The Irish Role in the Discovery of the Secret of Life

This event has ended

Online, Friday 30th October

As a geneticist, our speaker Mark Lawler has always been fascinated about the research that uncovered the “Secret of Life” as Francis Crick described the discovery of the structure of DNA in, of all places, the Eagle Pub in Cambridge. But Mark’s hero in this seminal discovery was not the cerebral Francis Crick, nor his more brash American colleague James Watson.

In his public lecture as part of the celebrations of the 80th Anniversary of the Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies, Mark will focus on the oft forgotten contribution of Rosalind Franklin, the Dark Lady of DNA, who did so much but received so little. But the more he delved into this fascinating and sometimes sad story, the more Mark realised that there was a significant Irish connection, one that involved a number of what might seem at first unlikely players, including Eamon De Valera and Archbishop John Charles McQuaid. Mark will bring you back to a time when Ireland, and, in particular, Dublin, was at the heart of the scientific universe and share with you a story that is exciting, puzzling, challenging, but never dull.


Date:
Friday 30th October
Time:
6.00pm
Price:
Free

You might also like...

What's on

Bloom

Phoenix Park

Bord Bia Bloom returns to the Phoenix Park, Dublin, marking its 20th year over the 2026 June Bank Holiday weekend, from 28 May to 1 June 2026. The event will run daily from 9am to 6pm, spanning a 70-acre site. Bloom has established itself as one of Ireland’s favourite summer events, drawing garden enthusiasts, food lovers, craft aficionados, and families seeking a memorable day out. Festival History and Growth Since its inception in 2007, Bord Bia Bloom has blossomed into Ireland’s largest festival of gardening, food, and sustainable living. The 2026 edition promises to bring together

What's on

Ciara Rodgers—In Conversation with Aideen Quirke

Pallas Projects/Studios

Join Pallas Projects/Studios for an in-conversation event with artist Ciara Rodgers and curator Aideen Quirke, discussing Paper Façades make Tender Follies. Bringing her experience as a curator, facilitator, and collaborator working across contemporary art, collective care, and activist methodologies, Quirke will join Rodgers in a discussion expanding on the themes of the exhibition. These include architecture, gendered experiences of urban space, precarity, and the contradictions embedded within the contemporary built environment. Through installation, material experimentation, and spatial i

Cruinniú na nÓg 2020.

What's on

Cruinniú na nÓg

Various Locations

A day of free creativity for children and young people Ireland is the first, and only, country in the world to have a national day of free creativity for children and young people under 18. Cruinniú na nÓg is a flagship initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme’s Creative Youth Plan to enable the creative potential of children and young people. The inaugural Cruinniú na nÓg took place on 23rd June 2018 and for the past number of years, including under exceptional circumstances in 2020, young people and families have come together to enjoy, a wide range of creative activities includin