Over one million DNA samples and many new scientific research findings

Posted by Julie Granka on October 2, 2015 in Big Data, DNA Tech, Science

Ancestry science team gives two platform presentations on Friday, October 9th at human genetics conference ASHG With over one million customers who have submitted their DNA, AncestryDNA has the fastest-growing and one of the largest collections of human genetic data around the world.   That amount of DNA data powers the AncestryDNA science team to perform Read More

Filtering DNA matches at AncestryDNA with Timber

Posted by Julie Granka on June 8, 2015 in DNA Tech, Science

When someone takes an AncestryDNA test, we compare their DNA to the DNA of the hundreds of thousands of other test-takers in the AncestryDNA database.  We’re looking for “DNA matches” — people who share DNA with one another, and so might be relatives. The main idea behind identifying a DNA match is to look for Read More

Recent University of Oxford study sheds light on estimating Great Britain ethnicity

Posted by Julie Granka on April 21, 2015 in DNA Tech, Science

This post was co-written with Peter Carbonetto, Ph.D., Computational Biologist at AncestryDNA For every AncestryDNA customer, we estimate the ethnic origins of their ancestors from their DNA sample—what we call a “genetic ethnicity estimate.” AncestryDNA customers can currently trace their ancestral origins to specific parts of the world, including 26 regions across Europe, Africa, Asia, Read More

The Science Behind New Ancestor Discoveries

Posted by Julie Granka on April 2, 2015 in DNA Tech, Science

At AncestryDNA, we empower our customers to uncover exciting details about their family stories.  Today, we announced a new AncestryDNA experience based on years of research and development by the AncestryDNA science team that is revolutionizing the way people discover, preserve, and share their family history. Learn more about the announcement here. We are combining DNA Read More

AncestryDNA Scientists Achieve Advancement in Human Genome Reconstruction

Posted by Julie Granka on December 16, 2014 in DNA Tech, Science, Uncategorized

Passed down through the generations, fragments of the genomes of long-gone ancestors exist today in the genomes of their living descendants. Those fragments can actually be used to recover parts of those ancestors’ genomes – without having to resort to some more morbid techniques for obtaining their DNA.  That means a potentially easier way for Read More

The DNA matching research and development life cycle

Posted by Julie Granka on August 19, 2014 in DNA Tech, Science

Research into matching patterns of over a half-million AncestryDNA members translates into new DNA matching discoveries  Among over 500,000 AncestryDNA customers, more than 35 million 4th cousin relationships have been identified – a number that continues to grow rapidly at an exponential rate.  While that means millions of opportunities for personal discoveries by AncestryDNA members, Read More

Ancestry.com to Present Jermline on DNA Day at the Global Big Data Conference

Posted by Ancestry Team on April 9, 2014 in Big Data, Data Science, Development, DNA Tech, Science

Interested in genealogy?  Curious about DNA?  Fascinated by the world of big data?  If so, come check out my talk  at the Global Big Data Conference on DNA day this Friday, April 25 at 4pmPT in the Santa Clara Convention Center!  I’ll cover Jermline, our massively-scalable DNA matching application.  I’ll talk about our business, give a run-through Read More