Fortunately, they did follow-up with an official effort to get the word out. Watson and Crick published their findings in Nature on April 25, 1953 under the sedate title, "A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid." The research was accompanied by a schematic drawing of a double helix drawn by Crick's initially skeptical wife.

The decision of whose name should come first was also decided in an unassuming way: a coin toss determined that Watson would be mentioned first. The low-profile went beyond the modest title and the simple way of deciding the order of names. The article didn't initially make the huge impact one would expect. A few years passed before it gained a wider acceptance. This occurred after their research and conclusions were verified by other leading researchers of the time.


Like almost every great discovery, controversy did follow. Watson published a book, The Double Helix, recounting the struggle leading up to their discovery and Crick took offense. He tried and failed to suppress publication of the book. He felt the bestselling book offered too private a look at him as an individual and he felt it misrepresented his motives behind the research. Eventually, he reconciled with Watson when he concluded the work was negative more towards Watson than himself.

Watson, Crick and another researcher named Maurice Wilkins were awarded the Nobel Prize for physiology/medicine in 1962. A fourth researcher, Rosalind Franklin, whom Crick believes would have shared the prize with them, died prior to the award so was not recognized by the society.




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