Today, I am thankful for those accidental discoveries that change the world.
Serendipity is such a wonderful thing. Those pleasant, unanticipated discoveries that have helped to propel our comprehension of science, the humanities, and our way of life are so worthy of our praise. I am so grateful for those fortunate surprises and/or coincidental discoveries that have fortuitously changed the course of modern history.
If you bear me some indulgence, I would love to take a moment of your time to share some my favorites.
Like the discovery by the Scottish surgeon, Dr. Alexander Fleming, that the mold that was growing on the petri dish that he accidently left on the table before his summer-long vacation had produced a substance that could kill the surrounding bacteria. Thanks to this fungus, Penicillium notatum, we now have penicillin in our antibiotic armamentarium.
Like the discovery by Perry Spencer at Raytheon that the magnetron on his radar emitted something that caused the chocolate bar in his pocket to melt instantaneously. The discovery of those microwave waves led to the invention of an appliance that no college student could ever live without.
Like the discovery by William Roentgen that the cathode rays he was toying with lit up an image of a screen on fluorescent carboard across the room, the exact screen image those rays had passed through. So, he tried it with his wife’s hand, and the cardboard lit up the bones in her fingers (wedding ring included). X-ray technology was born that day.
But, sometimes these discoveries uncover treasures from the distant past. The archeologist Howard Carter was exploring the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, near Thebes, in 1922. After 5 years, not much was discovered. He and his team decided to revisit a section of huts that had been previously abandoned a few years back. Their young water boy accidentally stumbled on a stone, and when he fell, the rock he tripped over unearthed what appeared to be a flight of steps cut into the bedrock. The steps led to a doorway and antechamber, which Carter and his team studied for several months. On this day (Feb 16, 1923), Carter finally opened the tightly sealed doorway to uncover a burial chamber and the sarcophagus of King Tut. Steve Martin would be so proud.
Accidental discoveries such as these are inspiring and heartwarming. May your path today come across one worthy of exploration.
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