern people descended from other groups

making up numbers, you could take a modern village of 1000 people and find out that 589 of them were descended from local ancient humans vs 411 that came from elsewhere

Or find out that each of them has a varying percentage of genes from various groups, too. Studies like this have been conducted that tell a very interesting story of the distant ancestry of natives of what we know as the British Isles, for example. In some parts of Britain and Wales, the amount of Celtic ancestry is higher vs Saxon and Roman ancestry, as identified by certain genetic markers. In other parts, it is different. And when they look at the Irish, you get something different still, pointing to Irish Celts and Iberian Celts being more closely related than some other Celtic groups. Then there are the Scots, with Pictish and Scandinavian ancestry mixed in...

[Whytewytch]

Another question: It's been ages since I've seen SG-1 & don't think I've ever seen the last few seasons. I mainly am an SGA person (although a rewatch of SG-1 is on my very long to-do list). Is there any sort of intergalactic trading, reverse engineering, etc that our planet is involved in since the discovery of the other planets & races in the stargate system? I'm trying to find out if an Earth family could become magnates in such an endeavor or if there is some other way they could become rich and powerful in connection with the SG program. I need the info for the current chap I'm writing of ITB, so I haven't the time to watch every ep over again. Except for working in this bit of info, my chap is ready to go to my beta.

[SF_and_Coffee]

Well, I never watched the last three seasons either, but the entirety of the Stargate program was still classified above Top Secret even at the end of SG-1, wasn't it? So while there was definitely trade and reverse engineering (quite a bit!) going on, from my understanding it was all under military auspices, and therefore not something that anyone in the general public could really have been involved with or turned much of a profit from. I suppose that the owners/executives of a defense contractor involved with the reverse engineering and subsequent manufacture of defense technology based on things that were brought back by the Stargate program could conceivably benefit in terms of money and power, but that's about the only way, and all ties to the Stargate would have to be kept secret.

[mathpiglet]

There was the rogue conglomerate called "The Trust". Although it was busted, someone from there could have obtained enough information to make it possible, WhyteWytch.

[Skydiver]

Another question: It's been ages since I've seen SG-1 & don't think I've ever seen the last few seasons. I mainly am an SGA person (although a rewatch of SG-1 is on my very long to-do list). Is there any sort of intergalactic trading, reverse engineering, etc that our planet is involved in since the discovery of the other planets & races in the stargate system? I'm trying to find out if an Earth family could become magnates in such an endeavor or if there is some other way they could become rich and powerful in connection with the SG program. I need the info for the current chap I'm writing of ITB, so I haven't the time to watch every ep over again. Except for working in this bit of info, my chap is ready to go to my beta.

theoretically, if there was some sort of favoritism in assigning the reverse engineering...or, with Maybourne and his NID bringing back tech on their own, they could have reverse engineered some of those ill gotten gains w/o knowledge of the SGC

[Whytewytch]

Defense contractors! **smacks self on forehead** The people I'm talking about would not be your ordinary, everyday people. They would be the Tau'ri (sp?) elite. So an elite family with ties to defense contracting could work. Someone who is not in the military, yet knows about the program & has signed their NDAs & received security clearance.

ITB spoilers:

Spoiler:

My OFC's parents have arranged a marriage for her. The man must be wealthy, powerful & involved with the SG program. My OFC as well as her parents are involved in the program. The proper candidate for my OFC's future husband would also need to possess the Ancient gene, hence my interest in genetics.

Weren't the Trust outside the law? My fictional family would have to be working within the legal & governmental system. A former Trust agent could make things difficult as a future plot tangent, however. (You like how I threw in the match term, MP? )

[Whytewytch]

Hey, I'm a 2nd Lieu-ee now!