Question

Preliminary microscopy has shown the hair sample collected at the crime scene to be human. You must determine the race of the individual from which it came based on characteristics you learned in unit 4. What do you find?

Answer 1

Race is a social construct, not a scientifically valid concept. It cannot be accurately determined from a hair sample because there is a wide genetic variation within and across populations.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question involves determining the race of an individual from a hair sample. However, modern genetics has shown that race is a social construct with little scientific basis. Instead of race, the focus should be on ancestry which provides a more accurate representation of genetic diversity. Visible characteristics such as hair color, texture, and even skin tone are governed by genetics, but these traits do not neatly classify individuals into discrete racial categories.

Scientifically, it is not possible to determine an individual's race from DNA analysis alone, as only a few of the many thousands of DNA markers align with the traditional categorizations of race. Consequently, the student should understand that while preliminary microscopy might determine that the hair sample is human, the morphological characteristics observed will not reliably determine the race of the individual.