The sequencing of the human genome has been hailed as the most ground breaking scientific event of the new century. It offers the exciting prospect of fresh insights into our collective history, our shared identity and our individuality, and opens up important possibilities for the identification, treatment and prevention of disease. Not since Crick and Watson's seminal paper on the structure of DNA has a scientific publication been greeted with so much public expectation for a new understanding of the basis of life itself. In this illustrated account, written and compiled by Carina Dennis and Richard Gallagher of Nature, the genome project is made accessible for a general readership. It offers an introduction to the basic biology and techniques, a guide to the main players and events in the history of genetic science, and a range of viewpoints on its impact and reception around the world, in addition to the full text of the research paper itself.