Homework Assignment for Day Two.

Seek answers to the following questions about the Human Genome Research Project. You may want to begin at the National Human Genome Research Institute's Web page

Policy and Public Affairs (http://www.nhgri.nih.gov/Policy_and_public_affairs/)

For students interested in repeating the exercise that was done in class with computer images, see HHMI's Blazing a Genetic Trail: Research on Mutant Genes and Hereditary Diseases. (http://www.hhmi.org/genetictrail/start.htm) and click on the Genetic Recipe for Making Proteins.

Questions

1. When did the project begin and how many years will it take to complete?
2. What is a genome and what is the ultimate goal of the Human Genome Project?
3. Of what use is the complete base sequence of the entire human genome?
4. How much will the project cost the taxpayers? How much of the budget is devoted to ethical issues?
5. How is the Genome Project orchestrated as opposed to other "big science" projects, such as space travel?
6. The Human Genome Project is interdisciplinary in that scientists from many fields are working together towards the final goal. What different fields of science have been 'tapped' in order to make this project a success?