BIOLOGIST
James Watson
1928 - Today

James Watson
James Dewey Watson (born April 6, 1928) is an American molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist. In 1953, he co-authored with Francis Crick the academic paper in Nature proposing the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. Watson, Crick and Maurice Wilkins were awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries concerning the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material". Watson earned degrees at the University of Chicago (Bachelor of Science, 1947) and Indiana University Bloomington (PhD, 1950). Read more on Wikipedia
His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. James Watson is the 5th most popular biologist (up from 12th in 2019), the 61st most popular biography from United States (up from 176th in 2019) and the most popular American Biologist.
James Watson is most famous for being one of the co-discoverers of the structure of DNA.
Memorability Metrics
Page views of James Watson by language
Among BIOLOGISTS
Among biologists, James Watson ranks 5 out of 1,097. Before him are Charles Darwin, Carl Linnaeus, Gregor Mendel, and Alexander Fleming. After him are Ivan Pavlov, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Ernst Haeckel, Konrad Lorenz, Rosalind Franklin, and Karl Landsteiner.
Most Popular Biologists in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsCharles Darwin
1809 - 1882
HPI: 91.48
Rank: 1
Carl Linnaeus
1707 - 1778
HPI: 90.16
Rank: 2
Gregor Mendel
1822 - 1884
HPI: 85.69
Rank: 3
Alexander Fleming
1881 - 1955
HPI: 84.76
Rank: 4
James Watson
1928 - Present
HPI: 83.14
Rank: 5
Ivan Pavlov
1849 - 1936
HPI: 83.05
Rank: 6
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
1632 - 1723
HPI: 82.46
Rank: 7
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
1744 - 1829
HPI: 82.06
Rank: 8
Ernst Haeckel
1834 - 1919
HPI: 79.95
Rank: 9
Konrad Lorenz
1903 - 1989
HPI: 79.42
Rank: 10
Rosalind Franklin
1920 - 1958
HPI: 79.24
Rank: 11
Karl Landsteiner
1868 - 1943
HPI: 79.16
Rank: 12
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1928, James Watson ranks 3. Before him are Che Guevara, and John Forbes Nash Jr.. After him are Andy Warhol, Hosni Mubarak, Ennio Morricone, Stanley Kubrick, Ariel Sharon, Noam Chomsky, Eduard Shevardnadze, Jean-Marie Le Pen, and Chinghiz Aitmatov.
Others Born in 1928
Go to all RankingsChe Guevara
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1928 - 1967
HPI: 93.09
Rank: 1
John Forbes Nash Jr.
MATHEMATICIAN
1928 - 2015
HPI: 85.78
Rank: 2
James Watson
BIOLOGIST
1928 - Present
HPI: 83.14
Rank: 3
Andy Warhol
ARTIST
1928 - 1987
HPI: 82.94
Rank: 4
Hosni Mubarak
POLITICIAN
1928 - 2020
HPI: 82.43
Rank: 5
Ennio Morricone
COMPOSER
1928 - 2020
HPI: 81.73
Rank: 6
Stanley Kubrick
FILM DIRECTOR
1928 - 1999
HPI: 81.71
Rank: 7
Ariel Sharon
POLITICIAN
1928 - 2014
HPI: 80.78
Rank: 8
Noam Chomsky
LINGUIST
1928 - Present
HPI: 79.50
Rank: 9
Eduard Shevardnadze
POLITICIAN
1928 - 2014
HPI: 79.00
Rank: 10
Jean-Marie Le Pen
POLITICIAN
1928 - 2025
HPI: 78.64
Rank: 11
Chinghiz Aitmatov
WRITER
1928 - 2008
HPI: 77.57
Rank: 12
In United States
Among people born in United States, James Watson ranks 61 out of 20,380. Before him are John Wilkes Booth (1838), Harry S. Truman (1884), Joan Baez (1941), Howard Hughes (1905), Robert Frost (1874), and Wallis Simpson (1896). After him are Andy Warhol (1928), Bill Clinton (1946), Marlon Brando (1924), Toni Morrison (1931), George R. R. Martin (1948), and Bob Dylan (1941).
Others born in United States
Go to all RankingsJohn Wilkes Booth
EXTREMIST
1838 - 1865
HPI: 83.65
Rank: 55
Harry S. Truman
POLITICIAN
1884 - 1972
HPI: 83.61
Rank: 56
Joan Baez
SINGER
1941 - Present
HPI: 83.48
Rank: 57
Howard Hughes
BUSINESSPERSON
1905 - 1976
HPI: 83.19
Rank: 58
Robert Frost
WRITER
1874 - 1963
HPI: 83.18
Rank: 59
Wallis Simpson
CELEBRITY
1896 - 1986
HPI: 83.16
Rank: 60
James Watson
BIOLOGIST
1928 - Present
HPI: 83.14
Rank: 61
Andy Warhol
ARTIST
1928 - 1987
HPI: 82.94
Rank: 62
Bill Clinton
POLITICIAN
1946 - Present
HPI: 82.93
Rank: 63
Marlon Brando
ACTOR
1924 - 2004
HPI: 82.91
Rank: 64
Toni Morrison
WRITER
1931 - 2019
HPI: 82.91
Rank: 65
George R. R. Martin
WRITER
1948 - Present
HPI: 82.87
Rank: 66
Bob Dylan
MUSICIAN
1941 - Present
HPI: 82.73
Rank: 67
Among BIOLOGISTS In United States
Among biologists born in United States, James Watson ranks 1. After him are George Beadle (1903), Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866), Edward Tatum (1909), George Smith (1941), Barbara McClintock (1902), Rachel Carson (1907), Irwin Rose (1926), Linda B. Buck (1947), Dian Fossey (1932), Clair Cameron Patterson (1922), and Alfred Hershey (1908).
James Watson
1928 - Present
HPI: 83.14
Rank: 1
George Beadle
1903 - 1989
HPI: 77.63
Rank: 2
Thomas Hunt Morgan
1866 - 1945
HPI: 76.71
Rank: 3
Edward Tatum
1909 - 1975
HPI: 76.34
Rank: 4
George Smith
1941 - Present
HPI: 74.77
Rank: 5
Barbara McClintock
1902 - 1992
HPI: 74.62
Rank: 6
Rachel Carson
1907 - 1964
HPI: 74.42
Rank: 7
Irwin Rose
1926 - 2015
HPI: 73.60
Rank: 8
Linda B. Buck
1947 - Present
HPI: 72.70
Rank: 9
Dian Fossey
1932 - 1985
HPI: 72.50
Rank: 10
Clair Cameron Patterson
1922 - 1995
HPI: 71.25
Rank: 11
Alfred Hershey
1908 - 1997
HPI: 71.22
Rank: 12