The Double Helix was written by James D. Watson. James Dewey Watson was born on April 6th, 1928, in Chicago Illinois. He was a precocious student, and entered the University of Chicago when he was only 15. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in zoology four years later, and then went on to earn a Ph.D. in the same subject at Indiana University. Watson Joined Francis Crick at Cambridge in 1951, in an attempt to determine the chemical structure of living matter. They continued their work until
The Double Helix by James Watson is his personal reflection on discovering the structure of the DNA molecule. With contributions of other scientists, James Watson and Francis Crick were able to solve the structure of DNA. Through contributions and integral relationships of Watson and Crick to Maurice Wilkins, Rosalind Franklin, Linus Pauling, and other smaller contributors the DNA structure was finally solved. The first and primary contribution to solving the DNA structure was the relationship of
With a competitive spirit, people are driven to act in ways that they would not otherwise and the results can be drastic. In the case of James D. Watson and Francis Crick, in Watson’s novel the Double Helix, this sensation of competition leads to one of the greatest discoveries in biology. But the actions of Watson, Crick, and their competitors may or may not be justified for the results that they yield; the powerful conflict of rivalry has beneficial, detrimental, and questionably moral consequences
The Double Helix by James D. Watson is a prominent book in the history of science not only for its value as a documentation of an important scientific discovery, but as proof to the ago-old question as to whether or not scientists are, in fact, human. Indeed, caricatures of the lone scientist isolating himself from reality and obsessed with some form of “truth” were prominent in the 1900s. When the book was first published in 1968, it demonstrated that not only were scientists human beings, but
Watson’s Indirect Views on Rosalind Franklin and Underlying Scientific Competition Arguably one of the most influential (and outspoken) scientists of the twentieth century, James D. Watson played a significant role in revolutionizing the field of genetics and molecular biology. In his personal narrative, The Double Helix, Watson recounted his journey toward discovery--a discovery which he and many other prominent figures took to ultimately unravel the mysterious structure of DNA. Some of the viewpoints
Introduction The following is a review of the book, The Double Helix, by James D. Watson that was published in 1968. Here the Norton Critical Edition will be used for page numbering and insights for this review, which was edited by Gunter S. Stent and published in 1980. The Double Helix is a personal recollection of the period of time when the structure of DNA was discovered. James D. Watson (Watson) along with Francis Crick (Crick) were the two scientists who published a paper in 1953 which purposed
James Watson and Francis Crick utilized the work and evidence of many different scientists in order to come to their final conclusion as to the structure of DNA; greatly using the work of Maurice Wilkins, Rosalind Franklin, and Linus Pauling. The first time Watson is truly introduced to the world of X-ray diffraction pictures of DNA was when attending a lecture held by Wilkins. From this, he learns that genes are able to crystallize, so they therefore must have a regular and repeating structure
Rosalind Franklin was a famous english chemist and x-ray crystallographer. She is best known for her role in the discovery of the structure of DNA, and for her use of X-ray diffraction. I haven chosen this particular chemist as her work and discoveries have been extremely important in helping to identify the structure and model of DNA. Rosalind Franklin was born on the 25th of July 1920 in Notting Hill, London to a British Jewish family. She attended several schools including North London Collegiate
Public Funding for Genetic Engineering Research Science is a part of our everyday life, from the clothes on our backs to the food that we eat. It is science that has allowed for our advances in production, transportation, farming and even entertainment. Never in our history however has science effected our lives as genetic engineering will and undoubtedly already does. We stand on the threshold of an era where the manipulation of the genetic instructions or DNA in human cells is no longer
names of James Watson and Francis Crick discovered deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA. DNA is hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms (What is DNA?). From this finding, gene therapy evolved. Today, researchers are able to isolate certain specific genes, repair them, and use them to help cure diseases such as cystic fibrosis and hemophilia. However, as great as this sounds, there are numerous ethical and scientific issues that will arise because of religion and safety. James D. Watson
“Just as the success of a corporate body in making money need not set the human condition ahead, neither does every scientific advance automatically make our lives more meaningful'; (Wald 45). These words were spoken by a Nobel Prize winning biologist and Harvard professor, George Wald, in a lecture given in 1976 on the Dangers of Genetic Engineering. This quotation states that incredible inventions, such as genetic engineering, are not always beneficial to society. Genetic engineering is “altering
Affirmative—"Human Genetic Engineering is Morally Justified" "When they are finally attempted…genetic manipulations will…be done to change a death sentence into a life verdict." In agreeing with this quote by James D. Watson, director of the Human Genome Project, I affirm today’s resolution, "Human genetic engineering is morally justified." I will now present a few definitions. Human genetic engineering is the altering, removal, or addition of genes through genetic processes. Moral is "pertaining
Rosalind Franklin was born in 1920 in London, England to an influential Jewish family who prided themselves in their service to the public. She was one of five children to Ellis and Muriel Franklin. Her father had desired to become a scientist, but World War I had prevented him and instead he followed in the family business of merchant banking. His daughter, however, had decided to devote herself to science and scientific study when she was fifteen. She began her studies at St. Paul’s Girls’ School
Facing the Village by Lenore Look and A Fist in the Eye of God by Barbara Kingsolver Common human attributes are normal to acquire, yet Americans seem to pick and choose how they want to acquire these traits, whether it’s excessively or minimally. In both readings, “Facing the Village” by Lenore Look and “A Fist in the Eye of God” by Barbara Kingsolver, the authors present many human attributes and the pros and cons of how Americans act. In “Facing the Village,” Lenore Look starts out being the
Within the last 100 years or so scientists have many valuable discoveries that have benefited mankind. These discoveries include the discovery of genes. Scientists have discovered what makes humans so unique from one another. However, with this newly gained knowledge of the function of genes comes the ability to alter or change them. Just imagine in the not so near future, you and your partner want to start a family together. You travel to your local gene councillor to pick the physical and characteristic
I never knew what genetic engineering was until I watched a special on the Discovery channel. The special showed scientists forming the first “perfect” embryo. What was very shocking was that the scientists kept asking each other what traits this embryo should compose of. To me that was disturbing and unethical to make a living human being based on what traits the parents would want them to have. This process goes against nature just as Francis Bacon said “if we would control nature, we must first
will consider these creatures are not real animals. Works Cited European Union. (2013, May 23). Genetically modified animals. Retrieved from European Food Safety Authority: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/gmanimals.htm Ormandy, E., Julie, D., & Gilly, G. (2011, July). Genetic engineering of animals: Ethical issues, including welfare concerns. Retrieved from The Canadian Veterinary Journal: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3078015/#!po=76.5625 Kimman, T., Smit, E., & Klein, M
James Watson was a very interesting person. He grew up in a big city. Watson went to many different colleges. He discovered many things. Watson also won awards for his discoveries. James Dewey Watson was born in Chicago, Illinois. Watson was born on April 6, 1928. He spent most of his childhood in Chicago. He went to Horce Mann Grammar School. Watson won a scholarship to the University of Chicago. Watson enrolled in the college at the age of 15. Watson then received a Bachelor of Science degree in
Imagine having to explain to your child why they don’t look like you because of you’re selfishness. Imagine thinking your going to design your baby and turns out it has severe leukemia because scientists didn’t put together your baby right. Where Genetic Engineering and Cloning is headed this is possible. Not only is this effecting your child its affecting the whole world as well. Many people think they only do this in humans it happens in plants and animals too. Genetic Engineering and Cloning changes
For a long time, scientists have been researching about DNA and its structures. DNA is strongly related to genetics and how living things perform. Two very intelligent scientists, James Watson and Francis Crick, have made history in Biochemistry when they discovered the structure of DNA. The central idea of this paper is researching the history of DNA structure discovery and about why it is very important. Discovery of DNA structure is very important because DNA is what makes all living things behave