December 23, 2016, by Lindsay Brooke

23 December 2016 – what’s the story behind door number 23?

Genetic history of the ‘ship of the desert’ revealed.

Although this research was published in May we thought is was topical enough to save until one of the last entries on our digital calendar.

This was a unique and pioneering study of the ancient and modern DNA of the ‘ship of the desert’ — the single humped camel or dromedary — which shed new light on how its use by human societies has shaped its genetic diversity.

An international team of geneticists led by The University of Nottingham, the University of Veterinary Medicine (Vienna) and King Faisal University in Saudi Arabia, were able to show how important long-distance and back-and-forth movements in ancient camel caravan routes were in shaping the species’ genetic diversity. The research was published in a top scientific journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USA.

Who opened the door?

Our thanks to Revd Canon John Bentham for opening the door of our digital calendar today. John is one of the longest serving members of the University’s Chaplaincy team. He thrives on coordinating the chaplains from all faiths, and looking after our premises and prayer rooms on all four campuses.

You can find out more about the digital advent calendar here.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Google+
• Share on LinkedIn