All tagged genome

Are you more special than an onion?

As the only species that has been able to evolve to a point where we can read our own genetic code and start asking big questions about how it works and how it makes us who we are, we can perhaps be forgiven for thinking that the human genome is still pretty darn amazing – certainly more special than a onion. But is it true?

Genes or junk?

Actual genes make up less than 2% of all the DNA in the whole human genome. So what’s all the rest? Is it just junk? The exact quantity and function of all this non-coding DNA is still a hot topic in the world of genetics, and – like the exact number of genes – seems to depend on how you measure it and who you ask.