while surfing the net today to look for stuff to write about, i came across this site that featured the stories behind the invention of some modern-day items. and, being the science geek that i am, i became really interested in the article. here are some not-so-known trivia i’d like to share with you:
* a swiss chemist named jacques brandenberger wanted to get rich by inventing a stain-proof tablecloth. he was able to develop the product; but unfortunately, it didn’t quite catch on (people happened to like stains on their tablecloths. go figure, haha). so he changed his marketing strategy and after a couple of years, cellophane became a popular product for packaging food.
* superglue (also called cyanoacrylate) was accidentally discovered by dr. harry coover. he was trying to develop a heat-resistant polymer for jet canopies; but he was not successful. the substance he concocted was just too sticky. it even ruined an expensive pair of glass lenses. but instead of getting frustrated over his mistake, dr. coover marketed his new discovery as the now-famous superglue.
* in 1970, 3M labs was trying to develop a strong adhesive. however, spencer silver was only able to come up with a very weak kind of glue. it would stick at first.. but then it gets unstuck easily. seemingly useless at first, “spencer’s glue” became near-indispensible when his colleague used it to stick markers on their church’s hymnbook. the glue let the markers stay in place without damaging the pages.
* in 1928, alexander fleming’s experiment became contaminated with an unidentified mold. as a result, the bacteria he was researching on (the staphylococcus bug) died. but instead of being dismayed with himself (tsk, tsk.. such shoddy science!), fleming decided to investigate this unknown mold.. and thus, penicillin was born.
it was fascinating for me to read about these things. and honestly, it also cheered me up a bit. ‘coz it’s nice to know that mistakes do not mean the end of everything. a lot of mistakes can be undone. and a couple of them may even turn out to be beautiful.
the new year has barely started and already, i’ve broken some of my resolutions (that bit about the cheerful disposition is pretty hard to do, you know). i’ve already messed up.. got worked up.. but (thank God) not yet given up :p
‘coz He’s a God of second, third, fourth (only He knows how many) chances. and who knows? eventually i may find that my mistakes are actually beautiful blessings.. in disguise :)
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