Dalton Conley

Biologists have known that you can't talk about genes independently of the environment or the environment independently of genes. But what's really exciting as of late is that we now have tools because we've measured the whole human genome and we have a lot of data that we didn't have before that measures millions of people's genomes.

Biologists have known that you can't talk about genes independently of the environment or the environment independently of genes. But what's really exciting as of late is that we now have tools because we've measured the whole human genome and we have a lot of data that we didn't have before that measures millions of people's genomes.

We can construct these polygenic scores that predict outcomes like schizophrenia, educational attainment, height, body mass index, you name it, there's a polygenic index for it. That is a tool for us to see how genes and environment interact. And genes and environment interact in three ways.

We can construct these polygenic scores that predict outcomes like schizophrenia, educational attainment, height, body mass index, you name it, there's a polygenic index for it. That is a tool for us to see how genes and environment interact. And genes and environment interact in three ways.

And the first is, I'll give the example that you mentioned, is imagine a kid that's born with two working copies of the sprinter's gene, the fast twitch muscle gene that almost all elite athletes have. She's going to probably be picked up. First, when they choose upsides in the schoolyard, she's probably going to win all the games of tag or races in school.

And the first is, I'll give the example that you mentioned, is imagine a kid that's born with two working copies of the sprinter's gene, the fast twitch muscle gene that almost all elite athletes have. She's going to probably be picked up. First, when they choose upsides in the schoolyard, she's probably going to win all the games of tag or races in school.

Maybe she's going to be spotted and picked to go into organized sports and she's going to excel there. All that exposure, all that environment of getting chosen to be on an organized sports team, getting more investment in terms of summer camps and training. That's environment, but it's a result of her genes.

Maybe she's going to be spotted and picked to go into organized sports and she's going to excel there. All that exposure, all that environment of getting chosen to be on an organized sports team, getting more investment in terms of summer camps and training. That's environment, but it's a result of her genes.

It's a mechanism by which her genes are going to have the effect of making her, let's say, a division one athlete when she gets to college. A second aspect of how genes and environment are kind of indistinguishable is that

It's a mechanism by which her genes are going to have the effect of making her, let's say, a division one athlete when she gets to college. A second aspect of how genes and environment are kind of indistinguishable is that

The environments we encounter, your parents, of course, your siblings, your peers at school, your coworkers, they all matter to how you turn out or how you behave or your health, but they're partly made up of the genes inside their bodies. And we can show that, for example, If you marry somebody with high polygenic index for depression, that affects your likelihood of becoming depressed.

The environments we encounter, your parents, of course, your siblings, your peers at school, your coworkers, they all matter to how you turn out or how you behave or your health, but they're partly made up of the genes inside their bodies. And we can show that, for example, If you marry somebody with high polygenic index for depression, that affects your likelihood of becoming depressed.

In fact, the effect of your spouse's genes on depression are a third, almost as big as your own genes inside your body in terms of influencing your likelihood of depression. The genes of your classmates at school affect your likelihood of smoking almost as much as your own genes do. I call that the social genome or the environment is really genetics one degree removed to some extent.

In fact, the effect of your spouse's genes on depression are a third, almost as big as your own genes inside your body in terms of influencing your likelihood of depression. The genes of your classmates at school affect your likelihood of smoking almost as much as your own genes do. I call that the social genome or the environment is really genetics one degree removed to some extent.

And then the third way is that when there are massive environmental shifts, genes can matter more or less. So in the early 20th century, calories were scarcer, physical labor was more routine for most of us, and obesity was pretty rare. And genes didn't predict who was heavier or thinner.

And then the third way is that when there are massive environmental shifts, genes can matter more or less. So in the early 20th century, calories were scarcer, physical labor was more routine for most of us, and obesity was pretty rare. And genes didn't predict who was heavier or thinner.

But fast forward to today in our calorie abundant world and our more sedentary lifestyle, and the population is heavier, the distribution of weights is wider. And it turns out that genetics predict where you fall in that distribution much more than they did before. So those are the three ways genes create the environment they want or need, so to speak. The environment is in part genetics.

But fast forward to today in our calorie abundant world and our more sedentary lifestyle, and the population is heavier, the distribution of weights is wider. And it turns out that genetics predict where you fall in that distribution much more than they did before. So those are the three ways genes create the environment they want or need, so to speak. The environment is in part genetics.

One degree removed is the genes of the other people around you affecting you. And third, the environmental landscape influences how much genes matter or don't matter.

One degree removed is the genes of the other people around you affecting you. And third, the environmental landscape influences how much genes matter or don't matter.