@mcnees One of my all-time favorite tweets was from an attendee at a science talk. The presenter asked "what did Watson and Crick discover?" And from the back of the room someone yelled
"Rosalind Franklin's notes!"
@zleap I don't recall whether it was a thread, but I don't think so, or at least I never saw the continuation. Unfortunately the screenshot is gone, otherwise I would provide attribution.
The Nobel Prize used to tweet about her every year, never missing an opportunity to point out that it wasn’t their fault, they surely would’ve given Franklin a share of the prize awarded to Watson and Crick if only she’d lived a little longer. 🙄
The tweet reads: NOBEL PRIZE The Nobel Prize ® @NobelPrize • 4/16/18 #OTD Rosalind Franklin, passed away aged 37. James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins who were awarded the Nobel Prize for the discovery of DNA were only nominated for the first time in 1960, 2 years after Franklin had died
The tweet reads: The Nobel Prize @NobelPrize Rosalind Franklin born #OTD, D 1958. Only living persons can be #NobelPrize nominated and she was never nominated.
But here is the thing: the “rule” against posthumous Nobel Prizes was only codified in 1974, well after the Watson and Crick prize, and exclusively refers to “he.”
Three prizes have been awarded after the recipient died, including one in 2012.
I'm currently re-reading "The Brothers Sinister" series by Courtney Milan. Her dedication for the third book in the series, "The Countess Conspiracy" is:
"For Rosalind Franklin, whose name we know. For Anna Clausen, whom I discovered while writing this book. For every woman whose name has disappeared without recognition. This book is for you."
In the afterword, she explains more about Anna Clausen, etc...
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