James Watson, DNA pioneer, defends stem cell research

"Nobel laureate James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, on Monday defended stem cell research, saying researchers must be able to search for ways to improve quality of life despite the field's uncertainties.

'I think there's a perception that scientists are more interested in science than society, that scientists are less moral than religious people,' the 76-year-old Watson said at the opening of a Berlin exhibit on his life and books. 'I think that's completely wrong.'

'To what extent research on stem cells will improve the quality of human life, I don't know, but we should be allowed to try,' he told reporters at the Berlin Medical History Museum at the Charite Medical School."

-Matt Surman, Associated Press

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