Francis Crick was born near Northampton, England, on June 8, 1916. Even as a boy, he was curious—and enterprising. At about 12, after devouring a student textbook on chemistry, he attempted to make artificial silk and experimented with blowing up bottles filled with explosives and immersed in a pail of water. In 1937, Crick graduated in physics and mathematics from University College London. His initial research activities were interrupted in 1939 by World War II, during which he designed magnetic and acoustic mines.
Only after the war did Crick seriously consider a career in research. His friends did not always facilitate the decision-making process. Some thought he might be better at scientific journalism than in research. His close friend Georg Kreisel, a distinguished mathematical logician, pronounced dryly on his scientific aspirations, “I've known a lot of people more stupid than you who've made a success of it!” “Encouraged by his advice,” Crick remembered later, “my next problem was to decide what subject to choose.” Even then he was fascinated by neurobiology and molecular biology. His decision to begin with molecular biology was purely based on his scientific background: at the time (1947), Crick was over 30 and knew no biology and practically no organic chemistry or crystallography.
