I think I mentioned a while ago that I signed myself up for a SLIG (Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy) course on DNA. While I feel like a really competent researcher, DNA is truly a weak spot for me. I’ve needed the help, and it becomes to apparent any time I’m talking serious genealogy with my NGSQ friends. I just don’t use DNA often in my research. It almost feels like a different language when I’m in conversations or reading about projects using intense DNA research.
So here’s a glowing endorsement for continuing education opportunities. This class is all day on Wednesdays (8am – about 5pm), all throughout the month of October. This was week three. It’s going by quickly. But the class days are long and mentally intense. We have four 75-minute classes each week with good breaks between sessions and a longer lunch break. Some of the classes are fine/okay (as my teens would say—meh). But others have been so, so good. Each week we have a homework assignment that requires implementing concepts and programs we learned about that week. It’s manageable, and it makes me be accountable to myself.
This course is taught by a dream team of instructors. My favorite instructor so far has been Leah Larkin. She’s the perfect amount of excited and nerdy for my taste. She’s explained the science behind DNA and why it works well for genealogy. We learned all about What Are The Odds and BanyonDNA this week. I’ve heard about these programs, but I’ve never seen them in action. Here is a video to give an introduction to the concepts behind these programs. It’s amazing.
We ended this week by learning how to analyze raw DNA data. By looking at a few specific markers, you can learn if you are genetically programmed for certain traits. It was a fun hour of looking over text files and comparing results with classmates.
It seems like any time I make space for things like a big educational project for myself, I feel the cost of the energy and time in other parts of my life. But taking a course like this has been on my list for a while. And it was a professional goal of mine at the start of the year. I’m really glad to be making progress on something that I’ve wanted to do for a long time.