Create a standardized 'Urheimat Mismatch Index' (UMI) that quantifies how far a present‑day population’s genetic profile projects from its current location after Procrustes alignment to a continental genetic–geographic surface. The index would decompose displacement into likely contributions (recent admixture, drift/isolation, sample bias) and require a published robustness map before any historical or political interpretation is attached.
— A public UMI would let policymakers, journalists and courts distinguish robust population‑genetic signals from overstated origin or migration claims, reducing misuse of genetics in identity politics and legal cases.
Davide Piffer
2026.01.10
100% relevant
Piffer’s article implements Procrustes superimposition and measures line‑segment residuals between predicted (genetic) and actual (geographic) positions; those residuals are exactly the raw ingredient for a UMI.
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