Technology Review: Our Past Within Us

Technology Review: Our Past Within Us: "Furthermore, Renfrew told me, 'studies of mtDNA mutation rates give an approximate chronology that ties quite nicely to data from radiocarbon dating of fossil remains.' Like radiocarbon dating itself, mtDNA analysis has refuted long-cherished myths about race by showing that humankind almost certainly had a single origin in Africa, with our main dispersal out of that continent occurring about 60,000 years ago and proba bly involving a relatively small number of humans. During humanity's global diaspora, many populations grew isolated. Today, mitochondrial haplogroups--groups that share common ancestors--are identifiable as originating in Africa, Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the Pacific Islands."