• Question: what type of code can you break

    Asked by kayelloa to Tiffany on 11 Jun 2012.
    • Photo: Tiffany Taylor

      Tiffany Taylor answered on 11 Jun 2012:

      Only the genetic code – unfortunately. If I could break safe codes and get into bank vaults I’d probably be sunning myself somewhere in the Caribbean.

      The genetic code is what makes you who you are. It tells every cell in your body how to behave and that in turn it what makes your hair a certain colour, your feet a certain size, and even whether or not you can roll your tongue!

      I use bacteria (which also have a genetic code that tells the cell what to do), and I change this code (or “break it”) so that the cell no longer does what it is supposed to do. The cell must then find a way to read the code again properly, if it is able to grow.

Comments