Chapter 40

Alright, Hu Wenhai was also surprised to encounter a younger version of Milla Jovovich here.

Hmm, I retract my previous impression. Hu Wenhai re-evaluated Milla Jovovich once more. Although this child looked cute now, the coolness in her demeanor had already seeped deep into her bones.

After accepting the apologies and thanks from Mao Mei and Milla Jovovich again, Hu Wenhai bid them farewell and continued his journey towards the Cold Spring Laboratory.

The name Cold Spring Laboratory might not be familiar to many, but if it were changed to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, many would suddenly realize its significance. If one were to mention the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's greatest contribution to the world in the 1990s, almost anyone with a decent education would instinctively give a thumbs up.

The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory can almost be said to have been the key to opening the era of human genetics. Starting from the 1980s, its leader, James Dewey Watson, advocated for the Human Genome Project. Between 1988 and 1993, he became the project leader of this third major scientific endeavor, following the Manhattan Project and the Apollo Program.

Before that, Watson had already won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1962 for proposing the DNA double helix model.

It's easy to imagine how great the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, which had Watson and would lead the Human Genome Project, must have been.

However, when it comes to Watson himself, Hu Wenhai really couldn't apply a binary judgment. In most people's impressions, great scientists often have a "saint" aura.

For example, names like Einstein, Newton, Galileo, Da Vinci, and Yuan Longping evoke a sense of respect when mentioned. Of course, for Watson, who discovered the DNA double helix structure, he should also be given the highest respect by humanity.

But when it comes to his character, Hu Wenhai really couldn't say much. If he were ignorant of worldly affairs, he clearly had an IQ off the charts and sufficient management skills as a leader in his field. But if he were smart, he also engaged in various outrageous and even despicable behaviors that ordinary people wouldn't do.

If one were to find a historical counterpart for him, he might have a bit in common with Thomas Edison.

Watson was more like a spoiled, capricious genius who always observed the world from his unique perspective and height, and didn't hesitate to do things that challenged the limits of ordinary people.

For example, he once publicly claimed that blacks were inherently less intelligent than whites, and he once expelled a scientist from the lab for being "too fat" (which was absolutely intolerable)...

If this were just the capriciousness of a genius scientist, many of Watson's actions could indeed be called despicable. For instance, during the discovery of the DNA double helix structure, he obtained the research results of Rosalind Franklin without her knowledge, which was crucial to his later discovery of the DNA structure.

However, after winning the Nobel Prize, Watson not only failed to show the proper respect to Rosalind Franklin but also publicly defamed her image and achievements in his book "The Double Helix," distorting her relationship with another discoverer of the DNA structure, Wilkins.

If this alone didn't prove much, another Nobel Prize award revealed his character even more clearly.

In 1993, the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology was awarded to two Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory scientists, Philip Sharp and Richard Roberts, for their discovery of discontinuous genes.

However, this Nobel Prize was a complete mistake. The main, or at least a significant, contributor to the discovery of discontinuous genes, Chinese scientist Zhou Zhi, was not nominated due to Watson's prejudice. Instead, Watson nominated two of his own protégés. This was solely because Zhou Zhi was no longer at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and, although she had worked in the United States for 28 years, she had never become a U.S. citizen!

Zhou Zhi's response to this was: "This is an irreparable fact, and we can only wait for conscientious science historians to uncover the truth."

The bitterness in this situation is truly indescribable!

Fortunately, the project Hu Wenhai was entrusting to the laboratory was just a small one, not even worth the attention of the now highly influential Watson.

The person who greeted him today was just a so-called "junior boss" at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. A junior boss is a project leader responsible for managing a specific research direction, similar to a department manager in a company.

Watson was the pillar of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and running projects and securing investments were his primary concerns. After determining a research direction, he would break it down into various fields and have the junior bosses implement or verify his ideas.

At Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, there were dozens of such junior bosses, who were not particularly prominent figures. However, outside of Cold Spring Harbor, each of them was a renowned elite.

If Watson were a grandmaster, these junior bosses could be considered grandmasters in their own right.

"Hu, you should know that Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is a non-profit institution. We are not like those technology development companies outside; we are Cold Spring Harbor!" At this moment, the junior boss Andrew was waving his hands righteously, looking down at Hu Wenhai sitting on the sofa.

However, for some reason, Andrew's firm words sounded like something else to Hu Wenhai.

"She is a pure and virtuous courtesan, only accessible to the magistrate Bai Yunhang, not to be compared with ordinary households."

In the end, it all comes down to money, doesn't it?

Cough, cough...

Hu Wenhai pretended to cough, driving these strange thoughts from his mind, and said, "Mr. Andrew, you misunderstood. This is not a commissioned research project but a verification project. Since Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is a non-profit laboratory, I hope that Cold Spring Harbor can prepare and verify the actual effects of this new drug in my possession."

"A new drug?" Andrew sat down upon hearing Hu Wenhai's words and asked calmly, "Can I ask what kind of drug it is?"

"It is a type 5 phosphodiesterase inhibitor. I have the chemical structure of this inhibitor. From its pharmacological mechanism, it may have the effect of dilating blood vessels to alleviate the condition of angina patients."

"A new heart disease drug? Have you completed its development?" Andrew was clearly very interested.

In fact, the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory could not rely solely on government funding to maintain its status as a world-class medical laboratory. The laboratory was also renowned for converting basic scientific research into products.

However, as Andrew said, with the reputation of Cold Spring Harbor, not just anyone could collaborate with them.

But from another perspective, reputation is just reputation. Even a world-class laboratory faces the challenge of converting its reputation into tangible benefits. In all collaborations, the most common method used by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory was to work with internationally renowned large pharmaceutical companies to apply the laboratory's research to the development of new drugs.

However, since these were internationally renowned large or even multinational companies, both sides would inevitably engage in negotiations over who would take the lead, making such collaborations difficult. But to maintain its prestige, such projects were necessary.

Among all collaboration methods, the one where someone like Hu Wenhai came seeking help was the most profitable. There was no need to develop a new drug, which would not significantly strain Cold Spring Harbor's research capabilities. In fact, verifying a new drug was the best way to convert the laboratory's reputation into financial gain, essentially providing a seal of approval for the drug.

If the drug proved effective and passed Cold Spring Harbor's tests, with no harmful side effects or acceptable ones, it could be promoted.

If the drug had issues, Cold Spring Harbor would still receive payment, and the drug would be returned to its origin.

If problems were discovered after the drug was on the market, it would have nothing to do with Cold Spring Harbor—after all, they didn't invent the drug, didn't market it, and didn't use their research results. What did it have to do with them?

In the end, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory was merely providing technical support!

"Alright, leave the details of this drug in a file, and I will discuss it with Mr. Watson." Andrew nodded lightly, indicating that he would seriously consider the matter.

Hu Wenhai readily took a file from his bag and handed it to Andrew, saying, "All the information about this drug is here. The industrial synthesis method will be left to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to figure out. You know, our pharmaceutical industry in China is still quite backward, so the equipment in the U.S. is more reliable."

"Ha, that's for sure." Andrew said proudly, "I will pass the information to Mr. Watson. As for the specific fees..."

"Three million dollars, and the payment can be made immediately upon signing the contract!" Hu Wenhai said firmly.

"Alright, I have no issues with that." Andrew shrugged easily, picked up the file, and left without further ado.

"What is this?" Watson, who was nearly sixty but still energetic, picked up the file Andrew had brought to his desk and asked while reading it.

"It's the drug that the Chinese person wanted us to develop through our laboratory. They believe this type 5 phosphodiesterase inhibitor can dilate blood vessels and alleviate angina."

"Can the Chinese invent drugs?" Watson snorted, threw the file he hadn't read carefully onto the table, and said impatiently, "This small project doesn't require our scientists to get involved. I remember a Soviet exchange student came this year. Let that woman handle it; it will be a good way to make use of her."