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172 SCIPAD - BIG IDEAS - BOOK 2
THE BASIS OF HEREDITY
Whakapapa
Ngāti Porou elder Sir Apirana Ngata once described whakapapa in a
broad sense as “the process of laying one thing upon another. If you
visualise the foundation ancestors as the first generation, the next and
succeeding ancestors are placed on them in ordered layers”.
In a narrow sense, some aspects of whakapapa relate to ancestry
and genetics. Whakapapa can be shown as a family tree, where
that family tree traces the genetic history of a person.
Related people share not only a family history, but the genes and
their alleles that are inherited from generation to generation.
In genetic terms, humans inherit half of their DNA from each of their
parents, who in turn received half of their DNA from their parents.
1. Outline one aspect of whakapapa that relates to family history.
2. Briefly outline how whakapapa and genetic inheritance are:
(a) Similar:
(b) Different:
3. Complete the following diagram showing the fraction of DNA you have inherited from
your tūpuna. Each line should add up to 1.
1 Me
4. (a) The line above me are my
(b) The line above my parents are my
(c) The top line are my
5. State how many great-great grandparents would be on the line above your great
grandparents.
6. State the fraction of DNA you have inherited from one of your great-great grandparents.
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