Word: xyy
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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History shows that genetic misinformation can be severely damaging. Take, for example, the supposed link between the XYY chromosome pattern and criminal behavior. In 1965 a study of violent criminals in a Scottish high-security mental institution found that a surprisingly high percentage had a particular chromosomal abnormality: in addition to the X and Y chromosomes normally found in men, each carried an extra Y, or "male" chromosome. The press and public seized on the idea that these so-called supermales were genetically predestined to a life of crime. That interpretation proved false. Further investigations showed that the vast majority...