Genealogy Gems Episode 202 – Free Episode

The Genealogy Gems Podcast
Episode 202
Lisa Louise Cooke

Highlights of this episode include:

  • AncestryDNA’s new Genetic Communities: An Interview with Catherine Ball, Ancestry’s Chief Scientific Officer;
  • Meet contestant Joe Greer from Relative Race, the genealogy reality show;
  • The new Genealogy Gems Book Club featured title: a novel from an internationally best-selling author
  • A botched reference to the 1950 census in a Stephen King novel?and 5 tips for counting down to the 1950 census release in exactly 5 years
  • Naming traditions tip from a listener
  • Lisa’s Google search strategies: search operators, YouTube and more

 

NEWS: ANCESTRYDNA GENETIC COMMUNITIES

Ancestry.com rolls out AncestryDNA Genetic Communities

FREE VIDEO: Introducing AncestryDNA Genetic Communities

Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 201 about new AncestryDNA study

 

NEWS: MYHERITAGE CONSISTENCY CHECKER

Access by logging in to your MyHeritage account and find this tool under the Family Tree dropdown menu:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This podcast is sponsored by:

MyHeritage.com is the place to make connections with relatives overseas, particularly with those who may still live in your ancestral homeland. Visit www.MyHeritage.com

 

 

A Similar Tool: RootsMagic Problem Search

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In RootsMagic, find it under the Tools menu. Select Problem Search, then Problem List to select the different kinds of problems you can have RootsMagic identify for you and to choose what age ranges you decide are out of bounds for a new father or mother.

Thank you to our podcast sponsors:

Backblaze lisa louise cooke

animoto how a genealogy society can grow membership

MAILBOX: NAMING TRADITIONS

download backblaze

Norwegian naming traditions tip from a listener

Irish naming conventions mentioned in this Q&A with Irish expert Kate Eakman

Mexican Genealogy Guide by David A. Fryxell

2 more places to find naming traditions:

Google search: for the name of the country or ethnic group, plus naming traditions

FamilySearch Wiki


MAILBOX: GOOGLE SEARCH OPERATOR TIP: “Oppenheim the butcher, NOT the bomb!”

FREE VIDEO TUTORIAL:
Speak Google’s Language: Google Search Operator Basics

The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox, 2nd edition by Lisa Louise Cooke

Google Drive and other tips

 

 

 

 

MAILBOX: STEPHEN KING AND THE 1950 CENSUS

To search inside books in Amazon:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTERVIEW: JOE GREER ON RELATIVE RACE

Meet Team Black: Joe and Madison Greer of Portland, OR

Joe Greer Relative Race

 

 

 

 

Relative Race BYUTV

Relative Race: “What happens when genealogy meets reality TV? Using their DNA as a guide, contestants embark on the ultimate road trip across America, completing challenges and meeting unknown relatives along the way.”

Click here to watch past episodes online for free.  The last two episodes of season two, 9 & 10, will air back to back respectively at 7pm MT/9pm ET and 8pm MT/10PM ET on Sunday, April 30.

Click here to learn more about the show

 

BONUS CONTENT FOR GENEALOGY GEMS APP USERS
Free PDF summary of 8 top genealogy TV shows from the past several years and where you can watch them online?a few of them for free, including Relative Race.

The Genealogy Gems app is FREE in Google Play and $2.99 for Windows, iPhone and iPad users.

 

INTERVIEW: Catherine Ball, Chief Scientific Officer, Ancestry.com

About Catherine Ball: Chief Scientific Officer at Ancestry

Catherine Ball Ancestry

FREE VIDEO DEMO: Introducing AncestryDNA Genetic Communities

Study using AncestryDNA data identifies group migration patterns

Thanks to Your DNA Guide Diahan Southard for joining us to talk about this new development in genetic genealogy. Click here to learn more about Diahan’s how-to DNA video tutorials and personal consultation services for solving your family history mysteries with DNA.

 

GENEALOGY GEMS BOOK CLUB

New featured title: The Whole Town’s Talking by Fannie Flagg

 

A multi-generational novel about a Swedish immigrant and the town he builds in the American Midwest by luring other Swedish settlers and a mail-order bride. As characters die, they take up residency in the local cemetery and continue to comment on the activities and people of the town.

Also recommended by Fannie Flagg: The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion

New from past Book Club authors:

The Missing Man by Nathan Dylan Goodwin, a novella in his popular Forensic Genealogist series

Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave is now available in paperback

Everyone Brave is Forgiven Chris Cleave

PROFILE AMERICA:
THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE

 

PRODUCTION CREDITS

Lisa Louise Cooke, Host and Producer

Sunny Morton, Editor

Diahan Southard, Your DNA Guide, Content Contributor

Lacey Cooke, Service Manager

Vienna Thomas, Associate Producer

Genealogy Gems Newsletter Sign Up
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40 Million New Genealogy Records To Help You Locate Your Family History

In December the genealogy records website Findmypast.com released new and exclusive historical records that highlight significant life events of the past.  According to the the company, more than 40 million new records are included.  Here are all the details from their press release:

LOS ANGELES (Dec. 17, 2012) – “The number of records released offers findmypast.com’s users a staggering amount of new data, ranging from exclusive United Kingdom records from as early as 1790 to modern-day vital records from the United States that will add new layers of information for researchers,” said D. Joshua Taylor, lead genealogist for findmypast.com, “Findmypast.com is constantly expanding our collections with thousands of new records being added each month. Moving into 2013, we look forward to increasing our record offerings to include rarer, more exclusive materials, in our dedication to provide the most comprehensive family history resource available.”

Many of the new records that can only be accessed through findmypast.com offer a unique glimpse into history. The Harold Gillies Plastic Surgery set, dating back to World War I, contains fascinating records of some of the world’s first restorative plastic surgery, while the White Star Line Officers’ Books include officer records from the Titanic.

Newly added employment and institutional records including the records of the Merchant Navy Seaman (aka the Merchant Marines) provide unique color to family history that can’t be created from just names and dates. Other record sets include probates and wills, such as the Cheshire Wills and Probates, which often offer crucial clues to link North American family trees back to the United Kingdom.

The full set of exclusive records recently released by findmypast.com includes:

United Kingdom Court & Probate

  • ·   Cheshire Wills and Probate
  • ·   Suffolk Beneficiary Index

United Kingdom Education & Work

  • ·   Cheshire Workhouse Records, Admissions and Discharges
  • ·   Cheshire Workhouse Records, Religious Creeds
  • ·   Derbyshire Workhouse Records
  • ·   Match Workers Strike
  • ·   White Star Line Officers’ Books

United Kingdom Military

  • ·   Army List, 1787
  • ·   Army List, 1798
  • ·   British Officers taken Prisoners of War, 1914-1918
  • ·   De Ruvigny’s Roll of Honor
  • ·   Grenadier Guards, 1656
  • ·   Harold Gillies Plastic Surgery – WWI
  • ·   Harts Army List, 1840
  • ·   Harts Army List, 1888
  • ·   Manchester Employee’s Roll of Honor, 1914-1916
  • ·   Merchant Navy Seamen (aka Merchant Marines)
  • ·   Napoleonic War Records, 1775-1817
  • ·   WWI Naval Casualties
  • ·   Paddington Rifles
  • ·   Prisoners of War, 1939-1945 British Navy & Air Force Officers
  • ·   Prisoners of War, 1939-1945 Officers of Empire serving in British Army
  • ·   Royal Hospital, Chelsea: documents of soldiers awarded deferred pensions, 1838-1896 (WO 131)
  • ·   Royal Hospital, Chelsea: pensioners’ discharge documents 1760-1887, (WO 121)
  • ·   Royal Hospital, Chelsea: pensioners’ discharge documents, foreign regiments, 1816-1817 (WO 122)
  • ·   Royal Hospital, Kilmainham: pensioners’ discharge documents, 1773-1822 (known as WO 119 at the National Archives)
  • ·   Royal Navy Officers Medal Roll, 1914-1920
  • ·   War Office: Imperial Yeomanry, soldiers’ documents, South African War, 1899-1902 (WO 128)
  • ·   WWII POWs – British held in German Territories

In addition to the exclusive records sets, this recent release includes additional records from the United States, Australia and Ireland. An update to the World War I Draft Cards collection provides registrations and actual signatures of more than 11 million young Americans from the beginning of the twentieth century.

Additional records released include:

United States Military

  • ·   Japanese-Americans Relocated during WWII
  • ·   Korean War Casualty File
  • ·   Korean War Deaths
  • ·   Korean War Prisoners of War
  • ·   Korean War Prisoners of War (Repatriated)
  • ·   U.S. Army Casualties, 1961-1981
  • ·   Vietnam Casualties Returned Alive
  • ·   Vietnam War Casualties
  • ·   Vietnam War Deaths
  • ·   WWI Draft Cards
  • ·   WWII Prisoners of War

Life Events

UNITED STATES:

  • ·   Kentucky Birth Records, 1911-2007
  • ·   Kentucky Death Records Index, 1911-1999
  • ·   Kentucky Marriage Records Index, 1973-1999
  • ·   Texas Divorce Records Index, 1968-2010
  • ·   Texas Marriage Records, 1968-2010

AUSTRALIA

  • ·   Northern Territory Anglican Baptisms and Confirmations, 1900-1947
  • ·   Northern Territory Anglican Burials, 1900-1968
  • ·   Northern Territory Anglican Marriages, 1902-1953

IRELAND

  • ·   Irish Catholic Church Directories, 1836-37

Census Land and Surveys

 AUSTRALIA

  • ·   Northern Territory Census, 1881-1921
  • ·   Northern Territory Electoral Rolls, 1895-1940 

Institutions & Organizations

AUSTRALIA

  • ·   Northern Territory Parliamentary Index, 1884-1890

Newspapers, Directories & Social History

AUSTRALIA

  • ·   Northern Territory Section of the Queensland Post Office Directory, 1920-1921

How Artificial Intelligence AI and Machine Learning Impact Genealogy

Artificial Intelligence and Genealogy
Elevenses with Lisa Episode 32

In this episode we tackle a few small geeky tech questions about artificial intelligence, better known as AI, that may have a pretty big impact on your genealogy life. Questions like:

  • Is artificial intelligence the same thing as machine learning?
    And if not how are they related?
  • And am I using AI, maybe without even being aware of it?
  • And what impact is AI really having on our lives? Is it all good, or are there some pitfalls we need to know about?

We’re going to approach these with a focus on family history, but pretty quickly I think we’ll discover it’s a much more far-reaching subject. And that means this episode is for everyone.

Free Webinar AI Machine learning and Genealogy

Watch the free video below.

While I’ve done my own homework on this subject and written about it in my book The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox, I’m smart enough to call in an expert in the field. So, my special guest is Benjamin Lee. He is the developer of the Newspaper Navigator, the new free tool that uses artificial intelligence to help you find and extract images from the free historical newspaper collection at The Library of Congress’ Chronicling America. I covered Newspaper Navigator extensively in Elevenses with Lisa episode 26.

Ben  is a 2020 Innovator-in-Residence at the Library of Congress, as well as a third year Ph.D. Student in the Paul G. Allen School for Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington, where he studies human-AI interaction with his advisor, Professor Daniel Weld.

He graduated from Harvard College in 2017 and has served as the inaugural Digital Humanities Associate Fellow at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum,  as well as a Visiting Fellow in Harvard’s History Department. And currently he’s a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow.

Thank you so much to Ben Lee for a really interesting discussion and for making Newspaper Navigator available to researchers. I am really looking forward to hearing from him about his future updates and improvements.

Artificial Intelligence and Genealogy

Covering technology and its application to genealogy is always a bit of a double-edged sword. It can be exciting and helpful, and also problematic in its invasiveness.

Tools like family tree hints, the Newspaper Navigator and Google Lens (learn more about that in Elevenses with Lisa episode 27) all have a lot to offer our genealogy research. But on a personal level, you may be concerned about the long reaching effects of artificial intelligence on the future, and most importantly your descendants. In today’s deeply concerning cancel culture and online censorship, AI can seriously impact our privacy, security and even our freedom.

As I did my research for this episode I discovered a few things. Artificial Intelligence and machine learning is having the same kind of massive and disrupting impact that DNA has had on genealogy, with almost none of the same publicity. (For background on DNA data usage, listen to Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 217. That episode covers the use of DNA in criminal cases and how our data potentially has wide-reaching appeal to many other entities and industries.)

A quick search of artificial intelligence ancestry.com in Google Patents reveals that work continues on ways to apply AI to DNA and genealogy. (See image below)

Patents for AI machine learning and DNA

Patent search result: a pending patent involving AI and DNA by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

AI now makes our genealogical research and family tree data just as valuable to others outside of genealogy.

This begs the question, who else might be interested in our family tree research and data?

Who Is Interested in Your Genealogy Data

One answer to this question is academic researchers. During my research on this subject The Record Linking Lab at Brigham Young University surfaced as just one example. It’s run by a BYU Economics Professor who published a research paper on their work called Combining Family History and Machine Learning to Link Historical Records. The paper was co-authored with a Notre Dame Economics and Women’s Studies professor.

In this example, their goals are driven by economic, social, and political issues rather than genealogy. Their published paper does offer an eye-opening look at the value that those outside the genealogy community place on all of the personal data we’re collecting and the genealogical records we are linking. Our work is about our ancestors, and therefore it is about ourselves. Even if living people are not named on our tree, they are named in the records we are linking to it. We are making it all publicly available.

In the past, historical records like birth and death, military and the census have been available to these researchers, but on an individual basis. This made them difficult to work with. Academic (and industry) researchers couldn’t easily follow these records for individual people, families, and generations of families through time in order to draw meaningful conclusions. But for the first-time machine learning is being applied to online genealogy research data making it possible to link these records to living and deceased individuals and their families.  

It’s a lot to think about, but it’s important because it is our family history data.  We need to understand how our data is being used inside and outside the genealogy sandbox.

Answers to Your Live Chat Questions About AI

One of the advantages of tuning into the live broadcast of each Elevenses with Lisa show is participating in the Live Chat and asking your questions.

Elevenses with Lisa Q&A on AI and Genealogy

www.GenealogyGems.com/Elevenses

From Linda J: ​What about all the “people search” sites (not genealogy) that have all, or a lot of, our personal date?
Lisa’s Answer: My understanding is that much of the information provided on many of the “people search” websites comes from public information. So while the information is much easier to access these days, it’s been publicly available for years. That information isn’t as accessible to projects like the one discussed in this episode because those websites don’t make their Application Programming Interface (known as API) publicly available like FamilySearch does.

From Doug H: Wouldn’t that potentially find errors in our trees?
Lisa’s Answer: Yes.

From Sheryl T: ​Do these academic researchers have access to the living people on the trees? Or are those protected from them as it is to the public?
Lisa’s Answer: They have access to all information attached to people marked as “Living Person.” Therefore, if the attached record names them, their identity would then be known. Click a hint on your tree at Ancestry for example, and the found records clearly spell out the name of the person they believe is your “Living” person.

From Nancy M: ​How long do the show notes stay available? am looking for Google Books two weeks ago and last week’s Allen Co Library.
Lisa’s Answer: The show notes remain available until the episode is archived in Premium Membership. You can find all of the currently available free Elevenses with Lisa episodes on our website in the menu under VIDEOS click Elevenses with Lisa.

Nannie A: I heard a rumor that Ancestry .com has been sold. Do you know if that’s true?
Lisa’s Answer: Yes, they were sold again this year. Read:
Private equity firm Blackstone Group Inc. buying Ancestry.com for $4.7 billion
Private equity wants to own your DNA by CBS News.

Resources

Get My Free Genealogy Gems Newsletter – click here.
Bonus Download exclusively for Premium Members: Download the show notes handout. 
Become a Genealogy Gems Premium Member today. 

 

Season Nine

Listen to the Genealogy Gems PodcastGenealogy Gems Podcast Episodes

2013 – 2014  Season Nine

Episode 161
I was so impresssed with Yngve Nedrebø, the Chief archivist at Riksarkivet (National Archives of Norway) who I recently interviewed for the Family Tree Magazine podcast that I’m publishing an extended version of that interview here on the Genealogy Gems Podcast. This is a “must hear” for those with Norwegian heritage. In this episode you’ll also hear from a fellow listener and get a chance to see his family history tour that he created in Google Earth using the techniques I teach in the Google Earth for Genealogy video CD series. And we’ll get a taste of the history of coffee.
Keywords: Norway, Norwegian, Google Earth, Family History Tour, Death Certificate, Coffee

Episode 162
Wondering how to get your kids and grandkids engaged in family history? Looking for worthwhile activities for the kids over the Christmas break? In this episode author Janet Hovorka provides answers. Our children are the future of our families, and there’s no better time to help them engage, explore and enjoy their family history!  Special Guest: Janet Hovorka.
App Users: Be sure to check out the audio Bonus Content in the Genealogy Gems App!
Keywords: Kids, Grandkids, Zap the Grandma Gap, Contest Winner, Blog, Pinterest

Episode 163
Get ready to flip out with me over Flipboard. It’s a free app and web tool that you have to see to fully appreciate. In this episode I’ll take you behind the scenes at Flipboard in the Silicon Valley and talk to the folks who create the product that helps you enjoy the online content you love. I’ll also share a little discovery I made about family history when I threw my back out over the holidays (there’s got to be an easier and less painful way to do family history research!) and get you up to date on all the genealogy news.
Keywords: Flipboard, Pinterest, Rootstech, Family Health History, Magazine

Episode 164
In this episode you’ll hear what you’ve been missing and how to get it from the Ancestry Wiki. Also how to do a very specialized type of Google search you may have never tried, a French-Canadian genealogy resource, a living relative dilemma, and much more.
Keywords:
Ancestry Wiki, Google Earth, Top 10 List, French Canadian, Purple Heart Video, Jamboree, DNA Swapped, BillionGraves, Evernote

Episode 165
A Blast from the Past: Revisit  the remastered episode 13 (recorded back in 2007) which features World War II Service Records, and how to create a Family History Book your non-genealogist relatives will actually read.
Keywords: Print on Demand, Writing, Military

Episode 166
This episode is loaded with genealogy news, ideas, and tips.  We focus on you, the listeners, and here some incredible stories of genealogical success!

Episode 167
Colonial American Genealogy with Beth Foulk. Also new online newspaper collections, NGS 2014 wrap up, and why you do research your family history.

Episode 168
This episode is all about DNA. First we’ll discuss Ancestry’s closure of some of their DNA tests, and then you’ll meet Your DNA Guide, Diahan Southard, a new regular contributor to Genealogy Gems.

Episode 169
Catch a glimpse of the silent movie era and how it was an integral part of your ancestors’ lives. In this episode, I find out more about the silent movies my grandmother cataloged in her diary, and how they molded a generation. Interview with Film Historian Sam Gill of the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum.

Episode 170
Lisa Kudrow, Executive Producer of the TLC television show Who Do You Think You Are? is back to the podcast for another visit. Lisa shares her enthusiasm and feelings about the show, and her hope for its future. Also in this episode, Lisa Louise Cooke shares some incredible successes she’s experienced in her own family history journey lately.

Episode 171
Storyteller Ron Ploof discussed Project Lizzie, and sharing your family history stories with others. Other topics: A strategy for coping and excelling in the face of technological change, Online Seniors and a bit of reminiscing about party lines, a new feature for finding the genealogy topics you need at Genealogy Gems, A newspaper research tip that pays off big, family history jewelry, and the history of the first U.S. federal loan.

Episode 172
The official launch of the exciting news Genealogy Gems Book Club, a cool free online map tool British research, Google Translate, stories of inspirational finds, DNA for genealogy, and a Star Trek take on the innovations of yesteryear! 

Episode 173
We all need a little inspiration now and then, and in this episode I’ll bring you some inspiring books to read, motivating comments from other listeners, and some new ideas to try. And a report on using Autosomal DNA for genealogy.

Episode 174
In this episode I’m going to share a personal story from my own family history just recently uncovered, and pull from it 3 powerful strategies that you can start using right away to further your own genealogy research in newspapers. We will also hear from author Emma Brockes in our Book Club, and Your DNA Guide will be here to explain the latest updates at AncestryDNA.

 

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