July 30, 2004

The Double Helix

Francis Crick died on Wednesday. I'm still miffed about the Rosalind Franklin thing, but this isn't the day to get into that.*

I once lived with someone who lived with someone who shared a Nobel Prize with Dr. Crick in 1962. Figure that one out.

And at this moment I cannot remember who it was who had that dream about the double-helix—as I recall, it was monkeys dancing in two helical shapes. Somehow I think it was Crick, but I could well be wrong. Professor Purkinje, let me know. Or maybe I'll call my mom, who knows all this stuff.

Hat tip: James.

* I mean, what was the Nobel Committee thinking?—Franklin had been dead for four years when Watson and Crick were awarded the prize for figuring out the structure of DNA. If her cancer was indeed caused by her research, she died so they could get the prize—and so we could improve . . . well, everything. Wouldn't you think she deserves a Nobel footnote or something? Maybe a technical award, like those Oscars for computer programmers that aren't quite statuettes, but are more like plaques. No one on the Nobel Committee has called me for help with this. Not one. I sense a conspiracy. Someone alert Michael Moore.

Posted by: Attila at 02:36 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 I'm curious...did Watson and Crick ever make any effort to insure that she got recognition?

Posted by: David Foster at July 30, 2004 09:43 AM (XUtCY)

2 Good question. So far, my mom's not answering my calls; she'd know more. I don't think they did, though it might be time to read *The Double Helix* and get more background information. My understanding is that the scramble to figure out the structure of DNA was a cutthroat race (someone get me another metaphor to mix into this sentence, please). So there was, I think, a sense of triumph for them . . . but people have been arguing for years about whether she should have received a little more attention for having done the scutwork.

Posted by: Attila Girl at July 30, 2004 10:16 PM (SuJa4)

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