Francis Crick by Matt Ridley

Francis Crick by Matt Ridley

Part of the acclaimed Eminent Lives series, Francis Crick is the first biography of the eminent scientist, co-discoverer of the double helix structure of DNA. Written by Matt Ridley, the award-winning author of the national bestseller Genome, Francis Crick traces his life from middle class mediocrity in the English Midlands through a lackluster education and six years designing magnetic mines for the Royal Navy to his leap into biology at the age of 31 and his enormous success, providing "a considerably more complete and colorful portrait of Crick than has existed before." (New York Times)

This landmark work in the history of science reveals the man behind the discovery:

• The Race for the Double Helix: Explore the intense partnership with James Watson and the competitive drive that led them to one of the 20th century's greatest scientific breakthroughs.
• From Codebreaker to Code Cracker: Discover Crick's surprising wartime years designing magnetic mines for the Royal Navy and how his scientific mind later turned to cracking the very code of life itself.
• Science and Controversy: Delve into the complex collaborations, including the pivotal and often-debated role of Rosalind Franklin's data in the DNA discovery.
• Life After the Nobel: Follow Crick's journey beyond DNA, from defining the "Central Dogma" of biology to his final decades tackling his second great mystery: the neurological basis of human consciousness.

Six literary awards have shortlisted Matt Ridley's works, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His book The Agile Gene: How Nature Turns on Nurture earned the National Academies of Science award for best science book released in 2003. He is the head of the International Centre for Life in Newcastle, England, and has worked as a scientist, journalist, and national newspaper columnist. He's also a visiting professor at New York's Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.