Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, located on the east coast of Long Island, New York, is one of the world's most prestigious scientific laboratories in the world. It is the home of 15 Nobel Laureates and is directed by Dr. James Watson, co-founder of the structure of the DNA molecule.

On Thursday, March 28 at 8 a.m. students in AP Biology at George Washington High School will be departing Denver International Airport to Cold Spring Harbor Labs to perform sophisticated laboratory procedures in DNA Science. They return Sunday, March 31.

Using cheek cells, students will start by sequencing their mitochondrial DNA and end with a genetic map of their own.

Using bioinformatics (computer programs designed to statistically compare biological systems to each other) students can compare the specific sequence of their DNA to sequences of the same site of DNA analyzed from over 80 population groups around the world and several anthropological specimens such as The Ice Man and Neanderthal.

Students traveling to New York are 11th graders: Michael Byers-Norton, Paula Dean, and John Grano.