More support for genetic origins of political beliefs

A new twin study adds to the growing evidence that genetic predisposition contributes to our political leanings. The report, published in Political Psychology, provides empirical evidence of this, although the authors are quick to point out that the study does not suggest that genes are the sole determinant of our views. The findings are based on the results of a survey designed explicitly to tease out personality traits and political attitudes among nearly 1,200 sets of middle-aged twins—both identical and fraternal—identified through the Minnesota Twin Registry. The identical twins’ political views were consistently more similar than those of the fraternal twins; even after controlling for a common environment, the genetic association remained significant. The research team found that the genetically influenced personality characteristic defined as “openness” tended to be correlated with a liberal orientation, and, to a lesser degree, “conscientiousness” was associated with conservativeness. Of course, the authors are careful to note that environmental factors, as well, “exert influence throughout the lifespan.” Their results also suggest that political predispositions are not linked to personality traits such as extraversion or neuroticism but “may constitute another dimension of personality.” —Karyn Hede, News Editor

Pitfalls of the “wild frontier” of high-throughput genomics

Data, data everywhere, but no time to stop and think about it. That’s one of the many pitfalls that can beset the unprepared in the wild frontier of modern genomics. But stop and think we must if we are to make sense of the high volume of data generated by genomic studies. In a feature recently published in PLOS Biology, a team of genomics researchers uses caricatures to categorize counterproductive behaviors they have seen among genomics researchers. Along with laughs, the authors provide recommendations for experimental design, effective communication among group members, and sound interpretation of data. Two of the six types are shown here (illustrations by Dan Madsen). —Karyn Hede, News Editor

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