“It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material.”
James Watson and Francis Crick in their 1953 Nature paper “A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid”. Crick died last week, aged 88, in San Diego, California
“I felt slightly queasy when at lunch Francis winged into the Eagle to tell everyone within hearing that we had found the secret of life.”
Advertisement
James Watson (The Double Helix, 1968)
“I will always remember Francis for his extraordinarily focused intelligence and for the many ways he showed me kindness. Being with him for two years in a small room in Cambridge was truly a privilege.”
James Watson
“Crick’s contribution enabled patients affected by genetic disease to gain an understanding of their condition and begin to hope for the possibility of a cure.”
Alistair Kent, director of the Genetic Interest Group, London
“Watson? Watson? I thought your name was Watson-Crick.”
Neville Mott of Cambridge University to Francis Crick, on being introduced to Jim Watson for the first time in 1955 (What Mad Pursuit by Francis Crick, 1988)
“Francis Crick was the Charles Darwin of the 20th century.”
Steve Jones, Professor of Genetics, University College London
