{"product_id":"serendipity-9780471602033","title":"Serendipity","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMany of the things discovered by accident are important in our everyday lives: Teflon, Velcro, nylon, x-rays, penicillin, safety glass, sugar substitutes, and polyethylene and other plastics. And we owe a debt to accident for some of our deepest scientific knowledge, including Newton''s theory of gravitation, the Big Bang theory of Creation, and the discovery of DNA. Even the Rosetta Stone, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the ruins of Pompeii came to light through chance. This book tells the fascinating stories of these and other discoveries and reveals how the inquisitive human mind turns accident into discovery. Written for the layman, yet scientifically accurate, this illuminating collection of anecdotes portrays invention and discovery as quintessentially human acts, due in part to curiosity, perserverance, and luck.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePartial table of contents:\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Archimedes--The First Streaker.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e A Sick Indian Discovers Quinine.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e The Electric Battery and Electromagnetism--From a Frog's Leg andCompass.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Discoveries of the Elements.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Daguerre and the Invention of Photography.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Nobel--the Man, the Discoveries, and the Prizes.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Friedel and Crafts--A Laboratory Accident Spawns New IndustrialChemistry.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Some Astronomical Serendipities.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Accidental Medical Discoveries.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Substitute Sugar: How Sweet It Is--And Non-Fattening.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Nylon: Cold-Drawing Does the Trick.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Velcro and Other Gifts from Serendipity for Modern Living.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Conceptions, Misconceptions, and Accidents in OrganicSynthesis.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Epilogue: How Accidents Become Discoveries.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Appendix.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Index.","brand":"John Wiley \u0026 Sons Inc","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49402642727255,"sku":"9780471602033","price":14.39,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780471602033.jpg?v=1730481074","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/serendipity-9780471602033","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}