DNA pioneer James Watson dies at 97

"His co-discovery of the structure of DNA opened the door to help explain how DNA replicates and carries genetic information, setting the stage for rapid advances in molecular biology. But his honorary titles were stripped in 2019 after he repeated comments about race and intelligence. In a TV programme, he made a reference to a view that genes cause a difference on average between blacks and whites on IQ tests."

"The death of Watson, who co-discovered the double-helix structure of DNA in 1953, was confirmed to the BBC by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, where he worked and researched for decades. Watson shared the Nobel in 1962 with Maurice Wilkins and Francis Crick for the DNA's double helix structure discovery. "We have discovered the secret of life," they said at the time. His comments on race led to him saying that he felt ostracised by the scientific community."

"In 2007, the scientist, who once worked at the University of Cambridge's Cavendish Laboratory, told the Times newspaper that 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". The comments led to him losing his job as chancellor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York."

James Watson, who co-discovered the double-helix structure of DNA in 1953, died aged 97. His work helped explain how DNA replicates and carries genetic information and set the stage for advances in molecular biology. Watson shared the 1962 Nobel Prize with Maurice Wilkins and Francis Crick. He worked and researched for decades at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Controversial comments linking race and intelligence led to loss of his chancellorship and, after further remarks in 2019, the stripping of honorary titles including chancellor emeritus and Oliver R Grace professor emeritus. The laboratory called his statements reprehensible and unsupported by science.

Read at www.bbc.com