Inventions Story
Accidental Inventions and Funny Stories Behind Them
Penicillin
Year: 1928
What Happened: Halfway through an experiment with bacteria, Alexander Fleming up and went on vacation. Slob that he was, he left a dirty petri dish in the lab sink.
Big Discovery: When he got back, he found bacteria had grown all over the plate, except in an area where mold had formed.
As a Result: That discovery led to penicillin.
Microwave
Inventor: Percy Spencer
Year: 1946
What Happened: With the end of the World War II, Raytheon engineer was looking for other uses for the magnetron, which generated the microwaves for the radar systems. While Spencer was standing next to the device one day, a chocolate bar in his pocket melted.
Big Discovery: The magnetron worked even better on popcorn.
As a Result: Orville Redenbacher became very rich.
Saccharin
Inventors: Constantin Fahlberg and Ira Remsen
Year: 1879
What Happened: After spending the day studying coal tar derivatives, Fahlberg left his Johns Hopkins laboratory and went to dinner.
Big Discovery: Something he ate tasted particularly sweet, which he traced to a chemical compound he'd spilled on his hand. Best of all, it turned out to be calorie-free.
As a Result: He cut Remsen and the university out of millions of dollars when he secretly patented the breakthrough discovery, saccharin.
Chewing Gum
Inventor: Thomas Adams
Year: 1870
What Happened: He was experimenting with chicle, the sap from a South American tree, as a substitute for rubber. After mounting failures, the dejected inventor popped a piece into his mouth.
Big Discovery: He liked it!
As a Result: Adams New York No. 1 became the first mass-produced chewing gum in the world.
Year: 1870
What Happened: He was experimenting with chicle, the sap from a South American tree, as a substitute for rubber. After mounting failures, the dejected inventor popped a piece into his mouth.
Big Discovery: He liked it!
As a Result: Adams New York No. 1 became the first mass-produced chewing gum in the world.
Botox
Inventors: Alastair and Jean Carruthers
Year: 1987
What Happened: The couple were using small doses of a deadly toxin to treat 'crossed eyes' eyelid spasms and other eye-muscle disorders when they noticed an interesting side effect.
Big Discovery: Wrinkles magically disappeared.
As a Result: The exprerissionless face became the "it' look, thanks to Botox.
Comments
Post a Comment