Rating: 
Summary: A Self-Serving book that misrepresents how science is done
Review: Many of us who read further than the words written by a single author, gossipy, but holding back in this book very much for self-serving reasons can only find this book distressing in its misrepresentations about how the science of DNA developed. They should have heard the PBS special on what was left out of this "just so" story, the chronology behind the discovery, the meaness and dishonesty of Watson and Crick to other co-scientists not only Franklin but also an Eastern European from whom they cribbed-without-credit yet another core ideas which they incorporated in the final melange of stolen and pieced together rip offs with ideas they later developed. Perhaps this is how science is done, if so it is tragic as the Scientific American review states science would then be merely an excercise in Hobbsian ethics and worse where the villains write the definitive "just so" story. Basically Watson lies here, but tells something closer to the truth on the PBS tape, proud that he had such a good memory as to steal other peoples work and ideas! Disgusting! He and Crick from what Watson says on tape "discovered the secret of life" after Watson stole into Franklins lab and also misrepresented why they pumped key ideas from still another scientis. An undergradute would have been expelled for such activies. I grant that later, and they were originally expelled having gotten the idea they did make contributions, but before these activities zero. See the PBC take the ABC's of DNA. Also read beyond what Watson writes here to get the whole plot, read others.Bad enough that Watson and Crick ripped others off, but that Watson gets to write the definite book on it is pathetic.
Rating: 
Summary: Information From a Bias Perspective
Review: For those who are interested in a future with genetics, reading The Double Helix, by James Watson, is highly recommended. This books tracts the research and scientific journey of, specifically James Watson, but soon to join him as a main character was Francis Crick. This book is excellent pre-reading for a to-be geneticist because it starts at the very beginning, even before DNA was completely understood. The reader follows Watson and Crick, step by step, through the discovery of the structure of the basis of life. The downfall of the book is that it is very bias towards who had the most impact on the discovered of DNA. The perspective in the story does not portray the complete truth in reference to the importance of others in the groundbreaking discovery. Two other people who eventually were in the party that received the Nobel Prize for the structure of DNA were Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin, the latter never officially receiving her prize for she died from radiation before the Nobel was issued. Although Watson gives some credit to the two scientists who did virtually all of the research he and Crick used for their structural model, he certainly did not attribute enough. Franklin was scorned to be cold and unsocial where she really only was trying to hold her own in a scientific world dominated by men. She was the scientist who produced the sealing picture that DNA in the B form was a helix. Watson and Crick may have been able to, possibly, figure out the structure of DNA without, affectionately called "Rosy's" X-ray photographs, but the journey would have taken much longer. Quite probably, without Franklin's research, the two men would have arrived at the right answer too late, being outdone by either Pauling or Linus. The Double Helix, by James Watson, is a very informational and fundamental book in the science of genetics yet beware of the bias point of view.
Rating:
Summary: Worthwhile book on important scientific discovery
Review: This book by James Watson tells his story, in the years he worked on the structure of DNA. As another review noted, this is the story "warts and all," including his and others' worries about grants being renewed, family, relationships, jealousy, pride, food, and living in England where the labs and accomodations were always cold in winter.
I know almost no biology, and while a lot of the discussion was over my head scientifically, I followed the gist of it.
The ghost of Rosalind Franklin continually follows James Watson. I've heard Dr. Watson speak publicly twice, and each time he was asked about her. When he was interviewed on NPR, the interviewer persistently went into the interactions between Watson and Franklin. The gist of his response is that she lost the recognition she should have gotten because she refused to collaborate and work with others, and she refused to work with models. Clearly, while Franklin's X-ray photograph of DNA was a major step in pointing Watson and Crick to the double helix AT GC structure of DNA, it was NOT a self-sufficient proof of the double helix, as she herself refused to consider a helical structure of DNA.
Rating: 
Summary: Scientific competition.
Review: Prof. Watson tells us his story of the discovery of the DNA structure, a crucial scientific break-through.
It is more or less a race between the US (Linus Pauling) and the UK (the duo Crick/Watson). The reader should have a decent chemical background for a full appreciation of the problems involved, for instance, the crucially important discovery of the ketone function. This book gives also a good picture of the working and living conditions, the character clashes, the calm atmosphere and the closeness at the English top universities in the fifties of last century.
A worth-while read.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic of Science Fiction
Review: I would mostly echo the many accolades that James Watson's book has received on this site and over the years. *The Double Helix* is indeed a classic. However, after seeing 'The Secret of Photo 51' on PBS' Nova program, I realize now that Dr. Watson's work is science fiction rather than science. Like many other young science fans, I grew up with the accepted wisdom that the collective genius of James Watson and Francis Crick cracked the code of life: DNA. In college, I did hear about someone named Rosalind Franklin that was somehow wrongly denied a share of the glory in this magnificent achievement. At the time, being naive and ignorant as I was, I dismissed the contributions made by Rosalind Franklin as being merely that of a technical assistant (rather than as the KEY insight that it really was) and simply dismissed claims on her behalf as being those of the 'politically correct' rather than people sincere about preserving the integrity of science. I freely admit now that I was totally wrong. Rosalind Franklin's contributions to the discovery of the nature and structure of DNA was absolutely crucial to the magnificent moment of science that took place 50 years ago. It seems clear on the evidence that Watson nor Crick could ever have made the mental leaps and had the insights that they had had Dr. Franklin's work not been 'available' to them. What is more disturbing about this whole sordid affair is -- not that Dr. Franklin did not get all the accolades she deserved (which the scientific community is making belated ammends for) -- that Dr. Franklin's work was quite literally stolen from her ... she never gave permission for Watson & Crick to have her results, they never informed her that they had surreptitious access to those results, and Watson & Crick -- for all intents and purposes -- gave her no credit for her contributions. In the *Double Helix* -- rather than simply sweeping those inconvenient facts under the rug -- James Watson goes on to malign Dr. Franklin in both a personal and vicious manner. Even though she was one of the leading pioneers and pillars of X-ray crystallography, James Watson wrote in his book that 'Rosy' (as he derisively referred to her as ... never calling her by her proper name) was not capable of understanding her own results and suggested that she was a lowly technician rather than a leading researcher. To make matters worse, James Watson spent a great deal of time in his book on describing Dr. Franklin as being unattractive, unfeminine, and unsociable (in truth, she was a very attractive and vivacious woman). As I write this on April 25, 2003, the world is commemorating the publication in Nature of Watson & Crick's supposed 'discovery' of the nature of DNA -- an event that heralded a new genomic age of science. The second paper in that issue of Nature after Watson & Crick's paper was a paper by Rosalind Franklin and her graudate assistant Raymond Gosling. Dr. Franklin's paper contained a facsimile of 'Photo 51' -- the X-ray photo of DNA that was key to Watson & Crick's fame and glory. Dr. Franklin's photo alone -- with absolutely no need for the 'insights' of Watson & Crick -- proves the double helical struture of DNA. It seems tragically ironic that a book entitled *Double Helix* devotes so much ink to maligning and belittleing its real discoverer. In summary, if you view the *Double Helix* as a fictional account of how great and smart James Watson is and how homely and dull-witted 'Rosy' is, then this book is still a classic. But I don't think I can view the tale told in its pages the same way as I did before I knew the true history of the double helix.
Rating:
Summary: excellent
Review: This book is a must for any body interested in how great discoveries actually happen. Watson is one of two who co-discovered the structure of DNA. This is his acount of the time of discovery. Watson fills the readers in on the details of how a discovery happens from both scientific and personal perspectives. Watson writes about how he and his partner Crick work their way towards one of the great dscoveries of the 20th century. Watson also writes about personal dislikes and how men and women of science can be every bit as petty as their lay counterparts. Watson writes about backbiting among the various scientists as well as the heady excitement of the work. This book is a must read because it is from the horses mouth and the horse did a great job.
Rating: 
Summary: Happy Birthday, DNA...
Review: ...not in the strictest sense, but those in the know realise what I'm talking about. Imagine the possibilites. Imagine the dangers. You can predict what your grandson will be like, what diseases he is genetically predisposed for...there may even be an eradication of all cancer and AIDS and heart disease in the world once the keys to the Human Genome Project are established and what it all can do. And, essentially, it all started here. Now, that is truly awesome. You can read how the theory and elucidation all came together here. Note: W&C swiped the x-ray diffraction work from Rosalind Franklin that had the answers. And they had access to a chrystallographer for further clarification like which of the bases would be most possible in the keto form in H2O--and they referenced Linus Pauling's alpha helix theories... But, of course, it was W&C's thinking process that saw the lyricism and beauty of DNA's workings... and their passion led them to come up with a sceintific discovery which has changed the world. Read it. You will enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Understated Account of a Really Big Event
Review: Clarification is in order. First of all, this is not a substantive science book. For all the significance of the discovery it chronicles, The Double Helix never bothers to explain how, for example, x-ray crystallography actually works, or what the difference between a keto- and an -enol is, or even why Watson's and Crick's discovery brought on a new era in the life sciences. Aspiring students of genetics and molecular biology are urged to inquire elsewhere for answers to these questions. Second, to label The Double Helix a book on scientific method is almost equally misleading - the reason being that there is no room in the rarefied formalism extolled by the likes of Karl Popper for Watson's subjectivity and sarcasm, not to mention the latter's frequent excursions on nubile au pairs and the deplorable student housing market at Cambridge. Third (not that it matters for an appreciation of the book, but it's a common misunderstanding), Watson and Crick did not discover DNA itself, or even the function of DNA. Rather, they were awarded the Nobel Prize for solving the molecular structure of DNA. With those clarifications in mind, The Double Helix is a profitable read. Watson shows us non-scientists that the practice of science is "just" another human endeavor, and not some remote, sterilized activity conducted by emotional eunuchs in white coats. Watson's first-person narrative is downright conversational, as if he's talking shop over a pint of stout in an English pub. He is unabashedly honest about both his ambitions and his naivete (he was only 23 at the time the events in the book took place). And his sometimes scathing portrayals of his colleagues - in all their brilliance and banality - give the impression that working in a world-class research facility is a lot like working anywhere else. Francis Crick comes across as that certain guy we all knew in college (wherever and whenever that was) - impish and boisterous, egocentric but big-hearted, who might be dapper if he didn't sleep in his clothes, whose eccentricity is the bane of faculty advisors, whose attention is everywhere but on task, whose breath sometimes smells like beer after lunch, and whose serendipitous genius comes through at all the right times. The supporting cast is equally colorful: Maurice Wilkins, the quintessential English academic stuffed corpse; Rosalind Franklin, a Freudian caricature of icy feminine competence in a man's world; the godlike Linus Pauling playing with his tinker toy molecular models in California. And it wasn't just his colleagues who made Watson's work interesting. There were the aforementioned au pairs, the pubs and the parties and the formal receptions, there was the professional competitiveness between the English and the Americans - with Watson (a Yank in Cambridge) more of an American insurance policy against the Brits getting all the credit for solving DNA if Pauling wasn't fast enough. And there was the Cold War, which had an impact on research priorities and, sometimes, hampered communication in the scientific community. But most importantly - although Watson never deigns to make this point explicit - The Double Helix is a fascinating chronicle of the scientific method in action, notwithstanding the politics, the distractions, and the idiosyncrasies of the protagonists. The task itself was daunting. Watson and Crick already knew what DNA was composed of, and they knew with some certainty the proportions in which the bases were represented, but there could only be one correct way to put all the pieces together and the haystack was a big one. The researchers were quick to offer and to accept criticism, and false leads were abandoned without regard to ego or sunk time. Even though each wanted to get there first, London shared their findings with Cambridge, Cambridge shared their insights with London, and England and California held nothing from each other for long - admirable examples of the "sociable competition" of science that expedites discovery. In the end, Watson's and Crick's success relied heavily on Wilkins's and Franklin's crystallography, with important contributions from whomever happened to stop by the lab during the two year period, and insights from conferences and the textbooks and articles Watson happened to read at the time. Creativity, serendipity, and openness to the ideas of others eventually yielded hypotheses, which were tested using Pauling's modeling methods. It could not have been done alone, as Watson makes clear, and the structure of DNA would have been discovered sooner or later. While ultimately it doesn't matter who gets the credit for the discovery, the world seems a better place for James Watson's being involved, if only because The Double Helix is such an entertaining read.
Rating:
Summary: Read only if you love science
Review: You have to like science and like to read about it, then u might possibly enjoy this book. However, if you dont like science don't read it. My school assaigned us sophmores to read it over the summer, and I hated it, but im not a science or math type person, in fact I would fully love it if I didn't have to take them at all.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting scientific journey
Review: QUICK REVIEW
This book is a semi-interesting, semi-enjoyable story of the research and path of discovery of the scientists who figured out the structure of DNA. FULL REVIEW
For the reader to really enjoy this book, he/she needs to already know some things about DNA prior to reading it. So in that sense, that is one of the book's weaknesses. However, someone who does not know anything about DNA probably wouldn't be interested in it in the first place. So the problem kind of takes care of itself. The book, though, can still easily go over the reader's head in parts. The author does not try to walk the reader through the understanding of the research that went on, and thus the reader can get lost in the specifics and the jargon. However, that is not what the author is interested in doing anyway. He wants us to see the personalities and the human side of the story rather than the scientific details. In this he succeeds. The story could have been dry, but it keeps your attention by making you interested in the people involved and the dynamics of those people behind the discovery. It is a good book that may or may not engross some people, but the reader can't help but get caught up in the excitement when they close in on the final discovery, knowing that they will receive the Nobel Prize and what it means to the biological world. It is a good book but not a great book, and will probably be enjoyed by any reader who is interested in the topic.
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