From Mistake to Magic; Serendipity in Science Discoveries

By Sarah MooreReviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.

Scientific advancements are usually the product of years of dedicated research. However, occasionally, events that happen by chance can lead to significant breakthroughs. Throughout history, accidents have benefitted science in numerous ways. Here, we look at serendipity in scientific discoveries.

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Serendipity in Science Example 1: Gunpowder

Alchemy, the practice of attempting to produce gold from base metals that was popular in medieval times, was often thought of as a crossover between science and magic. Today, alchemy is confined to tales of magic and fantasy; however, its practice has greatly benefited modern science due to accidental scientific discoveries as alchemists strived to obtain great riches and miraculous healing powers. 

Gunpowder is one of the most famous accidental discoveries. It was stumbled upon when 9th-century Chinese alchemists attempted to find the elixir for eternal life. In their work to create a potion of immortality, Chinese alchemists of the Tang Dynasty accidentally discovered saltpeter, the main component of gunpowder. Further experiments resulted in the alchemists discovering saltpeter in combination with charcoal and sulfur. At the same time, it was not a successful elixir for eternal life; it had excellent flammable and explosive properties. The resultant gunpowder was initially used to create fireworks; however, as early as 904AD, it was used for war.

Serendipity in Science Example 2: Penicillin

Another famous accidental discovery is penicillin; an important antibiotic dubbed the 'wonder drug' that has allowed us to overcome what were once major causes of death in hospitals – pneumonia, sepsis, strep throat, scarlet fever, diphtheria, syphilis, gonorrhea, meningitis, tonsillitis, and rheumatic fever.

In 1928, Alexander Fleming took a holiday from his work investigating staphylococci. Upon his return, he found that a blue-green mold had formed in a petri dish of staphylococci that had been left open. The mold had killed the bacteria in the dish. Upon investigation, Fleming discovered that the mold contained penicillin, a powerful antibiotic capable of killing bacteria without harming the human body.

While the discovery did not cause much of a stir in the scientific community at the time, around a decade later, it was available as a drug for therapeutic use. Many now consider Fleming's discovery of penicillin the moment modern medicine was born.

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Serendipity in Science Example 3: Atomic nucleus

In 1911 Ernest Rutherford, a physics professor at Manchester University renowned for his radiation studies, was supervising German physicist Hans Geiger and physics undergraduate student Ernest Marsden. The pair observed the scattering of alpha particles from a gold foil. Being rigorous in his scientific approach, Rutherford encouraged Marsden to investigate if any particles had scattered backward. Upon doing so, Marsden found that some of the particles had indeed scattered backward instead of moving via their expected route of passing through the foil.

Rutherford's analysis of this scattering led to the hypothesis of the atomic nucleus, a core at the center of the atom containing a concentration of the atom's mass. Although the team was not looking for an atom, its discovery is one of the most important in modern physics and chemistry.

Serendipity in Science Example 4: Quantum computing

Quantum computing offers the potential to solve some of science's most pressing challenges. However, without an accidental discovery, much of the field of quantum computing may still be in its theoretical stages.

After facing challenges with his research, engineer David Awschalom moved from the University of California to the University of Chicago, where he and his team investigated a material they believed would be vital to furthering the field of quantum computing. They investigated this material, a thin sheet of atoms on a bed of strontium titanate; however, their results were clouded by a significant amount of noise. For months, the team explored the root of the noise, eventually isolating the problem as the energy-efficient light bulbs in the lab.

The bulbs emitted light at the exact wavelength that was able to polarize the strontium titanate and alter its electrical properties. Upon discovering this, the team found that they could use this wavelength to "paint" electrical junctions and erase them with another wavelength. This method of utilizing wavelengths to create electrical circuits is currently helping scientists to build quantum computers.

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Serendipity in Science Example 5: Vulcanized rubber

Vulcanized rubber is essential for the production of tires. Globally, 2.7 billion tires are expected to be produced in 2022, which would be impossible if it wasn't for the invention of vulcanized rubber, which happened by mistake.

In 1839 Charles Goodyear, a self-taught American chemist and manufacturing engineer was investigating how he could fix the current flaws of rubber. By accident, he spilled a mixture of rubber, sulfur, and lead onto his hot stove. The mixture burned and hardened. The resultant rubber was still malleable and usable, and he patented his vulcanization process five years later. The rubber had beneficial properties that overcame the limitations of previous rubber products. Years later, his vulcanized rubber was utilized for the mass production of tires. In 1898, the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was established and named after Charles Goodyear for making the business possible.