Keeping It In The Family

The 'Kissin Cousins' post, and the comments posted, reminded me of something I had almost forgotten about .... which was that there was, when I thought on it, also the example from history of the 'Hapsburg lip', which we were taught about in school (back in the days when the UK taught British and European history).

The Lips Have It ......

This was apparently a medical condition, which accounted for all foreign wars in Europe since 1276 AD, or even longer, if memory of my teen understanding of the events serves me correctly!!In reality it didn't, it just seemed that way after the teacher had finished talking about it.

 

Kissin Cousins

According to the latest research by the university of Edinburgh (and actually not so latest research, as I recall being told this decades ago), having a very diverse parental genetic background gives a child a better chance in life.

Kissin Cousins USA ......

 

The outcome of these liaisons are both taller and smarter. The research looked at the DNA of over 350,000 people worldwide and confirmed that the offspring of unrelated parents, were both lankier and more intelligent than the offspring of people who were closely related, such as being first cousins.