Clever Genes

by Jane Waite, Queen Mary University of London

Evolution was a hot topic in Victorian times. One person interested in whether parents passed on their traits and abilities to their children biologically was Francis Galton. He was particularly interested in how people became geniuses. There is no evidence to suggest that Francis Galton met Ada, but he did spend time with her husband after her death and included Ada and her father in his book 'Hereditary Genius'.

Galton, like his half-cousin Charles Darwin, author of the famous, ground-breaking book 'The Origin of Species', was interested in evolution and was trying to figure out whether there were connections across generations. But Galton's book did not connect flying squirrels and flying lemurs, or reptiles and birds, he was interested in eminent 'men of his time' and was looking for patterns in their families. He classified judges, statesmen, men of science, musicians, painters and poets scoring them according to how gifted members of their family were. Ada's father, Byron was classified as having 'hereditary ability' as Galton judged him to have eminently gifted relations, Ada!

The ideas driving Galton's attempts to draw conclusions on whether intelligence is inherited are still rumbling along, with researchers still using family studies, particularly with twins, to investigate it. Many conclude that intelligence is one of the most heritable traits, however there is still lots of controversy in this area of research. One of the problems is that with family often comes not only genes but also wealth and opportunity, so the children of successful people have massive advantages in most societies irrespective of genetics.

New software, GCTA, Genome wide Complex Trait Analysis is providing a new way of looking at things, it estimates genetic influence in large samples of unrelated individuals. Complex algorithms churn through huge amounts of genetic data to find patterns related to traits such as height, genetic disorders and intelligence. The hunt is on for a clever gene!

Galton thought that Ada's mathematical genius was linked to her father's poetical genius. Perhaps her legacy will be to have contributed to the development of computer science and eventually the algorithms and programs that will reveal the sequence of DNA, that links their intelligence for real. Let's vote to name it the Ada gene. On the other hand perhaps the computers will show there is no such gene once and for all. Most likely we will find intelligence comes from a complex mix of genetics and upbringing.

One thing is clear, irrespective of genetics, anyone can be successful at anything if they are single-minded enough. The amount of effort you put into practicing skills matters far more than any innate advantages you may or may not have in your genes. So whether it is playing the violin, playing football or writing programs, by the time you have practiced for 10,000 hours with support from a good teacher, every one will be proclaiming that you are a born genius.