Genomic anthropology: coming in from the cold?

By rendering obsolete the theoretical opposition of nature and culture, the study of the human genome has given rise to fresh networks among anthropologists and other scholars. These developments, in turn, invite a refashioning of anthropology. Because genomic studies are directly concerned with the constitution of personhood, they must engage with local notions of personhood and belonging, thus undermining the distinction between experts and laypersons and demonstrating the need for new frameworks for collaboration between anthropologists and their subjects. These trends are illustrated by research in Nunavut (Canada) and Greenland, in particular an examination of the similarities and differences between modern gene talk about the constitution of the individual and "Inuit epigenetics"--local notions of naming, subjectivity, and relatedness.