Unit 9: Scientific Discoveries: Their Unexpected Side and the Opportunities They Bring – Discussion
One of the greatest scientific developments of the past 150 years is the discovery of antibiotics. For some basic background on antibiotics listen to this very brief Centers for Disease Control (CDC) podcast about antibiotics:
http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10055
There is however a dirty little secret about Alexander Fleming and his discovery: it was an accident! As Fleming worked in his lab in the late 1920s growing disease-causing bacteria in tiny petri dishes he got a little sloppy by leaving the petri dishes uncovered too long. One story even suggests that he may have sneezed into one of his petri dishes. Regardless of the exact cause what resulted was a mold infestation on some of his bacterial dishes. However messy Fleming was he was also smart enough to see that the mold infestation was killing off the bacteria he was studying. Completely by accident he had found something that killed disease-causing organisms.
Such happy accidents are not uncommon in science. Some notable examples include aspartame (NutraSweet) which was discovered by a drug chemist who forgot to wash his hands. Even Isaac Newton benefited from a little accidental inspiration when he (supposedly) came up with a description of the concept of gravity after being knocked on the head by a falling apple. Scientists like everyone else make mistakes but the best scientists use their mistakes and learn from them.
Reflect about the famous Louis Pasteur quote: Chance favors the prepared mind as well as what you learned about scientific inquiry throughout the course. Then during the week address the following:
Topics
Happy Accidents in Science