12 hours ago
Did genes or ancestry make the Manning brothers? Why not both?
The field of sports genomics is rife with argument, starting with the simple question of what athleticism even is. For every study that shows a relationship between ribonucleic acids and raising trophies, another contradicts it. The interplay of slow- and fast-twitch fibers that makes balance, concentration, spatial awareness, these are not traits like hair color. Maybe someday genomics will be a useful predictor of whether you're growing a Hall of Famer at your kitchen table, but for the moment, it's overneat to the point of uselessness. If you're going down the rabbit hole of athleticism, at least go down a more intriguing path that embraces the messiness and mystery: genealogy.
