The answer is semiconservative replication. Semiconservative meaning that half of the original molecule (one of the two strands in the double helix) is conserved in the new molecule. Replication is the process by which double stranded DNA molecule is copied to produce two identical DNA molecules. It is one of the most basic process that occurs within a cell. Each time a cell divides, the two resulting daughter cells must contain exactly the same genetic information, or DNA, as the parent cell. To accomplish this, each stand of existing DNA acts as a template for replication.