Why certain people are more musically gifted than others is not only influenced by environmental conditions, but also partly by our genetics, as shown by both twin studies and molecular DNA research. Overall, it’s both nature and nurture, and they are intertwined. We therefore have to consider genetics to understand how our environment shapes musical abilities and be cautious about making predictions based on our DNA as exemplified by analyzing Beethoven’s DNA.
Laura Wesseldijk earned her PhD in 2018 from the Biological Psychology Department at Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, focusing on risk factors for psychiatric problems in children. As a behavioral geneticist, she pursued postdoctoral research at the Karolinska Institute, studying gene-environment interactions in musicality and the link between music and mental health. Currently, Laura is a Senior Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics in Frankfurt am Main and an Assistant Professor at the Department of Psychiatry at Amsterdam UMC. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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Make the bad frame-rates go away, Mommy.