The Double Helix

The Double Helix

by

James D. Watson

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Double Helix makes teaching easy.
The alpha helix is a common molecular structure in proteins, which Linus Pauling discovered in 1951. It involves a series of amino acids (or polypeptide chain) arranged in a twisting, helical structure. Pauling’s research on the alpha helix strongly influenced Crick and Watson’s research into DNA.

Alpha Helix Quotes in The Double Helix

The The Double Helix quotes below are all either spoken by Alpha Helix or refer to Alpha Helix. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Research, Adventure, and the Thrill of Discovery Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

In place of pencil and paper, the main working tools were a set of molecular models superficially resembling the toys of preschool children.
We could thus see no reason why we should not solve DNA in the same way. All we had to do was to construct a set of molecular models and begin to play—with luck, the structure would be a helix.

Related Characters: James D. Watson (speaker), Francis Crick , Rosalind Franklin , Maurice Wilkins , Linus Pauling
Related Symbols: Molecular Models
Page Number: 50-51
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Double Helix LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Double Helix PDF

Alpha Helix Term Timeline in The Double Helix

The timeline below shows where the term Alpha Helix appears in The Double Helix. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
Research, Adventure, and the Thrill of Discovery Theme Icon
Scientific Collaboration, Competition, and Community Theme Icon
DNA and the Secret of Life Theme Icon
...“key to the secret of life.” He also learned about Linus Pauling’s research on the alpha helix structure of polypeptide chains. Pauling was famously charismatic, and while his presentation on the alpha... (full context)
Chapter 7
Research, Adventure, and the Thrill of Discovery Theme Icon
Scientific Collaboration, Competition, and Community Theme Icon
DNA and the Secret of Life Theme Icon
...its structure before Linus Pauling. They spent endless hours talking, and Crick explained Linus Pauling’s alpha helix research to Watson. Pauling’s discovery wasn’t based on equations or X-ray diffraction, but rather on... (full context)
Chapter 10
Scientific Collaboration, Competition, and Community Theme Icon
DNA and the Secret of Life Theme Icon
Academic Life and the University Theme Icon
...speaking style and wished that she did her hair differently. Whereas Linus Pauling discovered the alpha helix with molecular models, Franklin strongly believed that crystallography was the only way to discover the... (full context)
Chapter 20
Research, Adventure, and the Thrill of Discovery Theme Icon
Scientific Collaboration, Competition, and Community Theme Icon
...from Peter Pauling that Peter’s father, Linus, wasn’t studying DNA—he was researching “coiled coils” (how alpha helices coil together in proteins like keratin). However, Crick was also studying coiled coils, so he... (full context)