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When it comes to genetics, where do you start?

At the beginning of course. DNA from the Beginning is an animated primer of the 75 experiments (apparently) ‘that made modern genetics,’ complete with cute cartoon of a sperm penetrating an egg. And it’s from the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s DNA Learning Center, whose mission is to “prepare students and families to thrive in the gene age“.

The site is organized around three key areas: Classical Genetics, Molecules of Genetics and Genetic Organization and Control. Then it gets interesting: each area has a dozen or so key concepts, from ‘Children resemble their parents’, to ‘DNA words are three letters long’, to ‘DNA is only the beginning for understanding the human genome.’ Each concept is supported by explanatory animations, pictures of the key players, videos of scientists talking about systems, experiments and history, biographies of the people behind the research and a bibliography. There are also–and here’s the real ‘animated’ bit–worked problems to solve, such as analysing metabolic pathways in Neurospora.

Just the thing if you want your children to learn genetics–or maybe in case you need a refresher course yourself!