CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology is one of the newest and most promising tools in science. But what is it? How does it work? And what are scientists doing with this technology that has been described as a molecular genetic scalpel? In this first of two episodes, we talk with Dr. Rodolphe Barrangou, the first scientist to discover and publish results demonstrating what the CRISPR-Cas9 system can do, thereby opening the door for other scientists and discoveries.