Very good, Dave. This is the technique called forkline, the arithmetic method, branching system, and I don't know how many other names. An automobile odometer uses it on rotors to produce 100,000 unique number combinations for mileage. My genetics prof taught it to all his students. I can do a two-locus forkline in half the time and with greater accuracy than a two-locus Punnett square. Three and four locus forklines are not particularly difficult. I've done a three-locus Punnett square once. Never again! That is why I have written more than once that only a masochist uses a Punnett square for more than 1 locus.

The forkline technique can substitute even for a one-locus Punnett square. And it is not limited to two choices. The technique can do straight genotype problems, straight phenotype problems and problems that are a mix of genotype and phenotype.

A forkline is much easier to turn into a computerized genetics program than a Punnett square is. As far as I know, this is the basis for the Genetics Wizard.

Paul Hollander

[ Hide Replies ]

• My mathematical punnet square approach.. - rainbowsrus, Tue Jun 26 12:17:08 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approach.. - TimS, Tue Jun 26 12:30:04 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - Paul Hollander, Tue Jun 26 16:21:23 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - rainbowsrus, Tue Jun 26 16:31:37 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - Paul Hollander, Tue Jun 26 17:35:13 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - Paul Hollander, Tue Jun 26 17:52:37 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - rainbowsrus, Tue Jun 26 17:57:47 2007
• Can you expand of the Paradigm gene? - hiss_n_herps, Wed Jun 27 22:47:24 2007
• RE: Can you expand of the Paradigm gene? - rainbowsrus, Thu Jun 28 00:43:38 2007
• RE: Can you expand of the Paradigm gene? - Paul Hollander, Thu Jun 28 14:08:27 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - Tibor, Tue Jun 26 17:45:47 2007
• Tibor - ????? was no post - rainbowsrus, Tue Jun 26 17:58:58 2007
• Sorry.. - Tibor, Tue Jun 26 20:08:12 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - jerseyserpents, Tue Jun 26 23:01:17 2007
• RE: My mathematical punnet square approa - jerseyserpents, Tue Jun 26 23:11:56 2007
• Close.... - rainbowsrus, Tue Jun 26 23:51:23 2007
• RE: Close.... - Paul Hollander, Wed Jun 27 09:14:23 2007
• RE: Close.... - jerseyserpents, Wed Jun 27 13:20:01 2007
• RE: Close.... - rainbowsrus, Wed Jun 27 15:39:47 2007
• Just when I thought I had Punnet figured - hiss_n_herps, Wed Jun 27 00:25:01 2007
• RE: Just when I thought I had Punnet figured - rainbowsrus, Wed Jun 27 03:04:26 2007
• RE: Just when I thought I had Punnet figured - hiss_n_herps, Wed Jun 27 22:14:27 2007