Media Release

Email this article

Evidence of the world's first nuclear family. Photo courtesy of Jurag Liptak and Karol Schauer. Full Image (79.87K) An artist's impression of the Stone Age nuclear family. Image courtesy of Jurag Liptak and Karol Schauer. Full Image (40.38K)

Monday, 22 December 2008

The discovery of the world's earliest "nuclear family", led by University of Adelaide DNA researcher Dr Wolfgang Haak, has been named in TIME magazine's Top 10 Scientific Discoveries of the Year.

Dr Haak led a multidisciplinary team that unearthed Stone Age burials in central Germany, which yielded the earliest evidence of people living together as a family.

One of the 4600-year-old graves contained the remains of a man, woman and two youngsters. DNA analysis shows they were a mother, father and their children.

The results of the research were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences last month and received worldwide media attention.

Dr Haak, who joined the University of Adelaide's Australian Centre for Ancient DNA this year, conducted the research while at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany. The discovery involved colleagues from the University of Bristol, UK, and the State Heritage Museum of Prehistory, Halle a. d. Saale, Germany.

The research findings - which represent the oldest authentic molecular genetic evidence of a classic "nuclear family" existing in a prehistoric context - have been ranked as the number 10 Top Scientific Discovery for 2008 by TIME magazine.

Dr Haak said he was very excited to hear of the recognition given to his research by TIME.

"I'm very pleased with it... it's a brilliant result for us, and a very nice, early Christmas present," he said.

The full list can be found here under Scientific Discoveries.