Genomic Evidence for Clark's Theory of the Industrial Revolution

Using 600 genotyped DNA samples from Belgium, Denmark, England, Germany and the Netherlands from the eighth to nineteenth century we find a statistically significant positive time trend in educational attainment polygenic index scores. The upward shift in average scores on this genotypic index is large enough to serve as a contributory factor to the Industrial Revolution, consistent with Clark’s hypothesis. The positive trend becomes significant only in the period after 1350 CE.