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30th Anniversary of the Human Genome Project

Interviews with genomics leaders

October 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the Human Genome Project (HGP). To commemorate this historic milestone, NHGRI’s History of Genomics Program is featuring 30 oral history interviews with prominent genomics experts relevant to the HGP and the broader field of genomics. This collection includes interviews with HGP architects, government officials who managed the HGP and researchers who actively contributed to the HGP’s success. We will feature one oral history per week for 30 consecutive weeks, culminating on Oct. 1, 2020.

Magdalena Skipper

Magdalena Skipper, Ph.D., is the editor-in-chief of Nature. Dr. Skipper trained as a geneticist at the University of Nottingham as an undergraduate, and later completed her Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge in Jonathan Hodgkin’s lab. After completing her Ph.D., she joined the Laboratory of Molecular Biology at the University of Cambridge and later the Imperial Cancer Research Fund before shifting her career in a more editorial direction. In this interview, Dr. Skipper will recount her scientific career at Nottingham and later at Cambridge, where she shares memories of famed biologist and Human Genome Project (HGP) architect, John Sulston. She also describes her extensive experience in various editorial positions. In this interview, Dr. Skipper provides key insights into the legacies and importance of the HGP and relates key themes in “big science” and consortium research.

Last updated: Ocotober 20, 2020