Pioneering geneticist J. Craig Venter, who revolutionized biology with his role in sequencing the human genome, died last week in San Diego. In this hour, we look back at Venter’s scientific contributions and consider whether our expectations for the medical and scientific transformations from DNA mapping have been realized. How has our knowledge of the human genome changed our understanding of how life works on a molecular level, and how much could it continue to change with the new powers of AI?

Guests:

Dr. Fyodor Urnov, professor of Molecular Therapeutics, University of California, Berkeley; scientific director, Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI)

Philip Ball, science writer, his most recent book is How Life Works: A User’s Guide to the New Biology

Michael Marshall, science writer, his most recent book is The Genesis Quest: The Geniuses and Eccentrics on a Journey to Uncover the Origin of Life on Earth

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