James D. Watson

From Philosopedia

Watson, James Dewey (6 April 1928- )

Watson became a professor of biology at Harvard in 1961. He is renowned for being co-discoverer of the structure of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), for which he shared the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins. The double helix is an elegant concept central to the emerging field of molecular biology: understanding the structure of a molecule provides clues about how it functions. In 1968, Dr. Watson became Director of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York, where he is Chancellor.

He has been recognized with numerous awards, including the John J. Carry Gold Medal of the National Academy of Sciences in 1971, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977, the National Medal of Science in December 1997, the Philadelphia Liberty Medal on July 4, 2000, and the Benjamin Franklin Medal awarded by the American Philosophical Society. Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed him an honorary Knight of the British Empire on January 1, 2002.

Dr. Watson is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Society of Biological Chemists, the National Academy of Sciences, the American Association for Cancer Research, and the American Philosophical Society. He holds honorary affiliations with the Danish Academy of Arts and Sciences, Clare College (Cambridge University), Athenaeum (London), the Royal Society (London), and the Russian Academy of Sciences, and he has received honorary degrees from 14 universities.

Apart from his many scientific papers, he is the author of books including The Double Helix; The DNA Story; Molecular Biology of the Gene; Molecular Biology of the Cell; Recombinant DNA: A Short Course; DNA: The Secret of Life; A Passion for DNA; and his 2003 memoir, Genes, Girls and Gamo.

Interviewed in 1996 for a BBC film, Watson said,

• I don’t think we’re for anything, we’re just products of evolution. You can say, “Gee, your life must be pretty bleak if you don’t think there’s a purpose,” but I’m anticipating a good lunch. [Asked if he knew many religious scientists]: Virtually none. Occasionally I meet them, and I’m a bit embarrassed [laugh], because I can’t believe that anyone accepts truth by revelation.

In a Youngston State University speech, he said:

• The biggest advantage to believing in God is you don’t have to understand anything, no physics, no biology.

Watson's Apology For Comments About Blacks

On 14 October 2007, Watson was quoted by London's Sunday Times as saying he was “inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa” because “all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours - whereas all the testing says not really.”

As a result, the board of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a research institution in New York, suspended Watson's administrative responsibilities "pending further deliberation."

In England, promoting his new book, Avoid Boring People: Lessons From A Life in Science, Watson was quoted as apologizing "unreservedly" and saying,

• I cannot understand how I could have said what I am quoted as having said. There is no scientific basis for such a belief.

Dr. Elias Zerhouni, director of the National Institutes of Health in the United States, said,

• Scientific prestige is never a substitute for knowledge. As scientists, we are outraged and saddened when science is used to perpetuate prejudice.

Henry Kelley, President of the Federation of American Scientists, observed,

• At a time when the scientific community is feeling threatened by political forces seeking to undermine its credibility, it is tragic that one of the icons of modern science has cast such dishonour on the profession.

(Watson on 25 October 2007 retired as chancellor of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island, and from its board. At the age of 79, he said in a statement, he was "overdue" to surrender leadership positions at the laboratory, which he joined as director in 1968. As for his decision, the 1962 Nobel Prize winner said the circumstances of his resignation "are not those which I could ever have anticipated or desired.")

{CA; The Vindicator, 2 Dec 2003}