The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNAThe classic personal account of Watson and Crick’s groundbreaking discovery of the structure of DNA, now with an introduction by Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind. By identifying the structure of DNA, the molecule of life, Francis Crick and James Watson revolutionized biochemistry and won themselves a Nobel Prize. At the time, Watson was only twenty-four, a young scientist hungry to make his mark. His uncompromisingly honest account of the heady days of their thrilling sprint against other world-class researchers to solve one of science’s greatest mysteries gives a dazzlingly clear picture of a world of brilliant scientists with great gifts, very human ambitions, and bitter rivalries. With humility unspoiled by false modesty, Watson relates his and Crick’s desperate efforts to beat Linus Pauling to the Holy Grail of life sciences, the identification of the basic building block of life. Never has a scientist been so truthful in capturing in words the flavor of his work. |
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Page 41
... Pauling's a - helix . Only a day had been required to get the crucial photograph con- firming Pauling's prediction . I did not follow Max at all . I was even ignorant of Bragg's Law , the most basic of all crystallographic ideas . We ...
... Pauling's a - helix . Only a day had been required to get the crucial photograph con- firming Pauling's prediction . I did not follow Max at all . I was even ignorant of Bragg's Law , the most basic of all crystallographic ideas . We ...
Page 165
... Pauling's three - chain helix and the model that Francis and I had shown her fifteen months earlier . The fact that Paul- ing's deductions about symmetry were no more in- spired than our awkward efforts of the year before would , I ...
... Pauling's three - chain helix and the model that Francis and I had shown her fifteen months earlier . The fact that Paul- ing's deductions about symmetry were no more in- spired than our awkward efforts of the year before would , I ...
Page 217
... any form of secrecy in scientific mat- ters and did not want to keep Pauling in suspense any longer . Pauling's reaction was one of genuine thrill , as was Delbrück's . In almost any other situation Pauling would have 217 29 XXXII.
... any form of secrecy in scientific mat- ters and did not want to keep Pauling in suspense any longer . Pauling's reaction was one of genuine thrill , as was Delbrück's . In almost any other situation Pauling would have 217 29 XXXII.
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Common terms and phrases
a-helix adenine answer argument arranged arrival atoms bacterial base pairs biochemistry biological Cal Tech Cambridge Cavendish chains Chargaff's Chargaff's rules chemical chemistry chemists College conversation Copenhagen crystallographic crystals cytosine Delbrück dinner DNA molecule DNA structure double helix Elizabeth existed experimental experiments fact fellowship Francis Crick genes genetic geneticists girls Griffith guanine Herman hope Hugh Huxley hydrogen bonds idea immediately important ions John Kendrew keto King's knew large number letter Linus Pauling London look lunch Luria manuscript Maurice Wilkins Maurice's Max and John Max Perutz ment model building molecular Moreover morning never Nonetheless nucleic acids nucleotides Odile Pauling's Perutz Peter phage phosphate groups polynucleotide Pop's possibility problem protein purine purine and pyrimidine pyrimidine quickly realized reason Rosalind Franklin Rosy Rosy's scientific solve soon sugar sugar-phosphate backbone talk tautomeric forms tell thought thymine tion told walked wanted Watson week X-ray photograph X-ray pictures