Product Details

• Actors: Robert Krulwich
• Directors: Betsey Arledge; Elizabeth Arledge
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: WGBH Boston
• DVD Release Date: June 29, 2004
• Run Time: 120 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0001WTULW
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #15,192 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  #12 in	Movies & TV > Documentary > Series & Studios > PBS > NOVA
  #58 in	Movies & TV > Television > WGBH Boston

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The work of geneticists who have labored for years to map human DNA is the subject of this offbeat yet highly informative documentary from the PBS series Nova. Host Robert Krulwich, a correspondent for ABC Nightline, visits with scientists who explain, in terms understandable to laymen, the enormous challenges faced and overcome by scientists working on the Human Genome Project. The value of the research effort is underscored with visits to families affected by inherited diseases that could someday be eradicated, and even legal matters such as research patents and potential privacy issues are also covered intelligently. The race between government researchers and private biotech firms is detailed, and at appropriate times host Krulwich is able to inject some good-natured humor into this excellent documentary. --Robert J. McNamara

Product Description

Does it amaze you that yeast is your very close relative? That you possess roughly the same number of genes as a mouse? That you are 99.9% genetically identical to every other human? ABC Nightline correspondent Robert Krulwich lends a lighthearted touch to genetic science in this provocative two-hour NOVA special that takes you inside the amazing, complex and contentious race to decode the human genome.

The Human Genome Project was born in 1990, when an international consortium of labs set out to sequence all 3 billion letters of our DNA, predicting they’d finish by 2005. Halfway through their schedule, controversial scientist and entrepreneur J. Craig Venter threw the genome world into turmoil, when he announced his for-profit company Celera could finish the job in just two years. Francis Collins, leader of the publicly-funded effort, and MIT’s Eric Lander were among the scientists who answered Venter’s challenge. The result made history and laid the foundation for a remarkable future.

Armed with this powerful information, medical pioneers are in the midst of astonishing breakthroughs that will change medicine as we know it. Will you get cancer, arthritis, or Alzheimer’s? The answer lies in your genetic code—but the question is: Do you want to know? And will these new discoveries eventually lead to cures?

On one DVD5 disc. Region coding: All regions. Audio: Dolby stereo. Screen format: Letterboxed.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great movie, February 6, 2007

By	Kirsten Kessler (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am a high school Biology teacher and every year I show this film to my students as an introduction to our study on Genetics and Heredity. This is a great film that illustrates how the Human Genome Project began and examines the potential ethical dilemmas as well as potential benefits the completion of this project may have for society. Rarely can I show a "science" film and have so many students afterwards agree that it really was fascinating. In fact given its 2 hour length we can't finish it in one sitting and they beg me each day "Can we finish that movie today?" This movie stimulates some fascinating conversations in my classroom, and as a teacher, who could ask for more?

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very educational, August 13, 2008

By	D. Houtz (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I teach a college class on the Human Genome Project and always use this as my intro. It gives a good generic background in layman's terms, and then I can easily refer back to it later in class, as "remember in the movie you saw...". I recommend it for ninth grade or older audience, including adults.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Nature Works - Cracked Wide Open, May 12, 2007

By	K. Salter (Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is an exceptional documentary about the mapping of the human genome and its implications for humanity. Well structured and presented in laymens terms, helps to make Cracking the Code of Life an important addition to understanding Evolution.