How one man exposed your DNA

LSD-fiend, surfer, maverick — Kary Mullis might be the weirdest person ever to win the Nobel Prize. Get a little smarter every day with Brilliant. Visit https://brilliant.org/veritasium to get 20% off your annual premium subscription.

A massive thank you to Tom White, Hudson Freeze, and Henry Erlich for their time and expertise on the subject.

A huge thank you to Eleni Kleanthous, Jan Novoselec, Kieran Sparkes, Andrew Garcia, and UCSD’s Pride Lab for reviewing the science.

For great coverage of the PCR story, check out ‘Making PCR’ by Paul Rabinow - https://ve42.co/Rabinow1996

00:00 DNA under a microscope
01:17 Kary Mullis at Berkeley
02:50 Cetus and early biotech
04:16 How to detect sickle cell anemia
09:12 Kary Mullis at Cetus
10:39 Infinite DNA glitch explained
15:29 Kary Mullis struggles
18:10 Thermus Aquaticus to the rescue
23:53 Going public
26:59 The quirky genius, Kary Mullis

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Special thanks to our Patreon supporters! Join the community to help us keep our videos free, forever: https://ve42.co/PatreonDE

Adam Foreman, Albert Wenger, Alexander Tamas, Anton Ragin, Autodidactic Studios, Bertrand Serlet, Blake Byers, Bruce, Dave Kircher, David Johnston, Evgeny Skvortsov, Farbod Mansorian, Garrett Mueller, Gnare, gpoly, Greg Scopel, I. H., Juan Benet, KeyWestr, Kyi, Lee Redden, Marinus Kuivenhoven, Matthias Wrobel, Meekay, meg noah, Michael Krugman, Orlando Bassotto, Paul Peijzel, Richard Sundvall, Sam Lutfi, Spilmann Reed, Tj Steyn, TTST, Ubiquity Ventures, and wolfee

If you’re looking for a molecular modeling kit, try Snatoms, a kit I invented where the atoms snap together magnetically - https://ve42.co/SnatomsV

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References:
Mullis, K. (1968). Cosmological Significance of Time Reversal. Nature - https://ve42.co/Mullis1968
Mullis, K. (1997). Dancing Naked in the Mind Field. Vintage - https://ve42.co/Mullis1997
McDonald, C. (2019). Intolerable Genius. Cal Alumni Association - https://ve42.co/McDonald2019
Conner, B. J. et al. (1983). Detection of sickle cell beta S-globin allele by hybridization with synthetic oligonucleotides. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - https://ve42.co/Conner1983
Human Beta-globin gene via UniProt - https://ve42.co/BetaGlobin
Saiki, R. K. et al. (1985). Enzymatic Amplification of β-Globin Genomic Sequences and Restriction Site Analysis for Diagnosis of Sickle Cell Anemia. Science - https://ve42.co/Saiki1985
Mullis, K. B. (1990). The Unusual Origin of the Polymerase Chain Reaction. Scientific American - https://ve42.co/Mullis1990
Kary B. Mullis via The Nobel Prize - https://ve42.co/Nobel1993
Restriction Enzymes via The Nobel Prize - https://ve42.co/Nobel1978
Saiki, R. K. et al. (1988). Primer-Directed Enzymatic Amplification of DNA with a Thermostable DNA Polymerase. Science - https://ve42.co/Saiki1988
Smith, T. C. (2024). HIV Denial in the COVID Era. AIDS and Behavior. - https://ve42.co/Smith2024
Mullis, K. B., Faloona, F. A. (1987). Specific synthesis of DNA in vitro via a polymerase-catalyzed chain reaction. Methods in Enzymology - https://ve42.co/Mullis1987
Dr. Kary Mullis about LSD via RadioIciMaintenant Rim - https://ve42.co/MullisLSD
Brock, T. D., & Freeze, H. (1969). Thermus aquaticus gen. n. and sp. n., a Nonsporulating Extreme Thermophile. Journal of Bacteriology - https://ve42.co/Brock1969
Rediscovering Yellowstone via UW-Madison - https://ve42.co/Madison2017
Presidential Aids Advisory Panel Report via gov.za - https://ve42.co/Mbeki2001
Nattrass, N. (2008). AIDS and the Scientific Governance of Medicine in Post-Apartheid South Africa. African Affairs - https://ve42.co/Nattrass2008
Chigwedere, P. et al. (2008). Estimating the Lost Benefits of Antiretroviral Drug Use in South Africa. JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes - https://ve42.co/Chigwedere2008

Images & Video:
Available here - https://ve42.co/PCRVisuals

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Directed by Gregor Čavlović and Latif Nasser
Written by Gregor Čavlović, Latif Nasser, and Derek Muller
Edited by Peter Nelson
Animated by Ivy Tello, Emma Wright, Fabio Albertelli, Andrew Neet, and Alex Drakoulis
Illustrated by Emma Wright, Maria Gusakovich, and Jakub Misiek,
Filmed by Derek Muller, Alex Gorosh, and Gregor Čavlović
Additional research by Geeta Thakur and Gabriel Bean
Produced by Derek Muller, Latif Nasser, Gregor Čavlović, Rob Beasley Spence, Emily Lazard, Tori Brittain, James Horsley, Luke Lewis, Matthew Cavanagh, Barbara Abraul, Henry Van Dyck, Petr Lebedev, and Casper Mebius

Thumbnail contributions by Ben Powell, Ren Hurley, Peter Sheppard, Maria Gusakovich, Emma Wright, Jakub Misiek, and Tommy Steven

Additional video/photos supplied by Getty Images and Storyblocks
Music from Epidemic Sound