DNA contains the genetic code found in all known life on our planet.
In each of nearly all of your roughly 30 trillion cells, there are 6.4 billion letters of DNA.
It's powerful stuff.
If the DNA in all of your cells was used to store computer data, it could hold the equivalent of all the digital data we currently store on Earth.
I'm Paul Nurse, and I've spent much of my working life thinking about DNA, in particular how it's copied and distributed inside cells every time they divide.
I was awarded the Nobel Prize for this work in 2001.
Our understanding of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, has grown enormously since its discovery in the 19th century.
DNA was shown to be responsible for genetic inheritance in 1944.
Then, in 1953, its structure was revealed using X-rays.
And DNA turns out to be a stunningly elegant molecule.
