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X PRIZE Foundation Unveils World’s Largest LEGO DNA Sculpture Created by Brick
Artist Nathan Sawaya
The “Building Bricks of Life” to Be Displayed at National DNA Day and FIRST®
Championship in Support of Archon Genomics X PRIZE
PLAYA VISTA, CA--(Marketwire - April 14, 2011) - The X PRIZE Foundation, best
known for launching the private spaceflight industry through the $10 million
Ansari X PRIZE and accelerating the ultra, fuel-efficient vehicle market through
the $10 million Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE, today unveiled the
world’s largest LEGO DNA sculpture, the “Building Bricks of Life,” as part of
its education outreach for the Archon Genomics X
PRIZE. Created by famed brick artist Nathan Sawaya, the sculpture stands just
under seven feet in height and will be featured as part of the X PRIZE
Foundation’s National DNA Day exhibit at the Saint Louis Science Center on April
15.
The X PRIZE Foundation joins the Saint Louis
Science Center for a full day of interactive activities on National DNA Day,
including the making of Inheritance Bracelets based on several one-gene traits,
temporary DNA tattoos, and creating beaded key chains in the form of DNA
sequences.
“Just as each brick plays an important part in holding the sculpture together,
each gene within the human genome helps us understand more about ourselves as
humans and how we are all connected,” said Sawaya. “I am proud that the
sculpture will be featured as part of the X PRIZE Foundation’s educational
outreach. When I sculpt scientific structures, such as this DNA strand, out of a
medium kids relate to, it helps kids connect with the concept and furthers the
educational aspect.”
Sawaya’s LEGO creations have been placed in museums throughout the world and
have been featured in TV shows such as The Colbert Report, Mythbusters, and
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.
The “Building Bricks of Life” sculpture will also be exhibited to more than
20,000 participants and spectators at the FIRST® Championship in St. Louis,
April 26-30, to promote the Foundation’s involvement with the
FIRST® LEGO® League and sponsorship of the
FIRST® LEGO® League Global
Innovation Award presented by the X PRIZE Foundation. The exhibit will include
a competition to guess the number of LEGO bricks used to create the “Building
Bricks of Life” sculpture.
The LEGO Group, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of play materials for
children, demonstrated its commitment to the development of children’s creative
and imaginative abilities by introducing Nathan Sawaya to the X PRIZE Foundation
and offering the bricks used in the “Building Bricks of Life” sculpture. The
sculpture was commissioned by the X PRIZE Foundation in support of the Archon
Genomics X PRIZE, which will be awarded to the first team to successfully
sequence 100 human genomes in 10 days. “Mr. Sawaya’s extraordinary creation is
an excellent way for us to help educate and raise awareness for the research
developments in genomics currently underway, including the Archon Genomics X
PRIZE,” said Grant Campany, Senior Director, Archon Genomics X PRIZE. “We are
thrilled to have this amazing sculpture as part of our exhibits at National DNA
Day and the FIRST® Championship.”
For additional details on the Archon Genomics X PRIZE, visit
Genomics X PRIZE.
ABOUT THE ARCHON GENOMICS X PRIZE
Generously funded by Dr. Stewart and Marilyn Blusson, the Archon Genomics X
PRIZE is a $10 Million competition to develop radically new technology that will
dramatically reduce the time and cost of sequencing genomes, and accelerate a
new era of predictive and personalized medicine. The X PRIZE Foundation aims to
enable the development of low-cost diagnostic sequencing of human genomes. The X
PRIZE will be awarded to the first team that can build a device and use it to
sequence 100 human genomes within 10 days or less, with an accuracy of no more
than one error in every 100,000 bases sequenced, with sequences accurately
covering at least 98 percent of the genome, and at a recurring cost of no more
than $10,000 per genome.
ABOUT THE X PRIZE FOUNDATION
Founded in 1995, the X PRIZE Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization
solving the world’s Grand Challenges by creating and managing large-scale,
high-profile, incentivized prize competitions that stimulate investment in
research and development worth far more than the prize itself. The organization
motivates and inspires brilliant innovators from all disciplines to leverage
their intellectual and financial capital for the benefit of humanity. The X
PRIZE Foundation conducts competitions in four Prize Groups: Education & Global
Development; Energy & Environment; Life Sciences; and Exploration (Ocean and
Deep Space). Prizes won include the $10 million Ansari X PRIZE for private,
suborbital space flight; the $10 million Progressive Insurance Automotive X
PRIZE for creating safe, affordable, production-capable vehicles that exceed 100
MPG energy equivalent (MPGe); and the $2 million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander X
PRIZE CHALLENGE for advanced rocket development. Active prizes include the $30
million Google Lunar X PRIZE, the $10 million Archon Genomics X PRIZE, and the
$1.4 million Wendy Schmidt Oil Cleanup X CHALLENGE. For more information, visit
www.xprize.org.
ABOUT NATHAN SAWAYA
Nathan Sawaya is a New York-based artist who creates awe-inspiring works out of
some of the most unlikely things. His art focuses on large-scale sculptures
using only toy building blocks: LEGO bricks to be exact. For years, Nathan’s
touring exhibit -- The Art of the Brick® -- has entertained and inspired
millions of art lovers and enthusiasts around the globe. To see Sawaya’s online
gallery, please visit www.brickartist.com.
LEGO DNA Man - Archon Genomics X PRIZE - Video on YouTube.com
LEGO DNA Man - Archon Genomics X
PRIZE
Marketwire.com
SOURCE: X PRIZE Foundation
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