--- title: "10 Know Quotes By James D. Watson" description: "10 Know quotes by James D. Watson. Plus more from James D. Watson and more Know sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/james-d-watson-4724_good_my-heroes-were-never-scientists-they-wer_713349.png" --- > [My heroes were never scientists. They were Graham Greene and Christopher Isherwood, you know, good writers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/my-heroes-were-never-scientists-they-were-graham-greene-and/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/james-d-watson-4724_good_my-heroes-were-never-scientists-they-wer_713349.png) > [My whole life has been basically trying to find intelligent students or, you know, highly motivated students and giving them an opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/my-whole-life-has-been-basically-trying-to-find-intelligent-students/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/james-d-watson-4724_basically_my-whole-life-has-been-basically-trying_2050868.png) > [We should govern our actions by assuming that people are more good than bad. Whereas, most of our social policies dictate that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/we-should-govern-our-actions-by-assuming-that-people-are-more-good/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/956/james-d-watson-4724_actions_we-should-govern-our-actions-by-assuming_3233397.png) > [It's certainly in dreams of people, you know, that they do something big. Most of the time they keep it secret because,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/it-s-certainly-in-dreams-of-people-you-know-that-they-do-something/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/james-d-watson-4724_because_it-s-certainly-in-dreams-of-people-you-k_2079142.png) > [I don't want 100 different cures of cancer. I want, you know, give me five. So if you had, you know, five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-cancer-i-want-you-know-give-me/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3b/james-d-watson-4724_away_i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-canc_479888.jpg) > [I started doing science when I was effectively 20, a graduate student of Salvador Luria at Indiana University. And that was -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-started-doing-science-when-i-was-effectively-20-a-graduate-student/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84d/james-d-watson-4724_about_i-started-doing-science-when-i-was-effec_2687214.jpg) > [My parents made it clear that I should never display even the slightest disrespect to individuals who had the power to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/my-parents-made-it-clear-that-i-should-never-display-even-the/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/206/james-d-watson-4724_about_my-parents-made-it-clear-that-i-should-n_2610987.png) > [By the age of 11, I was no longer going to Sunday Mass, and going on birdwatching walks with my father. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-to-sunday-mass-and-going-on/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/james-d-watson-4724_age_by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-t_2794147.jpg) > [I never could read science fiction. I was just uninterested in it. And you know, I don't like to read novels where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was-just-uninterested-in-it-and/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/james-d-watson-4724_about_i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was_1055885.png) > [If you go into science, I think you better go in with a dream that maybe you, too, will get a Nobel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-better-go-in-with-a-dream-that/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad3/james-d-watson-4724_better_if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-bette_1180342.jpg) ## Other authors on Know ## More by James D. Watson > [As a child, I lived with being punier than other boys in class. The only consolation was my parents' empathy - they encouraged constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/as-a-child-i-lived-with-being-punier-than-other-boys-in-class-the/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Take young researchers, put them together in virtual seclusion, give them an unprecedented degree of freedom and turn up the pressure by fostering competitiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/take-young-researchers-put-them-together-in-virtual-seclusion-give/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans favour research using embryonic stem cells and yet politicians continue to pander to the outspoken religious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/polls-consistently-show-that-the-majority-of-americans-favour/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [You move forward through knowledge. You prevail through knowledge. I love the word 'prevail.' Prevail!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/you-move-forward-through-knowledge-you-prevail-through-knowledge-i/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [As an educator, I have always striven to see that the fruits of the American Dream are available to all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/as-an-educator-i-have-always-striven-to-see-that-the-fruits-of-the/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [The brain is the last and grandest biological frontier, the most complex thing we have yet discovered in our universe. It contains hundreds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/the-brain-is-the-last-and-grandest-biological-frontier-the-most/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [No good model ever accounted for all the facts, since some data was bound to be misleading if not plain wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/no-good-model-ever-accounted-for-all-the-facts-since-some-data-was/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/one-could-not-be-a-successful-scientist-without-realizing-that-in/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [If we could honestly promise young couples that we knew how to give them offspring with superior character, why should we assume they would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/if-we-could-honestly-promise-young-couples-that-we-knew-how-to-give/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [The way to do great science is to stay away from subjects that are overpopulated, and go to the frontiers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/the-way-to-do-great-science-is-to-stay-away-from-subjects-that-are/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Remember, grab you're future with both hands and mold it into what you want it to be. It's the determined, who create the life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/remember-grab-you-re-future-with-both-hands-and-mold-it-into-what-you/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I wish there would be more movies about scientists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-wish-there-would-be-more-movies-about-scientists/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I don't want 100 different cures of cancer. I want, you know, give me five. So if you had, you know, five medicines, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-cancer-i-want-you-know-give-me/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [One-third of all female infertility is the result of blocked fallopian tubes. If fertilization could be done in the lab and then the fertilized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/one-third-of-all-female-infertility-is-the-result-of-blocked/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [I wanted to see if I could write a good book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-wanted-to-see-if-i-could-write-a-good-book/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/james-d-watson/#itemlist", "name": "10 Know Quotes By James D. Watson", "numberOfItems": 10, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My heroes were never scientists. They were Graham Greene and Christopher Isherwood, you know, good writers.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. 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So if you had, you know, five medicines, you could do away with 90 percent of cancer. That's sort of my objective. I think we're going to do it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. Watson" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-cancer-i-want-you-know-give-me/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3b/james-d-watson-4724_away_i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-canc_479888.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3b/james-d-watson-4724_away_i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-canc_479888.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3b/james-d-watson-4724_away_i-don-t-want-100-different-cures-of-canc_479888.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't want 100 different cures of cancer. I want, you know, give me five. So if you had, you know, five…” — James D. 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Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My parents made it clear that I should never display even the slightest disrespect to individuals who had the power to let me skip a half grade or move into more challenging classes. While it was all right for me to know more about a topic than my sixth-grade teacher had ever learned, questioning her facts could only lead to trouble.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. 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Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "By the age of 11, I was no longer going to Sunday Mass, and going on birdwatching walks with my father. So early on, I heard of Charles Darwin. I guess, you know, he was the big hero. And, you know, you understand life as it now exists through evolution.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. Watson" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-to-sunday-mass-and-going-on/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/james-d-watson-4724_age_by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-t_2794147.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/james-d-watson-4724_age_by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-t_2794147.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/james-d-watson-4724_age_by-the-age-of-11-i-was-no-longer-going-t_2794147.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“By the age of 11, I was no longer going to Sunday Mass, and going on birdwatching walks with my father. So…” — James D. Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I never could read science fiction. I was just uninterested in it. And you know, I don't like to read novels where the hero just goes beyond what I think could exist. And it doesn't interest me because I'm not learning anything about something I'll actually have to deal with.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. Watson" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was-just-uninterested-in-it-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/james-d-watson-4724_about_i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was_1055885.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/james-d-watson-4724_about_i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was_1055885.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/james-d-watson-4724_about_i-never-could-read-science-fiction-i-was_1055885.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I never could read science fiction. I was just uninterested in it. And you know, I don't like to read novels…” — James D. Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you go into science, I think you better go in with a dream that maybe you, too, will get a Nobel Prize. It's not that I went in and I thought I was very bright and I was going to get one, but I'll confess, you know, I knew what it was.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James D. Watson" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-better-go-in-with-a-dream-that/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad3/james-d-watson-4724_better_if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-bette_1180342.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad3/james-d-watson-4724_better_if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-bette_1180342.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad3/james-d-watson-4724_better_if-you-go-into-science-i-think-you-bette_1180342.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you go into science, I think you better go in with a dream that maybe you, too, will get a Nobel Prize…” — James D. Watson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/james-d-watson/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/james-d-watson/", "name": "Know Quotes by James D. Watson", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/james-d-watson/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/james-d-watson-4724_good_my-heroes-were-never-scientists-they-wer_713349.png" }, "description": "10 Know quotes by James D. Watson. Plus more from James D. 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