Mitosis
Mitosis is the process of cell division where two daughter cells 'come out' from a single prent cell. it goes through four stages. the first stage is prophase. In prophase, strands of chromatin become chromosomes. The second stage is metaphase. In metaphase, the chromosomes line up in the middle of the cell. The third stage is anaphase. In anaphase, the chromosomes divide in two and they seperate and move to opposite sides of the cell. The last stage is telophase. In telophase, the chromosomes uncoil, and the chromosomes develop a nucleur membrane to make it's own nucleus.
After mitosis, the cell mambrane splits and two small cells form. Mitosis is occured in bothe plant cells and animal cells. Every living thing/ organism 'needs' mitosis, so it's quite imporatant to us.
http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/VL/GG/mitosis.php
Biographical sketch
A famous scientist who worked with DNA is Barbara McClintock. During the 1940's she found peculiar patterns in the color of Indian corn. She found out that DNA moves around in between and on chromosomes. She got a Nobel Prize on for the discovery and she was one of the two only women who got a Nobel Prize in science (unshared) in 1983.
http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/resource/people.shtml#mcclintock