2000 - After years of working independently, Dr. J. Craig Venter, president of privately-funded Celera Genomics, and Dr. Francis S. Collins, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, a publicly funded international consortium, jointly announce the successful mapping of the human genome, nature's complete genetic blueprint for building a human being. Mapping of the human genome may help in understanding and addressing genetic factors for many common diseases. (© AP Images)