The World's largest DNA model

On 9 March 2002 the world's largest model of DNA, the molecule that contains all our genetic information, was built in The Potteries Shopping Centre, Stoke-on-Trent, UK, by teams from Keele University and Science and TEchnology Facilities Council Daresbury Laboratory.

The model is 10.78 metres tall and contains over 1500 atoms!

The model was recognised by world records organisation as a record breaker and is now a Guinness World Record.

Celebrating the world record at The Potteries

Sections of the model (individual base pairs of DNA ) were built in advance by thousands of schoolchildren from Staffordshire and Cheshire. In addition, a number of famous people have also built base pairs, including:

• Francis Crick, one of the team that originally discovered the structure of DNA;
• Baroness Susan Greenfield, Director of the Royal Institution;
• Lord Robert May, who until recently was the government's chief scientific advisor;
• film director Lord David Puttnam;
• and Johnny Ball, presenter of TV's 'Think of a number' who now leads science communication activities for schools and the public.

The project was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (link opens in a new window), Science Year (link opens in a new window) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (link opens in a new window) and is part of the UK's national science week.