James Dewey Watson, who played a key role in unveiling the double-helix configuration of DNA, initiated the Human Genome Project, and gained notoriety for his racist, sexist, and otherwise derogatory remarks, has passed away. He was 97 years old.
His passing was verified to The New York Times by his son Duncan, who mentioned that Watson died on Thursday in a hospice in East Northport, New York, located on Long Island. He had earlier been hospitalized due to an infection. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory also verified his death.
Born in Chicago in 1928, Watson rose to scientific prominence in 1953 at the age of 25 for determining the molecular structure of DNA—the hereditary blueprint for life—alongside his peer Francis Crick at Cavendish laboratory in England. Their significant finding was largely based on the contributions of chemist and crystallographer Rosalind Franklin at King’s College in London, whose X-ray photographs of DNA offered crucial insights into the molecule’s helical architecture. A specific image from Franklin’s laboratory, Photo 51, was essential for Watson and Crick’s breakthrough. However, she did not receive due recognition for her role. The image was shared with Watson and Crick without Franklin’s awareness or approval by Maurice Wilkins, a biophysicist and Franklin’s colleague.
Watson, Crick, and Wilkins received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962 for elucidating DNA’s structure. By that stage, Franklin had passed away (she died in 1958 at the age of 37 from ovarian cancer), and Nobel Prizes are not awarded posthumously. Nonetheless, Watson and Crick’s treatment of Franklin and her work has fostered enduring disapproval within the scientific community. Over his career and in his autobiography, Watson belittled Franklin’s intellect and physical appearance.
