yego.me
💡 Stop wasting time. Read Youtube instead of watch. Download Chrome Extension

Genetics 101 | National Geographic


2m read
·Nov 11, 2024

  • [Narrator] Genetics helps us understand the biological programming behind all life forms. But what exactly is the science of genetics? And what does its future hold?

Genetics is the study of heredity. The expression of traits and how they are passed from generation to generation. For thousands of years, humans have observed this inheritance of traits and implemented their knowledge to breed and domesticate plants and animals.

However, the science behind inheritance was only starting to be understood in the mid-19th century. Around 1865, Austrian monk and botanist, Gregor Mendel, published the results of his hybridization studies of pea plants. In his findings, he noted the role of factors that influence the expression of traits. These factors later became known as genes.

Each human has between 20,000 and 25,000 genes. This collection called a genome determines a person's traits by influencing factors on a cellular level. Genetic information is stored in every cell's nucleus. Structures called chromosomes carry this information in the form of deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA.

DNA is a double helix of nucleotides, chemical compounds composed of sugar and phosphate molecules along with the bases thymine, adenine, guanine, and cytosine. These segments of DNA are what we call genes, and it is within those genes that chemical compounds provide the coding for all information about a person's inherited traits.

Human cells contain so much DNA to carry this large amount of information that if unraveled, the DNA in each cell would be over six feet long. At the turn of the 21st century, an international effort to decode human DNA was launched called the human genome project; it ended up identifying about 99% of the entire human genetic sequence.

Discoveries in genetics research have unearthed tremendous opportunities in medicine such as genetic testing and the manipulation of genes. But with these opportunities come risks and ethical questions, and finding the answers to those questions may be the next stage of our understanding of genetics.

More Articles

View All
It's better to be alone than wish you were
In my experience, people often see loners as outliers—people who, for some reason, don’t mesh well with the rest. They’re often seen as having traits or qualities that somehow don’t align with the group’s norms. There are indeed cases in which this is tru…
Watches You Buy As You Get Richer
As you get richer, things change, right? Including how you spend your time, but also how you look at the time. Ever wonder what your watch says about you and your bank account? Well, from the first costume you buy with your allowance to the Rolex you flau…
How McDonalds Is Taking Over The World
Every 5 hours, somewhere in the world, a new McDonald’s pops up. It’s been said that McDonald’s is one of the very few businesses that will always be profitable and recession-proof. And once you look at the stock, it seems to be true. So how did McDonald’…
Mesh current steps 1 to 3
Now we’re going to discuss the second of two popular ways to analyze circuits, and this one is called the mesh current method. This is actually one of my favorites. There’s a fun spot in here where we make up currents flowing around in circles inside the …
Why Warren Buffett Refuses to Buy Stocks | 2022 Annual Letter
Every year I look forward to Warren Buffett’s annual letter. This letter is full of advice and offers a sneak peek into how Buffett is thinking about the stock market and the overall investment landscape. Surprisingly, Buffett continues to hold cash and n…
The Secret of Compressed Air | Science of Stupid: Ridiculous Fails
Air is a remarkable substance. Not only does it allow us to breathe, which I think we can all agree is a good thing, but if you compress it and contain it, you can have loads of fun. Like defying the laws of physics. Or for wacky furniture. Whack! See? T…