…That’s a rather strange way to phrase it. Do you mean to ask what my favourite part of teaching my students was?

I suppose it’d be the thrill of watching them realise their potential. I seems a little trite to say, I suppose, but any other who has coached young minds would see the truth in my words…and of course, when said potential pertains to mutations, it’s all rather exciting.

My, you’re making me feel rather guilty for not paying attention to this little project of mine. Perhaps I ought to write more articles…

Now, regarding your question: the link to my article on the Science of Love was broken, but I believe it’s been fixed. As for love being a chemical reaction, that is precisely what I am talking about! The ‘click’ can be said to be a series of biological reactions - it’s not as simple or unromantic as it sounds, really. While each person’s personal definition of ‘romantic love’ is up to their own discretion, the very basics of it - feelings of attraction, attachment, etc, can be effectively explained by chemical reactions in the brain. Certain types of behaviour induce these chemical reactions, which makes sense, really - that is why when one engages in bonding behaviour with another, the relationship improves and the pair becomes more comfortable. Other miscellaneous traits such as monogamy have also been said to have links to genetics, which I elaborated on in the article - human behaviour is, after all, a result of brain activity. I hope this summarises it for you effectively…

I expect not much will happen at all, my dear. The American geneticist and Nobel laureate Hermann Joseph Muller, however, was born on December 21st 1890, if you’re interested.

I - er. Thank you?

Well, that really depends on what you mean by ‘best’ - in a very broad sense, I believe the most convenient mutation for a person to have is one that does not have any adverse side effects to the individual, of course. But really, all mutations are a marvel in their own way…

A bit of a broad question, really - I assume you mean in terms of genetic determination? Well, the very basics of it are this: much like  the colour of hair, variation in skin colour is mostly attributed to the presence of absence of melanin. Popular theory for the development of different skin colours would be adaptation to sunlight intensities, though there are a number of other hypotheses that refer to ambient temperature, sexual selection, etc. 

Determining the ‘cause’ of variation in skin colour isn’t as simple as pinpointing a single gene, I’m afraid - rather, it’s an interplay of many different genes, even if it leads to the same (or similar) result…for instance, the gene that causes light skin in Europeans differs from the gene that causes light skin in East Asians: the SCL24A5 gene is found in 99.9% of the European population, and yet is virtually non-existent in the East Asian population. Similarly, the SLC45A2 gene has been shown to be a major factor in the skin colour of modern Europeans, and yet it is extremely rare elsewhere.

Other genes involved in human skin colour include the OCA2 gene, of which the His615Arg allele has been said to account for 8% of the skin colour differences between African and East Asian populations…once again, it is present predominantly in the East Asian population only (at 85%), and non-existent in European and African samples. The DCT gene (dopachrome tautomerase), MC1R gene, and ATRN gene (attractin) have also been indicated as potential contributors to the evolution of light skin in East Asian populations.

There are, of course, many other hypotheses and genetic materials that come into play, but this ought to give you a rough idea. I hope this helps, my dear.

Ah, now that is a little more complex, I’m afraid, though the MC1R gene is key in determining hair colour. Being born with naturally white hair is extremely rare - while it could simply be a lack of information, I haven’t quite heard a case of it. Typically, it would be a variation of blond hair - a natural platinum blond, that is - but this tends to only be found in children, and will therefore change over time.

Alternatively, they could have a form of albinism - in which they would, of course, be completely lacking in pigment in their skin, hair and eyes. This can be caused by a variety of genetic mutations, but is typically due to the biological inheritance of genetically recessive alleles. On the other head, extremely premature whitening of the hair could also be a result of medical complications, such as Waadenburg syndrome or thyroid deficiencies.

…Or, they could be Ororo Munroe.