| 34. Coda: "A Very Pleasant Climax" |
1953 |
Linus Pauling became the epitome of a graceful loser. He gave Watson and Crick full credit for their discovery, helped them
tidy up a question about hydrogen bonding across the chains, and then invited them to present and discuss their discovery
at an international protein conference he organized in Pasadena, in September 1953.
It was an historic occasion, a celebration of the great strides made during the previous three years and a starting point
for the new field of molecular biology.
Pauling was undaunted by his mistaken structure. He would go on to win the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1954 for his entire
body of work in structural chemistry, and then become the first person in history to win two unshared Nobels when he became
the surprise winner of the 1962 Nobel Prize for Peace.
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"I might say that it reached a very pleasant climax at a conference that Linus Pauling had arranged to take place in Pasadena
in 1953. Nowadays we would call it a workshop, on the structure of biologically important molecules: it probably wasn't attended
by more than 25 or 30 people...The conference was strictly limited to structure; but in that respect, it was quite spectacular.
It included Watson and Crick's account of the structure of DNA, solved six months earlier..."
- Max Perutz, Interview. 1970
"Gradually DNA became better known. Paul Doty told me that shortly after lapel buttons came in he was in New York and to his
astonishment saw one with 'DNA' written on it. Thinking it must refer to something else he asked the vendor what it meant,
'Get with it, bud,' the man replied in a strong New York accent, 'dat's the gene.'"
- Francis Crick, "How to Live with a Golden Helix, The Sciences. 1979
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