Scientific DNA Proof of Bigfoot May be Only Months Away?
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on September 1st, 2010
Excerpted from Before It’s News.
Now David Paulides of North American Bigfoot Search.com and the author of Tribal Bigfoot has been busy collecting bone and hair samples of purported various Bigfoot. His research has led him into DNA evaluation of these samples and he reports on Coast to Coast AM that results are very promising so far.
In fact, Paulides and highly respected DNA expert Dr. Melba S. Ketchum have found that some samples appear to have both human and animal characteristics. However, the research is ongoing.
Dr. Ketchum believes that very shortly she will have the final conclusions to the DNA testing. Then the results will be submitted for peer review in scientific journals and an announcement will be made.
Both Dr. Ketchum and Paulides believe the research is very promising and that the DNA may indeed offer definitive DNA proof of an existence of a Bigfoot type of creature. Still, final DNA testing needs to be carefully concluded so that skeptics will not be able to attack the DNA findings as being based on faulty or sloppy science.Grant Lawrence
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
Well, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves here.
I always get…well, skeptical when anyone purporting to be a scientist does any discussing of results before the results are in. Particularly when a fairly high-profile, controversial Bigfooter appears to be horning in on it.
You can’t have proof of a species until you have a specimen. This isn’t a specimen. What we will have here, best case scenario, is pretty durned compelling evidence that there is something uncatalogued out there. We still won’t know what that is. And that is BEST case scenario.
This Dr. Ketchum is the same person who analyzed Gates’ supposed clump of yeti fur. Got exactly the same results. She’s not a DNA specialist, she’s a veterinarian and a fan.
I figure that when you take two woefully unimpressive monkey hunters and cross them with an unsubstantiated analysis all you’re gonna get is whatever the bigfoot version is of “All hat and no cattle.”
I’d like to wait until we see the report. Unless the collector of the samples is really careful its pretty easy to contaminate the samples so that they read out with human and animal DNA. The hard part is to separate the contaminants so you get pure samples.
Agreed, DWA.
…both human and animal characteristics
I’ll be interested to see how they rule out contamination of the sample if that’s the case.
Ah yes, Dr. Ketchum is a veterinarian and a “fan”, of course Dave Wall.
That’s the curriculum vitae of a simple fan and a naive bigfoot believer, with no deeper knowledge about genetics:
Dr. Ketchum has also established a research program ranging from gene mapping to developing the VeriSNP™ (patent pending) platform for universal genetic evaluation in multiple species of animals. Other research includes genetics of disease, population genetics and other genetically important traits such as coat color in animals. Dr. Ketchum is a past three-term Chairperson of the International Society for Animal Genetics Equine Genetics Standing Committee. She has also been Dog Map Chairperson and a Committee member on the Dog and Cat Parentage Committee. She is currently the Treasurer for AFDAA, The Association of DNA Analysts and Administrators. Dr. Ketchum has a daughter and a son and lives on her Attoyac Valley Ranch in East Texas.
Really sounds like a simple fan….
If, as some think, BF is derived from the same lineage as humans, having speciated as an archaic human around the time of H. erectus, I wouldn’t expect to see much in the way of ‘animal characteristics’ in its genetic code. Afterall the degree of hairiness and skeletal size are a question of the degree of expression for traits that we already share.
Demian66 is right on the money.
and of course her nephew Ash is one of the foremost Cryptozoologists.
What DWA said!!!!
Can’t know it’s a Sasquatch before we have DNA from a Sasquatch. It can only be evidence of something unknown at the most…
Some excellent points about DNA here (which is important with Lloyd Pye out there, uttering “if not X then Y” fallacies).
The “both human and animal” bit is most troubling, mainly for reasons already mentioned. But I also wonder: Are they trying to cut a round hole so vast that most any square peg will fit in? Or are they aiming for “Bigfoot is the missing link”?