Alec Stokes
Alec Stokes | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alexander Rawson Stokes 27 June 1919 Macclesfield, England |
| Died | 5 February 2003 (aged 83) |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Cambridge |
| Known for | Molecular structure of DNA |
| Spouse | Margaret Stokes |
| Children | 2 sons and 1 daughter |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physics, biophysics |
| Institutions | Royal Holloway College, London King's College London |
| Thesis | Imperfect Crystals (1944) |
| Doctoral advisor | Lawrence Bragg |
| Other academic advisors | John Randall |
Alexander Rawson Stokes (27 June 1919 – 6 February 2003) was a British physicist at Royal Holloway College, London and later at King's College London. He was most recognised as a co-author of the second of the three papers published sequentially in Nature on 25 April 1953 describing the correct molecular structure of DNA. The first was authored by Francis Crick and James Watson, and the third by Rosalind Franklin and Raymond Gosling.
In 1993, on the 40th anniversary of the publication of the molecular structure of DNA, a plaque was erected in the Quad (courtyard) of the Strand campus of King's College London, commemorating the contributions of Franklin, Gosling, Stokes, Wilson, and Wilkins to "DNA X-ray diffraction studies".