Genetics and Heredity

If you've ever been to a crowded mall or airport, you may have found yourself amazed at all the different types of people. Some are really tall. Others are really short. Some have long, curly hair. Others have straight hair. Some have big ears or noses. Some are in wheelchairs. You may have seen a big family and noticed that they all looked very similar. Why all these differences and similarities? The answer can be found in the study of genetics. 

All living things resemble their parents. However, each person has unique characteristics that make it different from every other living thing on Earth. This is because the parents pass along characteristics called traits to their offspring. This passing along of traits is called heredity. All plants and animals—large, medium, and microscopic—inherit traits from their parents through information in the cells.

Genes control inherited traits. The shape of our eyes, our hair color, and the shape of our nose and our skin color are all examples of inherited traits. They carry instructions for our design down to the last detail. We get genes from both our mother and father. But we do not look exactly like our parents, right? This is partly because we get a blend of both sets of genes. In addition, our parents can have hidden genes. In other words, they might have characteristics they pass along to you that they themselves didn't show.

Think About It!

Do you look like your mother or your father? Can you point out specific traits, such as your hair, ears, or nose, that look like a parent's? If you have siblings, do you look like them in certain ways? Take a closer look at your family!