Questions & Answers
Browse all 15 questions from the
Genealogy: Scientific Foundations study set below.
Each question shows the correct answer — select a study format above to practice interactively.
1
What type of genetic marker is most commonly used in autosomal DNA tests for genealogical purposes, spanning across all chromosomes?
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A
Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs)
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B
Short Tandem Repeats (STRs)
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C
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroups
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D
Y-chromosome haplogroups
2
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is inherited exclusively from which parent?
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A
The father
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B
The mother
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C
Both parents equally
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D
Only if the child is male
3
The Y-chromosome, passed down from father to son, is primarily used to trace which lineage?
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A
Maternal ancestral line
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B
Paternal ancestral line
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C
All direct ancestral lines
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D
Maternal and paternal ancestral lines
4
In population genetics, the concept of the 'Most Recent Common Ancestor' (MRCA) refers to:
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A
The most recently deceased ancestor in a family tree
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B
The shared ancestor of two individuals or groups at a specific point in the past
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C
The oldest known ancestor of a specific population
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D
The first common ancestor identified through DNA analysis
5
What is the primary principle behind using DNA databases for genealogical matching?
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A
Comparing unique genetic mutations between individuals
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B
Identifying shared segments of DNA inherited from common ancestors
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C
Analyzing the frequency of specific genes within a population
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D
Mapping the geographical origins of ancestral populations
6
The 'founder effect' in population genetics, relevant to genealogical studies, describes:
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A
The genetic drift that occurs when a new population is established by a small number of individuals
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B
The accumulation of genetic mutations over many generations
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C
The uniform distribution of genetic traits within a large population
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D
The process by which individuals migrate to new regions
7
When interpreting ethnicity estimates from DNA tests, it's important to remember that these estimates are based on:
-
A
Exact historical migration patterns
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B
Reference populations with known genetic ancestries
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C
The oldest known surviving family records
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D
The frequency of specific surnames in historical documents
8
The study of paleogenetics allows genealogists to:
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A
Predict future genetic traits
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B
Analyze DNA from ancient human remains to understand ancestral populations
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C
Identify living relatives through modern DNA sequencing
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D
Determine the health status of current individuals
9
What is the term for the exchange of genetic material between non-sister chromatids during meiosis, which shuffles genetic information and is a source of variation?
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A
Replication
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B
Segregation
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C
Independent Assortment
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D
Crossing Over
10
The HapMap Project (now superseded by the 1000 Genomes Project and others) was a significant initiative that:
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A
Cataloged all known human diseases
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B
Mapped genetic variation across human populations
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C
Sequenced the entire human genome for the first time
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D
Identified specific genes responsible for physical appearance
11
In genealogy, the concept of 'endogamy' refers to:
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A
Marriage outside of a defined social group
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B
Marriage within a specific social group, clan, or ethnic group
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C
The process of adopting children from outside the family
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D
The inheritance of property through generations
12
Which type of DNA testing is most useful for tracing distant maternal ancestry over tens of thousands of years?
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A
Autosomal DNA
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B
Y-chromosome DNA
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C
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)
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D
Somatic DNA
13
The genetic phenomenon where a person receives a DNA segment from an ancestor but then passes on only a portion of that segment to their offspring is due to:
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A
Gene flow
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B
Genetic drift
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C
Recombination
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D
Mutation
14
What is the approximate mutation rate for Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human genome?
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A
One mutation per generation per billion base pairs
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B
One mutation per million generations per base pair
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C
One mutation per hundred generations per base pair
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D
One mutation per thousand generations per base pair
15
When comparing DNA results from different testing companies, a significant overlap in shared centimorgans (cM) between two individuals suggests:
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A
They are unrelated
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B
They are closely related
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C
They have adopted each other
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D
They share only ancient ancestors
