Dr. Sophie Kay

@scientistsoph.bsky.social

6665 Followers 1410 Following

Pro Genealogist & Scientist at www.khronicle.co.uk, #Genealogy Expert for Time Team. Oxford D.Phil.(SysBio), Fiend for #maps & #research methods. Big hair, big heels, weakness for cake.She/her. Blog: www.parchmentrustler.com

Six Hats for Genetic Genealogy, a talk by Dr. Sophie Kay of Khronicle. A DNA helix and several images of hats are arranged around the title slide
woman's foot wearing a chunky, high-heeled shoe in a bright turquoise colour
Illustration of people standing around a water cooler. Image c/o Getty Images, licensed via Unsplash+
Find us at venues across Liverpool - British Science Festival, Liverpool, 10 - 14 Sep 2025
British Science Festival, Liverpool 10 - 14 September 2025. All events are free - book now!
Research Skills Studio - week 1: search superpowers, by Dr. Sophie Kay. Graphic shows a magnifying glass floating in the air
Family History research skills workbook from Family Tree, by Dr Sophie Kay. Practical worksheets, case studies and exercises to hone your search strategies
Promotional slide showing a magnifying glass over the top of historical photos and documents. The Research Skills Studio from Family Tree Plus, running 29 April to 20 May 2025
Composite of historical images from various eras and places, each depicting a separate occupation. We have chorus girls, nuremaids, shoemakers, glass blowers, street merchants, washerwomen and pedlars
Pen and ink sketch of people labouring at a works, moving coke around in barrows and sacks. In the middle is a man in a bowler hat, possibly a salesman of some kind, in conversation with a waistcoated working man. A young woman in a shawl looks on.
Oil painting of three women, two men and a boy in 18th century attire. The women wear bonnets and the men have longish hari reaching to their shoulders
Historical engraving of a room in a calico factory. The space is dominated by two huge machines which drawf the workers nearby. Cloth is running through the visible machines and a pattern can be seen along their length. In the background are worktables where other workers are attending to smaller scale tasks, possibly involving printing blocks
Heritage photo in black and white. A young man in his twenties. He wears heavy overalls and an overcoat, both of which are discoloured and splashed with moisture from the sewer environment. He wears a hat on his head and one of his bare hands rests on the stopcock of a pipe in front of him. In his other hand he holds a hammer,
What does this mean for my genetic data The filing does not change how we store, manage, or protect customer data. Through the sale process, 23andMe will look to secure a partner who shares in its commitment to customer data privacy and will further its mission of helping people access, understand and benefit from the human genome. Any buyer will be required to comply with applicable law with respect to treatment of customer data. Our users’ privacy and data are important considerations in any transaction, and we remain committed to our users’ privacy and to being transparent with our customers about how their data is managed. You can opt into and out of our research at any time by updating your consent status in your account settings. If you opt out, we will stop using your information for research going forward (we cannot affect studies that have already been completed) and will discontinue use of your data within 30 days.
If approved by the Bankruptcy Court, the Company will actively solicit qualified bids to acquire all or parts of 23andMe
modern photograph of a sabre and a scabbard. The hit of the sword and the entire body of the scabbard are covered with ornamental metalwork and an array of precious stones
Colour sketch of a man at work in three different tasks in turn: house painter, where he is painting a door; glazier, in which he is fitting some glass; and plumber, where he is tending to some pipes
18th century printed trade card, advertising the Hand and Lock Of Hair, Fleet Bridge, London. The wording promotes 'fresh live hair in the sweat or ready curl'd'
Black and white heritage photo of a man in a suit standing in a bicycle workshop. He holds a chisel in his hand and is using it to file down the components of a bike gear system, which is held in a clamp in front of him
Colour oil painting of a dodo, with a parrot in the background. Around the animals is a range of plant types
Oil painting of an agricultural scene. We can see a field and two workers in profile; an older man and a young boy are standing behind a plough drawn by two horses. The boy receives instruction from the bearded man in how to guide the plough across the field
Oil painting of an agricultural scene. Several workers are in a field; in the background workers with scythes are cutting the crop. In the foreground, dominating the scene, is a man in a white shirt and black pantaloons, holding a sheaf of corn which is as tall as he is
Black and white heritage photo of an enormous room in a cement works. Vast cylindrical drums forming cement kilns are ranged along one side of the room; controls wheels for the machinery, ladders and pipes are visible along the length of the space. To the right of this, two workers - quite blurred in the exposure - are visible. Caption reads: Photo no. 69. Rotary kilns in new mill of Pacific Portland Cement Company, Solano County
Black and white photo from the 1950s of a teenage girl sitting behind the wheel of a lorry. The window is open and she is slightly leaning through the space, wearing a leather jacket. The door is painted with the company name - O G Jones, Bryn Owen, Haulage Contractor, Anglesey
Image of four enema syringes made variously of brass, ivory,ebony and pewter. The difference in materials is highly apparent from the variation in colour
Heritage photograph in sepia tones, showing a little boy in profile sitting at a school desk. His feet do not yet touch the floor and he is intently focused on the pages in front of him, which are laid on the desk
Historical watercolour schematic with a detailed view of a church organ, showing the organ pipes and chancel area within the church
Heritage photo of a large electrical testing and experiment room, in which four men in suits sit or stand and look on at a range of devices they are working on. A profusion of circular metal objects of varying sizes are ranged over the top of one of the surfaces
Oil painting of a servant girl in black gown and a white apron. She sits down and has a slightly resigned expression on her face
Printed opening page of a Bible from 1683, describing 'the holy Bible newly translated out of the original tongues…printed by John Heyes'. Engraved illustration around the text shows ornate columns
A still life painting depicting a full bouquet of flowers placed within a decorative floral vase. The contents include roses, daisies and carnations.
Four women sit or stand in a domestic room, designated as a lacemaking room judging by the lace pillows in front of them and further cushions ranged along a shelf on the wall
oil painting, 19th century. Interior of a room with a map on the wall and a desk in the middle. Two standing women are discussing their business with a seated man, who is listening with a passive expression. One of the women seems very animated and is leaning forwards, her elbow propped on the table top.
Black and white heritage photo of a man standing in a public space at night, holding a circular lamp. He wears a hat and leans back against a wooden pallet, looking off to the side of the shot as he surveys the area around him
Colour oil painting of a ship at a small quayside. The ship's mast and sails are visible and there are two men standing on the deck. People, a horse and cart and buildings are visible in the background
Front cover of I Would Meet You Anywhere, a memoir by Susan Kiyo Ito
Watercolour painting from the medieval era of a wire drawer. He sits on a stool in front of a series of dies with holes of various shapes and sizes. Lengths of coiled wire are visible in the rest of the room.
Heritage photo from the mid 20th century. A man in a short sleeved shirt and trousers stands in front of a large expanse of cotton yarn which is hanging down from the ceiling. He is guiding the yarn from an overhead machine into a pile ready for baling and transport
PoultryFancier-1912-WKM-PubDom.jpg
Artistic rendering of men at a quayside, hard at work in loading beams into a ship. The drawing is in a modern style and includes lots of sharp angles in the shapes, building an impression of men hard at work lifting heavy loads
Heritage photo from the mid 20th century. A working man in overalls stands in front of a large hand wheel, with which he controls the angle of an enormous metal bucket in front of him at head height. The bucket is tipping up and some bright molten metal is pouring out. The man smokes a cigarette whilst he works.
Black and white heritage photo of a railway line. Three working men stand atop a large pile of scrap iron inside a railway freight car, and are visibly throwing items onto the pile as they load the car with material
Computer graphic in red and aqua. Mitotree mtDNA haplogroup - analysing - BETA
Two men stoop over a tree stump with long pole-like tools.
Watercolour sketch of a potter at work. He stands behind a potter's wheel wearing an apron and is fashioning an item on it, whilst an assistant on the floor helps to control the motion of the turning mechanism
pen and ink sketch of a longer ropewalk structure. One figure stands in the distance guiding long stretches of rope being formed, whilst another turns a large vertical wheel which dwarfs him, to effect the turning of the rope strands
17th century engraving with Dutch descriptions, describing the work of the thread twister. Three men gather around a bench where they have a length of rope forming, hooked into a cranking handle which they are turning around to form the rope.
Historical engraving in black and white. A middle age woman of stout build and with a formidable expression is pouring out a mesaure of drink
Colour advert for Hudson's Extract of Soap, for Washing, Cleaning and Scouring Everything. A door is ajar and through the gap we see a woman using a dolly tub to do the laundry
Heritage portrait photo of a young woman in her twenties, wearing a dress and a simple necklace
Oil painting of a country scene outdoors. A young woman in the simple dress of a milkmaid and barefoot, stands by a large cow, presumably ready to lead the animal off for milking. Other cows are visible in the background and one other cow is lying down closer to the viewer
Front cover of the March 2025 issue of Family Tree Magazine
Print of a 19th century engraving advertising the services of a stationery company. The design features an open book propped up, with the advertising detail across its pages reading as follows: Hickson: stationer, engrave and printer, maker of merchants' account books &c.
Book cover of Elements of Genealogical Analysis by Robert Charles Anderson
Heritage photo in black and white. A scene from a room of a fibreglass factory. A smiling woman wearing her work apron pushes a trolley of filled fibreglass spools through the room. Many in - progress winding spools are visible in the background.
Heritage photo in black and white, showing an outdoor scrapyard. Huge piles of scrap iron dominate the view and industrial buildings and towers are visible in the background.
Black and white photo of a man at work in a paper plant. He wears trousers and a white vest and the machine in front of him is enormous, with a number of huge cylinders covered in paper. The man is adjusting the machine using a crank wheel
Heritage photo in sepia, early 20th century. Two girls sit at a table indoors, with bunches of paper flowers on the surface in front of them. One of the girls is busy gathering a number of the flowers together and has an expression of concentration; the other has a sad look on her face and is almost looking out at the viewer.
Colourful painting of tin miners, a crowd of men wearing hard hats are in the foreground and the mine is visible in the background, where a man and dray stand too
Sumptuous interior of a traditional theatre, viewing from an upper balcony or circle of the auditorium. Boxes hung in red drapes are visible to the left and right, whilst the illuminated stage has golden coloured curtains