James Dewey Watson is an American molecular biologist, geneticist and
zoologist. He is credited for co-discovering the molecular structure of
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), a substance that is the basis of heredity.
His discovery has been described by other biologists and Nobel laureates
as the most important scientific discovery of the 20th century. He was
born in Illinois to James D. Watson and Jean Mitchell. Growing up, James
Dewey Watson spent hours bird-watching and decided to major in
ornithology but Erwin Schrodinger’s book titled ‘What is Life’ had such a
profound impact on him that he chose genetics in the end. He received
his B.S. degree from the University of Chicago, and his PhD from Indiana
University. He was strongly opposed to the belief that genes were
proteins that could replicate and DNA was a simple tetranucleotide that
supported the genes. James’ perception, influenced by the discoveries
and lectures of that time, was that DNA was indeed the genetic molecule.
He finally found success with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins, when
the trio discovered the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. For
this discovery James Dewey Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins
earned the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1962
Childhood & Early Life
- James Watson was born on April 6, 1928 in Chicago, Illinois. His father, James D. Watson was a businessman and his mother’s name was Jean Mitchell.
- He attended Horace Mann Grammar School for eight years and South Shore High School for two years. For further education he went to the University of Chicago on a tuition scholarship in 1943.
- He graduated from Chicago University with a B. S. degree in Zoology in 1947. He could pursue his dream of studying genetics when Indiana University awarded him a fellowship.
- He did his PhD research at Salvador Luria’s (also his doctoral advisor) laboratory. Luria was one of the leaders of the new Phage group, a movement of geneticists from experiential system to microbial genetics.
- In those times the prevalent notion was that genes were proteins which could replicate and DNA was the structure that supported it. However, Avery-Macleod-McCarty’s experiment led Watson to believe that DNA was indeed the genetic molecule.
- His doctoral thesis was on the effect of hard X-rays on bacteriophage multiplication, inspired from geneticists H. J. Muller and T. M. Sonneborn and microbiologist Max Delbruck. He graduated with a PhD in Zoology in 1950.
- For his post doctoral research he went to Copenhagen University for a year to work with biochemist Herman Kalckar at his laboratory. But as the field of interest differed for both, Watson shifted his workplace after some months.
- His new partner was microbial physiologist Ole Maaloe and they did several experiments to explore the structure of the DNA. After much hard work and deliberation they accepted that the result of their first attempt was inconclusive.Major WorksJames Dewey Watson co-discovered the double-helical structure of the DNA molecule in 1953. The discovery is considered to be one of the most important discoveries of the 20th century. In 1962, the trio of James Dewey Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery.Personal Life & Legacy
- James Watson married Elizabeth Lewis in 1968 and together they have two sons, Rufus Robert Watson and Duncan James Watson. Rufus, born in 1970, suffers from schizophrenia.
- His memoir, ‘Avoid Boring People: Lessons from a Life in Science’, was published in 2007 and a UK Book Tour was scheduled. However, in an interview he made certain statements on race-and-intelligence that were widely considered insensitive. Following the controversy, he cancelled the rest of the tour.
- The 2007 controversy significantly dented Watson’s image and as a result his financial condition became so bad that he had to auction his Nobel Prize medal in 2014. Russian tycoon, Alisher Usmanov, bought it for US $4.1 million and gave the medal back to Watson.
