Based on the book by Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, this remarkable Ken Burns documentary tells the story of how scientists concluded genes are the key to understanding how families pass their traits to the next generation and that mutations of genes can be responsible for diseases. Extensive in scope, this four-hour film provides an awe-inspiring story of scientific investigation, brilliance, ingenuity, perseverance, and audacity to reveal the tale of what makes us who we are and what our future may be. Narrator David Costabile includes stories of hope for individuals and families inheriting genes responsible for sickle cell anemia, Huntington’s Disease, spinal motor atrophy (SMA), and other rare diseases. Doctors, scientists, medical researchers, and experts contribute material relating to this vast new field of the human genome, bioengineering, and precision medicine. Aristotle surmised traits of information were passed on from one generation to the next, and in the 1850s an Austrian monk named Gregor Mendel cross-bred pea plants and found that these plants carried two traits—one dominant and one recessive. After cross-breeding his plants, he discovered the recessive trait reappeared after a few generations, affirming that traits are passed down from one group to the next. Naming the traits genes, scientists discovered that the gene contained code with instructions and an ability to reproduce itself; they learned it was DNA. Rather than a molecule, DNA was a simple compound with four chemical components named A, T, C, and G. James Watson and Francis Crick were driven to find DNA’s structure, and, after building many models, settled on a double helix structure. Following their discovery, the National Institutes of Health initiated the vast Human Genome Project in 1990; with help and even competition from a private company, the groups completed sequencing the genes ten years later. Identification of a specific gene or genes causing a disease are now yielding treatments, depicted in several heart-rending segments. In particular, Dr. Wendy Chung at Columbia University has discovered genes for 40 rare diseases; she describes her work with one four-year old girl with a genetic mutation in the KIF1A gene. Gaining the interest of drug companies for rare diseases is a challenge, as Dr. Chung states there are over 5,000 rare diseases. Other scientists discuss working on these difficult diseases: Huntington’s Disease, Spinal Motor Atrophy (SMA), and Sickle Cell Anemia. With captivating historical background, moving stories by parents of children with rare diseases, and evidence of promising medical breakthroughs, this enlightening documentary is worth viewing. Highly recommended. Editor’s Choice. Aud: H, C, P. (T. Root)