James D. Watson

La doppia elica è il resoconto da parte di James Watson della scoperta della struttura a doppia elica del DNA. Si tratta di un libro parecchio controverso, che suscitò polemiche già prima della sua uscita.

Watson, infatti, è stato accusato di un po' di tutto, dall'essere un dilettante allo sbaraglio all'essere un misogino, dal dare un'idea sbagliata di ricerca scientifica all'essere un ragazzino arrogante. Nella mia edizione, c'è una scelta di recensioni a La doppia elica che danno un'idea del vespaio che scatenò questo libro.

L'idea che mi sono fatta di Watson, senza voler fare la psicologa fai-da-te, è di un uomo privo del filtro cervello-bocca. Io credo che, senza farsi troppi problemi su come sarebbero state accolte certe sue affermazioni, abbia semplicemente riferito ciò che fece e pensò durante la sua ricerca della struttura del DNA. Il che include anche pensieri piuttosto sgradevoli nei confronti di persone che ostacolarono (o almeno questa fu la sua impressione) il suo lavoro.

Si è detto molto della sfortunata Rosalind Franklin, mancato premio Nobel per i suoi contributi alla scoperta della struttura del DNA. Sua, infatti, è la famosa fotografia numero 51, nella quale era evidente la forma elicoidale del DNA: questa, passata all'insaputa della Franklin nelle mani di Watson e Crick, indirizzò i due ricercatori nella giusta direzione.

Il giovane Watson, però, non rimase favorevolmente colpito dalla Franklin, alla quale, ne La doppia elica, rivolge parole sgradevoli. È difficile non mostrarsi solidali nei confronti di Rosalind: già non facilitata da un carattere riservato, sarà stata costretta a diventare ancora più coriacea per sopravvivere in un ambiente dove il lavoro delle donne era spesso considerato di serie B.

Vorrei, però, spezzare una lancia in favore di Watson che, nell'epilogo, rivaluta in toto la figura della chimica e fisica inglese, chiarendo che la sua prima impressione era stata del tutto errata. A me non è sembrato un ripiego dell'ultimo minuto per rimediare in qualche modo a uno sgarbo fatto a una grande scienziata. Mi è sembrata una rettifica dovuta a una più approfondita conoscenza tra i due, che arrivarono a stimarsi profondamente, come dimostra il carteggio tra loro in merito a nuovi studi e ricerche. Quando si dice di non giudicare le persone dalle apparenze...… (més)

James D. Watson was 24 years old when he and Francis Crick published their paper announcing the discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953. Nine years later they would be awarded the Nobel Prize, along with Maurice Wilkins. This memoir is Watson's account of his life and work in 1951-53.

I have attempted to re-create my first impressions of the relevant events and personalities rather than present an assessment which takes into account the many facts I have learned since the structure was found. Although the latter approach might be more objective, it would fail to convey the spirit of an adventure characterized both by youthful arrogance and by the belief that the truth, once found, would be simple as well as pretty. Thus many of the comments may seem one-sided and unfair, but this is often the case in the incomplete and hurried way in which human beings frequently decide to like or dislike a new idea or acquaintance. In any event, this account represents the way I saw things then, in 1951-1953: the ideas, the people, and myself.

Watson was a newly minted PhD student when he was sent to Copenhagen to learn chemistry. Having no interest in this, he ends up at the Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge University. There he meets Francis Crick, and the two begin talking about genes. They want to work on the structure of DNA, but that area of study is already staked-out by Maurice Wilkins and his junior colleague Rosalind Wilkins of Kings College, and it was considered impolite to barge in on someone else's work. Watson and Crick are ambitious and eager to prove themselves, however. They decide to attack the problem using models, and after obtaining Franklin's x-ray crystallography data through an unofficial source, begin to make progress.

One of the things that surprised me when reading this memoir was the extent to which Watson and Crick were building on the ideas of others. Without Franklin's data and her insistence that the background of the structure had to be on the outside, rather than the inside; her measurement of water within DNA; and her discovery of A and B forms of DNA, Watson and Crick would have been up a creek. I was also surprised at how close other scientists were in making the discovery. Watson writes that he thinks Linus Pauling at Cal-Tech would have beaten them to it within a week. Certainly Pauling's discovery of the alpha helix and use of models heavily influenced Watson and Crick's own thinking.

As expected, Watson is harsh in his treatment of Rosalind Franklin. He faults her for not wearing lipstick and caring about her appearance, for her unfriendly demeanor, and for her sloppy science. In his epilogue, he offers an explanation, if not apology, for his initial impressions as represented in the book:

Since my initial impressions of her were often wrong, I want to say something here about her achievements...(he lists several that I mentioned above)...By then (late 50s) all traces of our early bickering were forgotten, and we both came to appreciate greatly her personal honesty and generosity, realizing years too late the struggles that the intelligent woman faces to be accepted by a scientific world which often regards women as mere diversions from serious thinking...

Overall, I found the book interesting as a personal look inside a 1950s lab and a colorful, if not always fair, description of the scientists working on the puzzle of DNA.… (més)

A surprisingly easy read. The chapters are short and the writing style is breezy. It's a very personal account of James Watson's experiences studying overseas and his efforts, along with others, to discover the structure of DNA. It's surprising to find out how many other scientists at the time downplayed the importance of DNA. There is some detailed chemistry included in the book, much of which went over my head, but you can get the general gist of what was happening without having to understand the details. Since most of the book describes Watson's experiences and the race to be the first to discover the secret of DNA, higher level understanding of chemistry isn't necessary to enjoy the book. The book is very much Watson's personal viewpoint, and not a more general overview of the discovery.… (més)