The Jim Twins

THE JIM TWINS You take it for granted that you are a unique person, different from everybody else on Earth, and you understand that everybody else is also unique. Identical twins are fascinating because they challenge this notion: they are unique people, of course, but they’re also unnervingly similar to each other - and not only in terms of appearance. They often share opinions, mannerisms and personality traits. Identical twins are rare, occurring in about three out of every 1000 births. They seem to occur at random, regardless of the age or ethnic background of the mother (unlike nonidentical twins which are, for example, far more common among Africans than Asians). Although they may be tiny differences in physical appearances between two identical twins, which allow family and close friends to tell them apart, they do have exactly the same DNA. This is because they develop from a single egg, which divides in two during the very early stages of pregnancy. For most scientists, it’s the non-physical similarities between identical twins that are the most interesting: are they the result of growing up together in the same home, or are they the result of their identical DNA? By studying identical twins who have not grown up together, researchers can see which similarities remain and which disappear. In other words, they can learn which aspects of a person’s identity are determined by genes and which are influenced by the environment. The Minnesota Twin Study is probably the best-known twin study to date. The study provides information about how our environment and genes work together to influence everything from attitudes, talents and abilities, to job selection, falling in love, aging and health. Identical twins Jim Lewis and Jim Springer were only four weeks old when they were separated; each infant was taken in by a different adoptive family. At age five, Lewis learned that he had a twin, but he said that the idea never truly “soaked in” until he was 38 years old. Springer learned of his twin at age eight, but both he and his adoptive parents believed the brother had died. The two Jims were finally reunited at age 39. The similarities the twins shared not only amazed each other, but also amazed researchers at the University of Minnesota. The very fact that both twins were given the same name was a big coincidence. But there’s more: ● As youngsters, each Jim had a dog named “Toy”. ● Each Jim had been married twice - the first wives were both called Linda and the second wives were both called Betty. ● One Jim had named his son James Allan and the other Jim had named his son James Alan. ● Each twin had driven his light-blue Chevrolet to the same beach in Florida for family vacations. ● Both Jims had at one time held part-time posts as sheriffs. ● Both were fingernail biters and suffered from migraine headaches. While not as eerily similar as the Jim twins, many more instances of strange likenesses can be found among twins who were raised apart. For example, identical twins Tom Patterson and Steve Tazumi had very different upbringings. Raised in a Christian family by two janitors in rural Kansas, Tom still managed to choose the same career as his brother, Steve, who lives in Philadelphia and was raised in a Buddhist household. Both men own body-building gyms. Taken from Cambridge English First Result It’s obvious from these twins’ stories that genetics are a major factor in shaping who we are. In fact, research so far indicates that characteristics such as personality are mainly related to genes. This means that our character traits as adults are largely determined before we are born - and there is very little that we, or anybody else, can do to change them.