DNAprint Genomics (DNAG)

[bendriver]

todays PR

May 13, 2005 09:00:29 (ET)


SARASOTA, Fla., May 13, 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- DNAPrint genomics (DNAP, Trade) today announced that it will present at a U.S. Library of Congress Symposium in Washington exploring the hypothesis that North America was "discovered" by the Chinese prior to contact with Europeans.

The symposium on Monday, May 16 is entitled, "The Significance of Admiral Zheng He's Voyages (1405-1433)."

The symposium observes the 600th anniversary of the first voyage of Chinese Admiral Zheng He, a Chinese explorer. Carrying out the orders of Zhu Di, the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Zheng He undertook a series of expeditions between 1405 and 1433 with a fleet of 200 ships and a crew of 28,000 men, the largest maritime expeditions in world history.

The symposium will feature Zheng He scholars and experts who will discuss the latest discoveries about various aspects of the expeditions. Among the speakers will be Gavin Menzies, retired British Royal Navy Captain and the author of "1421: The Year China Discovered America," published in January 2003.

"The Chinese hypothesis has been hotly debated since it was originally proposed in Capt. Menzies' book," stated Tony M. Frudakis, Ph.D., the founder and Chief Scientific Officer of DNAPrint genomics, who will be a presenter at the symposium. "With DNAPrint's expertise and technology for measuring genetic ancestry and an extensive Native American DNA sample collection, we hope to bring a unique perspective to the discussion."