Home | Biography | Worklist | Music | Reviews | Gallery | Store | Contact JAMES D. WATSON James D. Watson is an American scientist who co-discovered the structure of DNA, for which he received a Nobel Prize in 1962. That extraordinary discovery is perhaps the most important one in the 20th century, as it is laying the grounds for unbelievable scientific advances, which may soon put out of doors most diseases humans are suffering from. Dr. Watson was born in Chicago, Illinois, on April 6, 1928. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 1947 and later gained his Ph.D. in Zoology at Indiana University in 1950. His growing interest in exploring the structure of DNA was the main focus during his postdoctoral research, and when he met Francis Crick in 1951, the two collaborated and soon, based on additional findings by crystallographer Rosalind Franklin and molecular biologist Maurice Wilkins, made the triumphal discovery. In 1962 Watson and Crick shared a Nobel Prize in Physiology of Medicine. Double Helix (for clarinet and violin) is a composition dedicated to the great scientist, on the occasion of his 80th birthday, on April 6, 2008. A musical imitation of the structure of DNA (the double helix), it conveys Edward Manukyan’s deep gratitude and admiration for the heroic and honorable work of Dr. Watson. (Another composition, dedicated to both James Watson and Francis Crick, is Triumph of Reason, for trumpet and piano, written in 2007.) Click here to watch an interview with Dr. Watson and biologist Edward O. Wilson.