I spend a lot of time in different corners of the Internet. There are two trends in genealogy interests I’ve been seeing that are worth noting.
The major trend in a lot of fields is AI - specifically, ChatGPT and similar language models that attempt to converse in a human way. Despite the surge of “it’s taking over” articles, the chatbot meets search algorithm is limited by its training materials. And also, it’s a language prediction model, not a self-learning encyclopedia. It’s pretty inaccurate, especially if queries aren’t phrased appropriately. Despite it’s limitations, it could stand in as a research assistant for certain tasks or searches. I wrote an article at Medium about its potential uses in genealogy research.
In genealogical and lineage research, what ChatGPT best serves as is as a research assistant. You can provide it with a chunk of text and have it sort out patterns or search for information. But this can be done with other tools as well, so only you can decide if this format works better for you.
There’s a lot of history to be learned in genealogy and lineage research. My Lineage Research Space at Quora has seen some submissions so far this year interested in how their ancestry intersects with time.
A Romanian follower is looking for resources in determining if their ancestors were knights. They give a couple of surnames they’re interested in learning more about as well. One answer has already pointed out Familypedia as a resource - do you know any others? Feel free to comment here or answer them directly via the above link.
Another submission has also started a discussion over comparing maternal and paternal genetic genealogy results. Even if you aren’t comfortable sharing, it may be an interesting one to follow.
In submissions, there’s also been some confusion over the accuracy of commercial DNA tests for non-European ancestors - as well as some questions about what ethnicity means in this context. If you have any insight to offer, stop by the Lineage Research Space and give them your thoughts.
What are some of the research trends you’ve been running into? What questions about lineage research have been stumping you? As always, the comments are open.