Advent Science Day Twenty-Four

[rjw76]

So. What's all this about human eye colour, then? Remember how you were taught in high school that brown is dominant, and blue is recessive? And how the one awkward kid with green eyes always left disappointed

Comments

[megabitch]

I've always found eye-colour (and hair colour) interesting because of my own family's variations. Dad has brown eyes and brown hair; Mum's eyes are green and her hair is dark blonde; my eyes are what could be termed hazel - look green or brown depending on lighting and size of pupils etc, variation from dark orange-y brown at the pupil to a green ring around the edge - and hair was blonde when younger but is now a reddish brown (bleaches to orange because of the red in it); both sisters are blue-eyed blondes (one has a brown "beauty spot" in one iris).

[megabitch]

Gah, hit send too soon. I was going to say that one side of my extended family has colouring that could be called "mediterranean" and another has mid-european jewish - that's for the ones that can be recognised - because the rest of the family are definitely of English mongrel stock ;)

[atreic]

Merry Christmas, and thank you!

Although I think by the time you're in worlds where magic works, one can presume local!genetics is different to real!genetics, to allow us our auburn haired violet eyed mary sues...

[martinoh]

Or one could just play the chimerism card :-D

[the_ladylark]

Huh, I didn't know violet eyes were actually possible outside bad Mary-Sues etc!

Funny you should make the comment you do, because i've just been reading Game of Thrones, where the inheritance of eye and hair colour actually has plot relevance, and there is one family who are mentioned as generally having violet eyes. And white-blond hair :)

By the way, i'm enjoying your posts, for reminding me of genetics i'd forgotten, and teaching me additional interesting things like about horse coat colour! Thank you.

[ceb]

Thank you for writing all this, is has been really interesting!

[blackcurrants]

I've really enjoyed this. And now I have a (potential) answer for why oh why oh why my son has blue blue blue eyes just like mine, when Tom's are lovely deep chestnut brown.

Poosticks. I love brown eyes and think they're beautiful. Ach well!