In 1986, the year in which the automated DNA sequencer was invented, GenBank held a scant 9.6 million bases. Yet discussion began on the feasibility of sequencing all three billion bases of the human genome. It was estimated at the time that such an undertaking would take "30,000 person-years of effort and upward of $2 billion."[1] Thanks to rapid improvements in the technology, however, the project was completed in just 17 years.

In this issue of The Scientist, we celebrate the DNA sequencer, as well as six other key technologies that have, and are, transforming life science research. Each of our chosen seven – the others are the BLAST algorithm, the DNA microarray, the yeast two-hybrid assay, the MALDI-TOF mass spectrometer, the lab-on-a-chip, and the optical trap – is in its own way shaking the foundations of life science research.

As a group, they tell the story of the past and future of molecular biology. While each technology followed a very different path, the accounts share the virtues of brilliance, endeavor, perseverance and, tellingly, the cross-fertilization of ideas. Technology development is arguably the single most important factor in the rapid pace of science.

We start by extolling the sequencer (p. 15). By the end of the Human Genome Project in 2003 this workhorse of the genomics revolution had produced some 28.5 billion nucleotides, and thanks to BLAST (p. 21), the scientific community had a bioinformatics tool to sieve all that data.

Next, we salute three enablers of functional genomics. There's the DNA microarray (p. 27), which has been key to revealing which genes turn on and off in response to disease, pharmaceuticals, or developmental signals on a genome-wide scale. The yeast two-hybrid assay (p. 32) and MALDI-TOF (p. 37) have each enabled proteomics, the former by enabling researchers to identify proteins without first purifying them, the latter by helping researchers to map protein-protein interaction maps in yeast, fruit flies, nematodes, and man.

Closing out the seven are commendations for microfluidics (p. 43) and the optical trap (p. 48). These represent a new chapter in scientific research, an era of miniaturization, in which chemical libraries are rapidly and inexpensively screened for new drug candidates, complex biochemical tests are performed while you wait in the doctor's office, and the conformational acrobatics of proteins are understood at the molecular level.

Throughout the pages in this issue we explore the history and evolution of each of our seven chosen technologies. We include a series of colorful "how it works" illustrations, showing what goes on under the hood of exemplars of each of the highlighted technologies. Ever wonder what happens when you stick an Affymetrix GeneChip array into a GeneChip Reader, or how an optical trap works? Wonder no more, you can find out on pages 30 and 50.

We do not presume to list the seven technologies that have transformed the life sciences, but rather our pick of key technologies. If you are outraged, or even just astonished, by what we've left off, we'd love to hear from you – there could well be scope for "Seven More Technologies that are Transforming the Life Sciences."

In the meantime, please join us in celebrating our magnificent seven.