[Felicia:] You know, "genes" was a double-letter score. I definitely won this game! [Caitlin:] Are you kidding me? First of all, "genes" was my idea; you played "SNP" -- [Felicia] -- which is not a word -- [Caitlin:] I played "zymergy." I definitely won that game! [Felicia:] Whatever. You and your fancy science words. You just let me know anytime you want a rematch. [Caitlin:] All right, all right.... Hey, did you ever get your ancestry test back? [Felicia:] No, I should hear back from them any day now. I'm super excited to nerd out on the results. [Caitlin:] Well, you know you have the Human Genome Project to thank for that. [Felicia:] That's right. None of these ancestry or health tests would even be possible if scientists hadn't invested 13 years and billions of dollars into sequencing all 3.2 billion base pairs of the human genome. [Caitlin:] Well worth the time and money, in my opinion. Not only is it helpful here in the present, but we can also use DNA from ancient samples to understand how humans evolved as a species. [Felicia:] Ancient DNA, aDNA. Almost sounds Canadian, doesn't it? Get it? eh-DNA. [Caitlin:] I'm American. [Felicia:] Phht! No need to get snippy! [Caitlin:] These science puns, you're killing me. We did learn this week about single nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, and how they can be used to investigate your personal health. And also how ancient DNA -- or aDNA -- can tell us more about ourselves and the world around us. [Felicia:] You know, I've always wanted to get into one of those fancy ancient DNA labs we have here on campus. They get to wear such cool white spacesuits. [Caitlin:] Slow down! That's enough for one course, thank you. Maybe in our next decoding adventure we can tackle it. [Cell phone buzzing] [Felicia:] I got the results! [Caitlin:] Let me guess, you're undead Romanian. [Felicia:] No, it's the weirdest thing. It says that I'm a Celtic princess! [Caitlin:] Are you kidding me?! [Felicia:] Are you kidding me... Your Highness! [Caitlin:] That's not going to happen. I can't believe you're a Celtic princess! [Felicia:] Well, you never know until you look at your genes. [Caitlin:] DNA is so weird. [Felicia:] DNA is so amazing! [Caitlin:] Wait, let me see. I need to look at these results... Did you take some of my DNA when I wasn't looking? [Music] [Felicia:] Hey, Cait. Guess who I just saw in the hallway? [Caitlin:] A zombie? [Felicia:] No, don't be ridiculous. Zombies are the stuff of science fiction. I saw Hendrik Poinar. [Caitlin:] Oh, wow. He's a rockstar scientist. You know, moving on from the Black Plague, he's published some amazing new findings on smallpox and malaria. [Felicia:] But don't take our word for it. Check out the videos in the supplementary materials. [Caitlin:] Now, we haven't resurrected any extinct animal today, but it may only be a matter of time. That truly is the stuff of Jurassic Park. [Caitlin:] Let's just hope we don't get eaten. [Felicia:] Okay, okay. So, at the beginning of this course, we promised we'd give you a much better understanding of what DNA is. And, more importantly, how that knowledge can provide you with a richer understanding of the role DNA plays in inheritance, forensic investigations, health, and disease. [Caitlin:] This wasn't meant to be an exhaustive course. But we did do a few deep dives into the chemistry and research methodologies associated with the bases, RNA, enzymes, and proteins that all play a role in making us, us. [Felicia:] Especially, when you nerded out on us. [Caitlin:] I'll take that as a compliment. Sometimes, understanding the concepts and context of a topic like DNA, requires specific knowledge about the biochemistry at the root of it all. [Felicia:] And that specific knowledge, as we hope you've seen, was the result of decades of work by scientists all around the world. Some of them, like Watson and Crick, became famous. Others are less well known. Some, like Rosalind Franklin, are only recently receiving the credit they deserve. But the vast majority were anonymous, dedicated, and sometimes obsessed scientists, who solved a single puzzle and pushed the whole crazy jigsaw of the field further ahead. [Caitlin:] That's how science works. Research is a collaborative effort that spans time and geography. [Felicia:] We hope we've left you with a sense of wonder about how human minds have decoded the cipher that creates those minds. [Caitlin:] If nothing else, we hope we've given you a deeper understanding of the mechanics and issues involved in DNA. So, no matter which side of these issues you stand on, you can have an opinion that is now more informed. [Felicia:] And of course, we hope you've had some fun along the way because somewhere in the code of life we've managed to retain a sense of humour that makes us human. [Caitlin:] Thanks for taking the course! Stay curious. [Felicia:] I am curious! [Caitlin:] No kidding!!
