In Iceland, with a relatively small population of about 320,000, the chances of people sharing the same ancestry or bloodline are quite large. You might be surprised to know that the cute girl you’re dating is actually a distant cousin.
Awkward moments like that can be prevented thanks to the Islendinga-App, or App of the Islanders, powered by Android. Basically, when you’re in a social gathering and want to exchange cell numbers with an attractive member of the opposite sex, your phones will sound an alarm if ever the both of you share the same distant grandparents (from several generations back).
The App of the Islanders was developed by a team of engineering students from the University of Iceland, namely Alexander Helgason, Arnar Athalsteinsson, Hakon Bjornsson, and Orn Guthjonsson. The goal of their project was to find creative and practical uses for the Islendingabok, or the book of Icelanders.
Historically, the Islendingabok has existed for thousands of years. It records the genealogy of about 95% of the current Icelandic population. Through its database, one can determine his ancestry which can reach as far as the age of Vikings.
So if ever you want to check if the hottie you’re dating is related to you, all you need to do is run the app and bump your phones together. Hopefully an alarm won’t go off, otherwise, he or she may be your second or third or fourth cousin.
But other than that, the more practical use of Islendinga-App is that it helps you keep track of your relatives, and even remember important events like birthdays. For now, according to the developers, the app’s database may be limited to Icelandic citizens and permanent residents of Iceland with the duly issued ID number.
If you’re into family trees and genealogies, check out the X-Men family tree and the geekiest family ever.
Via Popular Science
