Since the structure of DNA was first discovered by Watson and Crick in 1953, scientists have asked themselves what the human genome (DNA sequence – order of genes) really is. The technique to sequence DNA was only developed in 1980s by Fred Sanger and was called ‘Sanger sequencing’ or the ‘dideoxy method’. The Human Genome Project started soon after and was eventually finished on February 15th 2001. The Human Genome Project used anonymous DNA from human donors and volunteers from diverse backgrounds, so no one knows whose DNA was actually sequenced. The primary aim of the Human Genome Project was to determine the exact sequence of the human DNA to “see” what is unique about humans that makes us so different from other forms of life. The human genome was determined to consist of around 20,500 genes which are actually very few relative to other organisms. For example, a small worm can have about the same amount of genes as a human which doesn’t make much sense, since it is obvious that humans are more complex organisms. The answer is because the size of genomes is not really indicative of the number of true genes. This is because many genes have turned out to be pseudo genes - defective copies of true genes. In truth more information about our genes is discovered every day, but it will still be years before we can fully discover the reason for our complexity.