Hi Liz...I'm ready to respond!...first let me say I did not major in anthropology...my degree is in "COPS and ROBBERS...You say LOOKS have positively nothing to do with the diversity, or lack thereof, in DNA....because few genes have to do with appearance--skin color, eye color, hair texture....well as educationally challenenged (nice term for stupid) as I am I disagree with that 100%..and I can prove it!....my nieces and nephew look more like me than my own biological son...my nieces and nephew have my skin color, eye color,and hair texture...the three traits you mentioned in your response to Dr. Langlitz, my son does NOT have my skin color, eye color, or hair texture...why...because his genotype and DNA is much more diverse than mine or my son's cousins...why...because his biological mother is a Hispanic woman from El Salvador. I as you know am African American ( there is the possibility she cheated on me and I paid out all that child support for nothing..lol)...so your above statement just can not be correct.....and even if skin color, hair texture, eye color, size, gait do have little to do with typing DNA and diversity...these are the traits that we as breeders are working with....oh yea...for those of you who have never seen my son...that boy is drop dead handsome...a cross breeding that worked very well...lol...Ed Hill ----- Original Message ----- From: <RckyIizard@xxxxxxx> To: <showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Friday, January 07, 2005 2:09 PM Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: explanation of my post on Yasko > In a message dated 1/7/2005 2:55:53 PM Mountain Standard Time, > Gsdman2@xxxxxxx writes: > In fact, phenotypical uniformity in the > GSD is virtually non existent when compared to many other breeds. Since > phenotype is the expression of genotype, how is this possible if they > actually are > lacking genetic diversity? > --------------------------------------------- > I can answer this one, Tom <grin> One of my university degrees is in > anthropology. One of the terrific tools in our quest as anthropology > students to > understand peoples and their origins has been...DNA! Using this tool, we > have > found that peoples of African origin--despite being able to look at a > person of > African origin and tell, from their phenotype, that Africa was their place > of > origin--have the GREATEST diversity in their DNA. Just like your > statement: > "On the other hand, the German type is so strong that GSDs bred in Germany > are easily identified. They definitely more closely resemble each other > than American dogs resemble each other" The same applies to human beings > of > African origin. They resemble each other more than they do people with > other > origins. Their LOOKS have positively nothing to do with the diversity, or > lack > thereof, in their DNA...because quite simply very few genes have to do > with > appearance--skin color, eye color, hair color and texture, size, etc. The > vast > majority of what you get in someone's (or a dog's) DNA isn't visible to > the > naked eye. > Sorry, your "they look alike so they must have be closely related" and its > converse "they don't look alike so they can't be that closely related" is > a > pure, simple mistaken conclusion. > > Liz in Utah > > Visit my website at http://hometown.aol.com/rckyiizard/index.html > > > ============================================================================ > POST is Copyrighted 2004. All material remains the property of the > original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or > FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the > original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. > > ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY > MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS > PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY > FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL > BE PROSECUTED. > > For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx > > VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://www.showgsd.org > ============================================================================ ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2004. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://www.showgsd.org ============================================================================