Geneticist
1928-

James Dewey Watson was the codiscoverer of the structure of DNA. He has also made major contributions to research in genetics and molecular biology as an administrator, and has written widely read and influential books for both academic and nonscience audiences.

Early Life and Training

Watson was born April 6, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois. He showed his brilliance early, finishing high school in two years and appearing as one of the original "Quiz Kids," on a popular 1940s radio show of the same name. He was graduated from the University of Chicago in 1947 with a B.S. in zoology, reflecting an early love of birds. He did his doctoral work at Indiana University in genetics, and earned a Ph.D. in 1950. He was drawn to Indiana by the chance to work with Hermann Joseph Muller, who had been one of Thomas Hunt Morgan's associates in the...