Question

The scientists who discovered the shape of the DNA molecule were:

1) Watson and Crick
2) Hershey and Chase
3) Beadle and Tatum
4) Avery and Griffith

Answer 1

James Watson and Francis Crick are credited with discovering the double helix shape of DNA, based on the work of other scientists, notably Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray diffraction data they used for their model. They received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1962 for this discovery.

Step-by-step explanation:

The scientists who discovered the shape of the DNA molecule were James Watson and Francis Crick. In the 1950s, they worked together to determine the structure of DNA at the University of Cambridge, England. Their discovery that DNA has a double helix shape, resembling a spiral staircase, was pivotal in the field of biology. This discovery was greatly indebted to the prior work of other scientists, especially Rosalind Franklin's X-ray diffraction data, which was critical in elucidating the double helix structure. In 1962, Watson, Crick, and Maurice Wilkins were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, although Franklin's crucial contributions could not be formally recognized with a Nobel Prize as she had already passed away by then.