Different Ways Innovations Come to Us

 

Provide an innovation example for discoveries that are achieved through the following:

·         Serendipity – The accidental discovery of Teflon comes to mind.  Roy J. Plunkett with DuPont was trying to find a better refrigerant and instead discovered a polymer that was chemically inert, had low surface friction and high heat resistance.  This became our favorite pan coating, Teflon (Science History Institute, 2021).



·         Error – I think anesthesia is one of the best inventions ever.  I cannot even begin to imagine dental work or labor and delivery without it!  Some may think we are spoiled, but I see it as a way to limit our mental and physical trauma.  This discovery came from nitrous oxide.  It was discovered in 1772 and was used as a recreational drug.  People would inhale a little and it would make them laugh.  Inhaling a larger dose would knock you out.  A dentist named Horace Wells decided to use himself as a guinea pig and had another dentist give him a tooth extraction while he was knocked out (Elfman, 2014).  To his glee, the tooth was removed painlessly!



·         Exaptation – An engineer was enjoying a hike one day and noticed burdock burrs stuck to his clothes.  His name was George de Mestral and he noticed how the curved hooks that covered the burdock were very good at attaching themselves to things.  The plant uses this innovation to pollinate, yet Mestral saw the potential and from that, we now have Velcro (Loria, 2018).



In your own words, what do these terms mean to you?

            Serendipity – I think a lot of innovations happen this way.  To me, serendipity is akin to the phrase “the planets aligned.”  It seems that things before that moment happened just so that moment would not just happen but happen in a certain way.  It’s kismet.  This is the same as the “right place, right time” mentality.  I think that much of what happens in our lives is for a greater moment later in time.  Following this belief, it makes sense to me that moments before could spark many innovations in the future.

            Error – The idea of an error causing an innovation is interesting to me.  I believe that every mistake is an opportunity for knowledge and growth.  That being said, we could probably find an “error” before many innovations.  That is probably more common than we realize.  As Thomas Edison said, “I didn’t fail; I found out 2,000 ways how not to make a light bulb.”

            Exaptation – This way of innovation reminds me of MacGyver.  He was a character from an 80’s TV show that was ridiculously good at using ordinary things in extraordinary ways.  He could pick a lock with a toothpick and create a rocket with nothing but water and patience.  I’m exaggerating, but that character did amazing things on the show and that’s how I feel about exaptation.  It’s amazing to take an already useful something and turn it into another even more useful something.

 

References

Elfman, E. (2014, October 19). 8 Brilliant Scientific Screw Ups. Retrieved from mentalfloss: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/21135/8-brilliant-scientific-screw-ups

LivingHealthy. (2021). Toss the Teflon? Retrieved from LivingHealthy: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.livinghealthy.com%2Farticles%2Ftoss-the-teflon&psig=AOvVaw2NAYMH_pBnG9wELxxe2ntq&ust=1610144875377000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCNjulZ3viu4CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Loria, K. (2018, April 4). These 18 Accidental And Unintended Scientific Discoveries Changed The World. Retrieved from Science Alert: https://www.sciencealert.com/these-eighteen-accidental-scientific-discoveries-changed-the-world

MedlinePlus. (2021). Anesthesia. Retrieved from MedlinePlus: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedlineplus.gov%2Fanesthesia.html&psig=AOvVaw2D70wzfaR-jr4xdApf3dop&ust=1610144934779000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCKiTuLnviu4CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Science History Institute. (2021). Roy J. Plunkett. Retrieved from Science History Institute: https://www.sciencehistory.org/historical-profile/roy-j-plunkett

ScienceAlert. (2018). These 18 Accidental And Unintended Scientific Discoveries Changed The World. Retrieved from ScienceAlert: https://www.sciencealert.com/images/2018-04/Velcro_seed1.jpg

 


 

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