Dr. James Watson Follows His Own Advice

When you call your memoir Avoid Boring People, as Dr. James Watson did, and then go around the country talking about it, you've set yourself up for a rather easy dig.

"I took Watson's advice...and walked out!" you can imagine the snarky wit writing.

Of course, there's one way around this, and that's to consistently entertain. And Watson, who appeared last night in front of a sold-out crowd at the IMAX theater, surely did.

Guided by the terrific questions of Pacific Science Center COO/CFO Darla Norris, Watson's touch--even on a topic as dull as the state of science doctoral programs--was funny and charming.

Some highlights from the talk:

"Some people do busywork because they think it's better than doing nothing. I would rather do nothing than do something that need not be done."

"[Science Ph.D.] students have effectively become serfs. And who would become a serf when you can work for Goldman Sachs and get paid $300,000 a year to become a serf? Why drive a Chevy when you can drive a BMW--and now you're condemned to driving a car from Malaysia or something. Life should be fun."

"Sacha Baron Cohen playing me in a movie would really make people want to go into science."

On former colleague Francis Crick's theories of an extraterrestrial origin of life: "I thought Frances was off his rocker."

On cancer research: "We focus too much on why we get cancer and not enough on why we don't. Philip Morris should fund a study of 80-year-old smokers that don't get cancer...if there was a gene that would let you smoke?"

On George W. Bush's pick to head the National Cancer Institute: "There are no words to describe how awful he is."

On the Clintons: "They actually believe that social science is science!" (This got the biggest laugh of the night)

Did Crick make some of the sexist statements for which he's been vilified? He did.

"Men evolved to compete with other men...I guess it would be good if men acted like women, but then they become girly-men, afraid to offend everyone. I don't think you can be a man and be politically correct...I like women to succeed in science, I just want them to work 80 hours a week."

Watson's theory seems to be that, good science requires competition, and women aren't hard-wired for competition the way men are. We'd advise Dr. Watson to check out an ultimate frisbee tournament.

His more controversial comments were greeted with nervous laughter--nary a hint of the vitriol they would have received if uttered by, say, a guy on a date with any college-educated woman under the age of 95.

A lady we overheard on our way out summed up the audience's non-reaction best:

"When you're as old and successful as he is, you can say whatever you want."