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The concept of the gene is barely more than 100 years old; the DNA double helix was discovered some 50 years ago; and we gained the capacity to determine the sequence of an individual gene 30 years ago. In the past 5 years, a combination of two technologies -- machines that exponentially increase the speed of sequencing, and computing technologies that interpret and integrate genetic sequences -- have allowed the sequencing of the complete genomes of several major human pathogens, such as the bacteria that cause syphilis and tuberculosis.
The year 2000 will likely always be regarded as the year of the genome, because of two events. First, researchers announced that they had sequenced the genome of the most important organism for genetic stud…