Who Discovered Dna
Who Discovered DNA?
Heather Kane
The discovery of deoxyribonucleic acid, more commonly known as DNA, has been the foundation for much scientific work. This fundamental discovery was credited to James Watson and Francis Crick. Many people believe that another person, Rosalind Franklin, also played a large role in the research. How much did she contribute to the discovery? Why is her name left unrecognized? This paper will discuss her part in the search and whether her name should appear next to Watson's and Crick's as the co-discoverer of DNA.
In the early 1950s, the race to find the structure of DNA was in full swing. The search was being conducted at three different colleges. At the California Institute of Technology, Linus Pauling, one of the best physical chemists at that time, proposed his first DNA model, which was based more on common sense rather than mathematical reasoning [Judson, 1986]. Although he was interested in DNA, he didn't seem to realize the importance of the "golden gene" [Watson, 1968]. He was behind scientists in England as a result of not being in close contact with them. At the Cavendish in Cambridge, England, Watson and Crick were studying together. Watson was doing postdoctoral work, and Crick was working toward his doctorate. Their assignment was finding the structure of hemoglobin, not DNA. At King's College in London, Maurice Wilkins was also trying to study the DNA molecule. His professor and he agreed that they needed an x-ray specialist to aid them in their search. Rosalind Franklin was the specialist whom they chose to bring to King's College because she could make excellent x-ray despite using poor equipment ["Tribute," 1987].
In 1951, Watson attended a lecture that Franklin was giving to her co-workers on her work thus far with DNA. There on an invitation from Wilkins, he "stared at her pop-eyed and wrote down nothing" [Judson, 1986]. Two weeks later, Watson and Crick announced that they had completed a model of DNA.
Heather Kane
The discovery of deoxyribonucleic acid, more commonly known as DNA, has been the foundation for much scientific work. This fundamental discovery was credited to James Watson and Francis Crick. Many people believe that another person, Rosalind Franklin, also played a large role in the research. How much did she contribute to the discovery? Why is her name left unrecognized? This paper will discuss her part in the search and whether her name should appear next to Watson's and Crick's as the co-discoverer of DNA.
In the early 1950s, the race to find the structure of DNA was in full swing. The search was being conducted at three different colleges. At the California Institute of Technology, Linus Pauling, one of the best physical chemists at that time, proposed his first DNA model, which was based more on common sense rather than mathematical reasoning [Judson, 1986]. Although he was interested in DNA, he didn't seem to realize the importance of the "golden gene" [Watson, 1968]. He was behind scientists in England as a result of not being in close contact with them. At the Cavendish in Cambridge, England, Watson and Crick were studying together. Watson was doing postdoctoral work, and Crick was working toward his doctorate. Their assignment was finding the structure of hemoglobin, not DNA. At King's College in London, Maurice Wilkins was also trying to study the DNA molecule. His professor and he agreed that they needed an x-ray specialist to aid them in their search. Rosalind Franklin was the specialist whom they chose to bring to King's College because she could make excellent x-ray despite using poor equipment ["Tribute," 1987].
In 1951, Watson attended a lecture that Franklin was giving to her co-workers on her work thus far with DNA. There on an invitation from Wilkins, he "stared at her pop-eyed and wrote down nothing" [Judson, 1986]. Two weeks later, Watson and Crick announced that they had completed a model of DNA.