The Story of You: ENCODE and the human genome

Ever since a monk called Mendel started breeding pea plants we've been learning about our genomes. In 1953, Watson, Crick and Franklin described the structure of the molecule that makes up our genomes: the DNA double helix. Then, in 2001, scientists wrote down the entire 3-billion letter code contained in the average human genome. Now they're trying to interpret that code; to work out how it's used to make different types of cells and different people. The ENCODE project, as it's called, is the latest chapter in the story of you.

[aglobalnomad]

Thank you for making crack up. The delivery was perfect:

"Mendel is known as the father of genetics, which, since monks aren't allowed to father much of anything, is both naughty and excellent."

[pixietrix]

Love this short movie- so much better than what they showed at primary school when I was younger. I especially like the the emphasis on each genetic mix making you, you, and you. Also doesn't hurt that I think Tim Minchin is amazing!!

[Toqwert]

It feels so refreshing to read comments that do not just consist of profanity and disinformation. And to see fellow human beings with the vocabulary that is beyond black and white. To those here, I thank you.

[lovelyroroa]

Genes Are Certainly Tricky =) loved it's simplicity, it's beautiful animation and it's variable tone voicing 

[unvergebeneid]

I love how you chose the Arecibo message as a symbol for "code" at 2:05 since it doesn't only look cool but also contains the double helix.

[Rettequetette]

Yay, Tim Minchin! The perfect voice for a story like this :-)

[IXPrometheusXI]

That's how I've always conceptualized mutations. It's nice to have a professional support that understanding.

[IXPrometheusXI]

Direct observation isn't the only tool science has to understand the world. We develop theories using experiments on things we can access directly to make predictions about things which we can't. E.g., discovering properties of light here on Earth and using them to see what stars are made of even when they're very far away. We see how things change over more limited time scales, then extrapolate to make predictions about the past. Fossils can provide evidence to support these predictions.

[luanneoneill]

Tim Minchin! Cool stuff. Science is awesome.

[drummerluckydunco]

Every time I am in one of these discussions with of these sorts of people, conversation inevitably raises the fact that we can only theorise as to how we came to be. 'That's why they're called theories!' I am passionately told, to which my reply always has been; 'Gravity is also a theory. Are you going to prove that wrong, just float the fuck away?'
To my surprise, I have yet to find someone who has. They've tried, but it usually ends with them hurting themselves.
Thumbs up for Mr. Minchin xD

[thehungrycannibal]

Gravity is not a theory... but I understand your point.

[arnieestrellado]

this is a 10! just what did you guys use for animation?

[IXPrometheusXI]

Genetic drift is a change in allele frequency due to random sampling. These are not mutations, but anomalies that are a result of the procreation process functioning normally. Differing environmental pressures on the same species will favor differing traits, causing a divergence in different populations of the same species. Over time these differences become more pronounced. You may want to search "speciation" on wikipedia for more/detailed information. Running out of room here. That help?

[MarkChittyUK]

liked the addition of the arecibo message into the animation....

[bonetrommer]

This should be used in biology classes

[redmadhatter]

Watson, Crick, and Franklin having tea together? Hah! No doubt Crick and Watson pinched the tea bags from Rosalind's pantry.

[dephelis]

Not to mention that mutations also occur spontaneously in the formation of sperm and eggs. Current research indicates that a 20 year old father passes an average of 25 de novo (fresh) mutations to his children, a mother of the same age passes around 14 de novo mutations via her eggs. There are several known mechanisms for evolution including natural selection, mutation, genetic drift and gene flow (the reason around 9% of our genome has viral origins).

[IXPrometheusXI]

You seem to know a bit about what we're talking about here. What do you think would have happened if mutation never happened? Would everything have died, or maybe evolution still could have happened, but more slowly?

[gillianbarth]

You should do something with CrashCourse!

[ebonybeach]

Lovely video. The one thing you missed out is that genes code for proteins, and nearly everything in the body is made from proteins. Without understanding this, I think it is really difficult for the average person to really understand how genetics work and why genome projects are so important. Proteins make up thousands of components of every cell, so when you inherit faulty genes or develop a genetic mutation, a faulty protein (or sometimes no protein at all) is made --> disease, cancer etc.