As this book goes to press, the polygene discovery featured herein has failed to be replicated by other scientists. The preponderance of evidence points toward some evolutionary significance, but the association with type 2 diabetes susceptibility remains elusive. Nora is a sought-after speaker on methodological matters, and her message is always the same: “Proceed with care and with caution.” Diabetes genes have been reported in Icelandic populations that do not rely upon racializations or “admixture.”1 Whether these findings stand the test of confirmation, replication, or the weaknesses that result from sociocultural black box effects, remains to be seen.2
The race debates continue, and the attempts to find genetic contributions to chronic health inequities of minority groups runs relatively unhampered.3 Further, the theoretical rationale for ethnic-specific genes for diabetes, particularly the thrifty genotype hypothesis, has been challenged, and the fields of epigenetics, systems biology, and fetal origins have steadily been uncovering evidence in favor of their approaches to chronic disease disparities.4 In spite of this, the moment, methods, and myopia of chronic disease genetics remain in full force.