August 21, 2012
The Moon has changed phase thousands of times since the beginning of the cosmos, but only once did it shine on the night you arrived.
DNA: The Molecule that Defines You
Birthday · August 21, 2012
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
Free PNG · 1080 × 1350 · No account needed
Image rights and credit requirements apply when sharing or reusing imagery.
Date & occasion only
Change the year
APOD published August 21, 2012 · Video still. Credit: Drew Berry, WEHI, HHMI, DNALC. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
very living thing on planet Earth is defined by its own molecule -- what's yours? This molecule, called DNA, spans about two meters stretched out but is coiled into every cell in your body. The many copies of DNA that compose you were all copied from one single cell, and your body is continually making new copies. The above ground-breaking animated video depicts the tiny, amazing, bio-molecular machinery that makes these DNA copies. For a fee, it is now possible to find part of all of the code of the DNA molecule that defines you, but lively debates involving ethics may arise regarding whether you or anyone may own, disclose, patent, or copyright it. No one knows if DNA-like molecules will also define life that originates outside of Earth.
Image credit: Drew Berry, WEHI, HHMI, DNALC