800,000 year-old human DNA Debunked

Google "Oldest human DNA" and you see numerous sites saying "800,000 year-old Homo antessesor", but that's not right.
ScienceMag was the only media source I saw that got this story correct. So I will include that link here.

[blxair_strawberry]

So I just Googled year old human. The 3rd article that popped up was you. Saying that Aron Ra, debunked the article that was released April 1st 2020. Great job Aron!

[molecularalchemy]

PhD molecular biologist here with specific expertise in proteomics (discovery phase, high-throughput, label-free or labeled mass spectrometry). It's nice to see proteomics making it into the mainstream discussion; proteins are much more stable than nucleic acids over time and can be used to piece together putative genes (deconvolution) and thus are excellent candidates for forensic science and archaeology. Great work as usual Aron!

[stephenpeterson]

Aron, I can tell you from bitter experience that anyone who combines journalism education with an education in science and who tries to find a job as a science writer for a major news outlet will find that such jobs don't exist. I was educated in both disciplines and ended up taking general assignment reporting jobs because newspapers weren't hiring science writers. _This was back in the '80s._ I'm retired now, but over the years I shook my head innumerable times after reading articles with scientific content that were clearly written by people with a poor -- or nonexistent -- understanding of science.

[nahuelaizen]

An ecologist friend of mine made an experiment were he studied the impact of exotic bumblebees on crop performance. He found that the bumblebees that were been bought by the Chilean agricultural industry actually reduced raspberry fruit production because of over-visitation, and won an award for his findings. Yet the media run a completly fabricated story about him and his research, claiming that his work was about saving the honeybee.


Not only the media failed to grasp the actual aim and importance of his research, but they even photoshoped a picture of him to show him in a beekeepers outfit and published made up fake interviews with him. It was truly outrageous.


Sorry for spelling mistakes, english is not my first language.

[smooth_sundaes]

The line between a ley persons understanding and what science ACTUALLY says is ocasionally very thin so yes, don't trust journalists GO TO THEIR SOURCES. Don't know if you know Potholer54 but it's one of his particular mantras - read reliable peer reviewed studies not journalistic BS

[Troubleshooter]

Sure, you're "just a YouTuber, " Aron ... but you are NOT the AVERAGE YouTuber by a couple light-years, at least! Kudos for catching this foolishness and calling it out!

[theomnidegenerate]

This is why I have notifications turned on for this channel. I will never get tired of him debunking faulty research and pseudoscience

[lauriegraham]

This molecular biologist whose work has been somewhat misrepresented by the press (never to this extent thankfully) is very grateful for this. Some science reporters were conscientious enough to write their pieces and check back with us to ensure they were not making glaring errors, omissions or or misrepresentations. I was so glad that I was able to get the "Answers in Genesis" website to remove their misrepresentation of one of my papers but unfortunately, they are still misrepresenting the work of others in my immediate area of research. I have a few names for them which will remain unsaid in the interests of any children that may be reading.

[noxemvulpenhaire]

I concur. At college, we were always taught the importance of being accurate in your findings first before publishing. That's what lead to negative publicity of the measles vaccine being linked to autism.

[proton]

All science articles need to be proofread by a scientist. Even if it would make publishing a day or two late.
Also, someone needs to be fired for their laziness

[SC-vqzc]

This comment was added for "Engagement algorithm" purposes only.

[YacineBRINIS]

Never underestimate the power of stupid people in a large Group (George Carlin)

[Raptor]

This feels like a repeat of the T-Rex "soft tissue".

[pdoylemi]

Potholer54 (a science journalist himself, if I am not mistaken) taught me many years ago how unreliable most popular science articles can be. He is a truly underappreciated source on YT. If you are not already a fan or subscriber, you should be.

[billywindsock]

It is good to have a few grown ups that can trace and explain how science could and should work. It is quite sad that I no longer trust any science reporting in the media and any science I do trust has been checked by AronRa.

[eskiltester]

The way you explain things is just amazing and makes a dull thing fascinating.
Thank you for all your content Aron.

[huepix]

excellent points.
I see this behaviour regularly.
Even David Attenborough would say things like, "evolution decided to adapt this or that, or the organism decided to grow mandibles etc.
These, of course, are not decisions. They are results of natural processes.
The language is misleading.
Celebrity physicists do a similar thing talking about time, like it's an actual thing rather than a way of comparing relative change

[q]

Imagine instead of having websites and sources, it was the telephone game across generations until finally written down decades or centuries later. That's religion.

[FrankieParadisoevah]

The wittiest and most astute debunker of the early 21st century!

[lucashampton]

Oh wow look! Intellectual honesty from a defender of evolution! BuT wHaT aBoUt PiLtDoWn MaN??

Jokes aside. It's nice that this got cleared up.