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Friday Finds for 26 Feb 2016

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On 26 February 2016

In Friday Finds

By Hogs555 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

By Hogs555 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

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Review: NGS Autosomal DNA Course

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On 28 January 2016

In DNA, Resources, Review

Zephyris at the English language Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], from Wikimedia Commons

Zephyris at the English language Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], from Wikimedia Commons

A few weeks ago, I gave a review on the National Genealogical Studies Continuing Genealogical Studies class called Genetic Genealogy, the Basics. I took this course in preparation for the Autosomal DNA course, which I had wanted to take since I saw it’s announcement. I have to say that the Basics course became invaluable when it came to the autosomal course! Having that basic understanding really did help me prepare for what I’d learn about autosomal DNA testing.

The Goals and Cost of the Course

The course’s author is Debbie Parker Wayne, CG, CGL. It’s for beginner-intermediate level students and has no prerequisites BUT in the first module, it does state that the course is designed for someone who has a basic understanding of DNA. They recommend the CGS Genetic Genealogy, the Basics course or reading books and blogs for getting that basic information.

The objectives of the course are roughly:

  • learning the basics of autosomal DNA – how it recombines and is inherited
  • learning how to read atDNA results and how to use a few of the tools out there to analyze your results (knowledge of Excel is helpful here)
  • learning how to identify a likely genetic cousin and the common ancestor you share
  • learning about the other tools and websites out there that can help a genealogist with the atDNA test results

There are seven modules for this course and all end in a quiz that you must pass in order to move on to the next module. The quizzes range from three to eleven questions, and you can take the quiz up to three times. The course should be completed within six months but there is a one-time three month extension available if needed.

This course is done completely online through the NGS Canvas System. There are two prices, which is usual for NGS: $60 for members and $85 for non-members.

Pros

  • Because I have done atDNA testing through FamilyTreeDNA, I was able to do many of the analysis the course discusses while I was learning about the process.
  • Although there is a section dedicated to other websites you could use to analyze your data, the course also goes over a simple Excel sheet to use for analysis.  It also discusses how to do specific analysis like triangulation to confirm how you are related to a match.
  • Learning how DNA recombines and is inherited makes the case for why you should get as many relatives tested as you can (and the further back in generations, the better).
  • I really like how it emphasized using DNA research WITH your own thorough research.
  • The course also discusses admixture results and how those can vary

Cons

  • Like with the last course, I have an issue with the quizzes. Whatever you get incorrect, the answer is supplied once you hit the completed button. You can then retake the quiz with that answer in mind. Of course, people are taking this course to learn. I wouldn’t understand why someone would pay for the course and then lie through the tests – but it makes the quizzes feel irrelevant.
  • This course does get technical. I haven’t had a biology class that discussed DNA since early college. It’s been a long time and although I know I’ve heard of some items before, I still needed to go outside the course for a better understanding. Having taken the Genetic Genealogy, the Basics course helped, but I still used the ISOGG Wiki quite often.

Overall Review

I’m sure you can tell by all the pros compared to the cons but I LOVED this course! I learned SO much from it and feel so much better prepared to go through my atDNA results and actually get somewhere with them. I am very excited to really get into the data now that I have a much better understanding of HOW to do it as well as WHAT to do with that data.

I will say that this course did take a lot more time for me to complete. Doing one module per day or every other day is a great way to get through the course if you can dedicate your time to that schedule. The cost did make me pause before taking the course, seeing how I felt about the last one, but I feel the cost this time is right for what you get from the course. I don’t think I can recommend it enough!

 

Continuing Genealogical Studies: Genetic Genealogy, the Basics – Review

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On 28 December 2015

In DNA, Review

The National Genealogical Society (NGS) has a number of classes for genealogists to take. Their Home Study Course (now called American Genealogical Studies) I took about a year ago and highly recommend. It is a wonderful course for people just starting to get more serious about their genealogy and wishing to take it beyond the internet.

Because of how much I enjoyed that course, I wanted to dive into a few more. The NGS has Continuing Genealogical Studies classes that include researching for Revolutionary War ancestors, Civil War research, and genetic genealogy. They just recently added a course called Genetic Genealogy, Autosomal DNA, which caught my eye, but I decided to take their Genetic Genealogy, the Basics first, since I figured it may help in the autosomal course. Plus, the last time I took a course on genetics was in college in 2001. So, it’s been a while and a refresher sounded like a good idea!

By Jerome Walker,Dennis Myts (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

By Jerome Walker,Dennis Myts (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The Goals and Cost of the Course

The course is for beginner and intermediate level students and is designed to teach:

  • the DNA molecule
  • chromosome basics
  • DNA markers (SNP and STR)
  • Y DNA and surname projects (basic information)
  • mitochondrial DNA and mtDNA testing

The course contains 6 modules, each ending with a short quiz of about 5-10 questions. You have 6 months to complete the course on your own time with a one-time 3 month extension possible if need be. It is all online and done through the NGS Canvas system (it uses this for other online courses as well).

The course has been created by Thomas H. Shawker, MD. He is a physician who has served on the NGS Genetic Genealogy Committee as a chairman, is a prominent speaker, and is the author of the book Unlocking Your Genetic History.

There are two prices for this course as with all NGS courses – one for members and one for non-members. For non-members the cost is $70 and for members it is $45.

Pros

  • The course starts from the basics: the human cell and where DNA lives inside of it, and explains from there
  • The course gives a good foundation on where genetic genealogy looks when it comes to DNA testing for genealogy
  • It explains many of the terms found in genetic genealogy
  • It is chock full of information to get anyone going on a Y DNA surname project or mtDNA testing

Cons

  • Some small items are left out or not explained well. For clarification, I sought out the International Society of Genetic Genealogy Wiki for clarification.
    • For example, I did not realize (forgotten over the years really) that humans share 99.9% the same genome as other humans. There are small mutations (like SNPs which are discussed in the course) which causes each person to look different from another. I was lost because 1) I thought our genome was MUCH different than everyone else’s and was confused on how genetic scientists knew where to look and 2) I couldn’t understand how the human genome could have been mapped if we all looked so different (assuming again that our genomes were vastly different from each other). Knowing that small fact that all humans share 99.9% the same genome made it all make sense to me.
    • Another example: the mtDNA test – for some reason I had thought this was the X chromosome we all get from our mother. But then I was confused because well, which x chromosome are we getting? And how do we know it’s always from the maternal line? I didn’t realize that mtDNA is NOT the X chromosome and had to look at the ISOGG wiki for that clarification. I feel silly stating all of that as I’m sure most people know that, but for those of you who didn’t, I was right there with you!
  • The quizzes. You have 5-10 questions and you can retake them up to 3 times. The problem is that after you take it once, the quiz shows you your score ALONG WITH THE ANSWERS (no matter if you got it right or wrong). So you can just retake it and get everything right as the questions don’t change when you retake the quiz. Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but I felt that made the quizzes irrelevant.
  • This is a short course. You can probably finish the course in a day if you felt so inclined. I did mine over a few days and spent maybe an hour or two on the course each day. For the cost, especially as a non-member, I felt this was a downfall. I expected more.

Overall

Overall, I learned a LOT coming out of this course. I feel much better about my understanding of the two DNA tests that it focused on – Y DNA and mtDNA. I know I still have more to learn but the basics did give me a good foundation to start on and I feel much more knowledgeable about the terms and have found reading about DNA easier to understand now. I do recommend the course, although I wish it was less expensive. And I recommend taking the course ALONG with reading the terms on the ISOGG Wiki. It helps for clarification and gives a better understanding. Not to mention the ISOGG Wiki is a website you’ll want to bookmark to return to in the future.

For the cost, as I said, I did expect more. However, I realize that I may be alone in this. There are hundreds of courses out there all at varying prices. This is probably one of the cheapest  ways of learning more if you prefer the structure of a class, like I do. Of course, I encourage you to seek more information from books and online resources, but this can be a great way to get started in your genetic genealogy education.

AncestryAcademy

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On 20 April 2015

In Research, Resources

The other day, I received an email from Ancestry.com announcing AncestryAcademy. Has anyone else seen this? To access it from your homepage you go to Learning Center and it’s the last one on that pulldown menu. If you are using the Beta (like me) it shows up in your extras tab at the top of your homepage. I tried out one course so far and here’s my rundown based on that:

AncestryAcademy

What Is It?

AncestryAcademy has many video courses on a variety of genealogy topics offered by Ancestry.com. These course are for genealogists of any level.

What Kind of Courses Are Available?

New courses are added monthly and so far there are five courses available:

  • Who is That Tick Mark? Using Early Census Records with J. Mark Lowe, CG, FUGA: This focuses on early census forms from before 1850.
  • The Buckeye State: Researching Your Ohio Ancestors with Amy Johnson Crow, CG: This focuses on Ohio ancestors and goes into records like tax records, census records, court records, land settlement, etc.
  • Getting the Most Out of Family Tree Maker with Duff Wilson: For those who use Family Tree Maker and wish to get the most of it, this course focuses on using the program.
  • Native American Ancestry? Steps to Learn more with Paula Stuart-Warren, CG: This focuses on Native American ancestry and records to look for.
  • Street Smarts: Finding Your Ancestor in the Big City with Juliana Szucs: This focuses on researching your family when it comes to the city they lived in and what you can learn from looking around them.

What to Expect

AncestryAcademyVideoPage

I decided to take the Ohio Ancestors one as I have a trip to Fort Wayne planned where I will be focusing on some of my Ohio ancestors and figure this will be a good start.

The 14 videos in this session vary in length from 48 seconds to 7 mins 24 seconds for a total of a little less than an hour.

Each video (besides the intro and outro) have goals for you to learn in the short video. There is also a handout with the slideshow notes, which I appreciate. I do have dual screens so I tend to take notes on one screen while watching the video in the other, but for those who don’t, then you can use this handout to take any additional notes.

You can watch it all at once (the videos just keep going from one section to the next unless you stop that) or you can watch it in small segments (one video at a time). I watched them all at once, however, for some reason it kept skipping a section ahead. I just needed to then manually choose what video I wanted to see instead, but I hope whatever glitch that was will be fixed soon.

After you watch the videos, there is a quick test to take to complete the course and then you can print a certificate if you so choose.

The Downside

It can cost extra from your subscription. However, if you already subscribe to the Ancestry World Explorer Plus, the cost is included in that subscription.

If you do not, here are the costs:

  • Ancestry Academy Monthly: $11.99/month – unlimited access to all courses and the new ones added monthly
  • Ancestry Academy Annual: $99.99/year – unlimited access to all courses and the new ones added monthly

The Upside

This can be a great addition to those wishing to learn more about genealogy. Although these courses are for everyone, I feel those who will benefit the most will be the beginners and intermediates.

For the course I took, I did learn about the uniqueness of Ohio’s land records (which I did not know before) as well as where to look for records and what could be available for the time frames I’m looking for. I found the course beneficial to me and that is always a plus!

Overall

The AncestryAcademy is included in the Ancestry World Explorer Plus and I think that’s a great addition to those who have that already. Is it worth those who do not have that subscription? That will be up to the individual to decide. I do wish they’d offer a free trial so that those who wish to try it out could see if it would be worth it to purchase. I feel it really depends on where your strengths and weaknesses lay as a genealogists. The courses they have at the moment, may not be areas where you have interest or you may already feel quite knowledgeable about those areas. I’d say keep watching to see if items are added that you may find worthwhile. Then perhaps, trying it out for a month may be worth it.

I do believe that you can learn quite a bit from these courses and I hope that they will continue to add worthy courses to make the addition something people will benefit from.

 

Have any of you tried out these courses? What did you think?

 

Happy hunting!

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