Who knew that the first attempt to crack the DNA structure was made in Leeds in 1938 by scientists William Astbury and Florence Bell – all thanks to their research into wool fibres? Or that the X-ray method with which they did this work had been developed here in 1913 by father and son physics team William and Lawrence Bragg, and earned them the Nobel Prize in Physics 2 years later? And that a second Nobel Prize awarded to Headingley based scientists Archer Martin and Richard Synge which helped unravel the chemical structure of insulin and how DNA carries the genetic code, also had its roots in wool research?
It’s great to have been able to bring these stories of Leeds’ scientific heritage to a wider audience thanks to #leedstrivialpursuit – an exhibition organised by Leeds BID which has turned the city centre into a giant version of the popular board game as part of the celebrations of the 400th anniversary of the city being granted its royal charter. And a real honour to attend the official press launch which was held at Leeds City Museum last Friday (thanks to Tom Arber, Photo 81 for photos).
