François Jacob
A molecular biologist who, with Jacques Monod, discovered the operon model of gene regulation, explaining how genes are turned on and off.
Most quoted
"A theory is a good theory if it satisfies two requirements: It must accurately describe a large class of observations on the basis of a model that contains only a few arbitrary elements, and it must make definite predictions about the results of future observations."
— from Attributed
"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like."
— from The Logic of Life: A History of Heredity
"The dream of the biologist is to understand the living world, to grasp its essence, to unravel its secrets. But the living world is not a simple mechanism; it is a history."
— from La logique du vivant, une histoire de l'hérédité, 1970
All quotes by François Jacob (362)
The dream of the cell is to become two cells.
Science is the art of the soluble.
The most important discovery of the 20th century in biology is that there is no vital force.
The cell is a historical object.
To understand a living organism, one must understand its history.
The genome is not a blueprint, but a recipe.
The living world is not a perfect machine, but a collection of makeshift arrangements.
Science progresses by the elimination of error.
The organism is a dream of the cell.
The future of biology lies in understanding the past.
The scientist is a storyteller.
The living world is a world of possibilities, not certainties.
The genome is a book that writes itself.
The cell is a society of molecules.
The history of life is a history of chance and necessity.
The genome is a dynamic entity, constantly being rewritten.
The cell is a memory of its past.
The history of science is a history of revolutions.
The genome is a language that speaks of life.
The cell is a microcosm of life.
Contemporaries of François Jacob
Other Biologys born within 50 years of François Jacob (1920–2013).