Serendipity

Serendipity is finding something unexpected and useful while searching for something else entirely. For instance, the discovery of the antibacterial properties of penicillin by Alexander Fleming is said to have been serendipitous, because he was merely cleaning up his laboratory when he discovered that the Penicillium mould had contaminated one of his old experiments.

Serendipitous discoveries and inventions

• Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin
• The discovery of the cosmic microwave background radiation
• Alfred Nobel's discovery of blasting gelatin
• The discovery of polyethylene
• The invention of Silly Putty
• The invention of Post-it notes
• The discovery of the psychedelic effects of LSD by Dr. Albert Hofmann