craig venter institute. together, they employ more than 500 people on two coasts, including one nobel laureate, hamilton smith, and some of the top scientists in the world. >> venter: so, i'm much more like an orchestra conductor, you know, than the violinist. >> kroft: what do you think your greatest talent is? >> venter: i have an unusual type of thinking. i have no visual memory whatsoever-- everything is conceptual to me. so, i... i think that's part of it. i see things differently. >> kroft: venter likes to think big, and his latest advancement is no exception. so, this is what all the fuss is about? >> venter: this is the first synthetic species. >> kroft: and how long did it take you to make this? >> venter: well, if you count the total time from the conception, about 15 years. >> kroft: and how many millions? >> venter: about $40 million over that entire time period. >> kroft: in practical terms, it is about as useful as the mold that grows in a bachelor's refrigerator, but, scientifically, it's a mil