anthropology

98% Alike --- Jonathan Marks

" Human and chimps are said to differ b a mere 2 percent of our DNA." ( Park 81) the introduction of the article "98% Alike" cited that. When we examine their own DNA, discovery and chimpanzee is not much different. But it is precisely because these small but subtle differences, completely changed the world, let us become a "human".You don't have to be a biologist or anthropologists, can see the great apes - gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans -- similar to how much we humans. In addition to them in some parts of the body is too large and long have more hair, even if the child can see that they are the same with us. Scientists decades ago concluded that chimpanzees are our closest relatives, the its about 98% the same as the human genes. This 2% of extremely subtle genetic differences, scattered throughout the genome, is the root of all the other differences. Farming, language, painting, music, technology and philosophy, all these civilization achievements will humans and chimps separated, and put on a suit of chimpanzees as ridiculous as it seems.

The author uses clam and logical tone. He uses lots of data to explain why human and chimpanzees are different. For example, he writes in his articla, " Because DNA is a linear array of those four bases... have no ancestry in common will match at about one in every four sites." Even we are 98% similar with chimpanzees but still have huge different.

I never knew that the DNA of human and chimpanzees are 98% matching until I take this class. I got to know the structure of DNA and what made human and chimpanzees different. This article is really interesting to read.