| April 23, 2003 |
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NOVA: Secret of Photo 51
Many  Shakespearean sonnets were inspired by and written for a mysterious "dark lady" whose identity remains unknown to this day. In a scientific parallel, a woman whose seminal research inspired important breakthroughs in the field of genetics remains largely unknown. PBS hopes to rectify the situation by introducing Rosalind Franklin, aka the Dark Lady of DNA. James Watson and Francis Crick are credited with the discovery of DNA's disctinctive double-helix structure, yet Franklin's research helped set the stage for their achievement. She took the first clear picture of DNA's structure, Photo 51, which motivated Watson and Crick to visualize the double helix. Franklin's early death from cancer sadly consigned her to scientific obscurity. Thanks to PBS and this important site, Franklin's discovery is revisited with an interactive anatomy of Photo 51, along with a journey deep inside DNA itself. (in DNA and Genetics) |
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