DNA structure co-discoverer James Watson has died
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James Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, has died at the age of 97, The New York Times (NYT) reports.
The groundbreaking 1953 discovery of the so-called double helix, along with Francis Crick, made Watson one of the most important scientists of the 20th century, the newspaper reported. The scientist wrote acclaimed memoirs and later caused a stir with racist remarks.
The DNA molecule contains all hereditary information. Watson received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1962, as did Crick and another scientist.
Watson was 25 years old when he published his research on deciphering DNA, the genetic blueprint of life. He increased his fame by leading the ambitious Human Genome Project and writing perhaps the most celebrated memoirs in science, the NYT adds.
His reputation took a serious hit when he suggested in a 2007 interview with the British newspaper The Sunday Times that black people are generally not as intelligent as white people.
ANP
Metro Holland
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