By what accident did Linux actually come about?

Linus Torvalds used the Minix operating system, but was dissatisfied with many of the limitations in it and decided to write his own system. At a certain point, a more or less stable version was released, Torvalds' interest in the project faded, and he was ready to abandon it. But in the same period, he accidentally corrupted the partition on the hard drive where Minix stood, and instead of reinstalling it, Torvalds decided to finish what he started. So, by chance, the Linux kernel and later the GNU/Linux OS were born.

What part of the car was invented by chance?

Safety glass was invented by accident. In 1903, French chemist Edouard Benedictus accidentally dropped a flask filled with nitrocellulose. The glass cracked, but did not shatter into small pieces. Realizing what was going on, Benedictus made the first modern windshields to reduce the number of victims of car accidents.

What oversight led Louis Pasteur to discover the modern method of vaccination?

One day, Louis Pasteur, who was conducting experiments on infecting birds with chicken cholera, decided to go on vacation and left his assistant in the laboratory. He forgot to perform another vaccination to chickens and went on vacation himself. Returning, the assistant infected the hens, which at first weakened, but then unexpectedly recovered. Thanks to this oversight, Pasteur realized that weakened bacteria are the key to getting rid of the disease, as they give immunity from it, and became the founder of modern vaccination. Subsequently, he also created inoculations against anthrax and rabies.

What accident led to the discovery of a cure for beriberi?

At the end of the 19th century, the Dutch physiologist Christian Eikman was sent to Indonesia to study the beriberi disease, from which the locals died in large numbers. One day, he noticed that laboratory chickens were showing symptoms of the disease. Analyzing the reasons, Aikman found out that the new cook began to buy for the army ration not brown, but white rice, which also went to feed chickens. The scientist again began to give them brown brown rice, and soon the chickens were cured. Already other biologists continued Aikman's research and found a medicinal component in raw rice - thiamine, or vitamin B1.

What was invented first - matches or a lighter?

The first lighter, similar to those familiar to us, was invented in 1823 by the German chemist Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner - 3 years earlier than modern matches ignited by friction against cherkash. They were accidentally obtained in 1826 by the English chemist John Walker.

Who played a key role in the popularization of champagne?

Many consider the French monk Pierre Dom Pérignon to be the inventor of champagne, but this is far from the truth. He developed many techniques that are still used by champagne producers in the process of making initial wine, but he considered bubbles in wine to be a sign of marriage. And the British played a key role in popularizing bubble wine. They imported wines from the Champagne region, and then poured them from barrels into bottles with a cork stopper (which the French did not know then). After the resumption of the fermentation process, carbon dioxide began to form in the bottles, and the wine in open bottles bubbled, which the British liked very much.

How was the tea bag invented?

The tea bag was invented by American Thomas Sullivan in 1904 by accident. He decided to send tea to customers in silk bags instead of the traditional tin cans. However, the buyers thought that they were offered a new way - to brew tea directly in these bags, and found this method very convenient.

How did Mendeleev discover the periodic law?

There is a widespread legend that the idea of ​​the periodic table of chemical elements came to Mendeleev in a dream. Once he was asked if this was so, to which the scientist replied: “I’ve been thinking about it for maybe twenty years, and you think: I sat and suddenly ... it’s ready.”

Who solved a difficult math problem by mistaking it for homework?

American mathematician George Dantzig, being a graduate student at the university, one day was late for class and took the equations written on the blackboard for homework. It seemed to him more complicated than usual, but after a few days he was able to complete it. It turned out that he solved two "unsolvable" problems in statistics that many scientists struggled with.

How were chips invented?

The signature recipe of an American restaurant where George Crum worked in 1853 was french fries. One day, a customer returned a fried potato to the kitchen, complaining that it was "too fat". Krum, deciding to play a trick on him, cut the potatoes literally paper-thin and fried. Thus, he invented chips, which became the restaurant's most popular dish.

How were antibiotics discovered?

Antibiotics were discovered by accident. Alexander Fleming left a vial of staphylococcus bacteria unattended for several days. A colony of mold fungi grew in it and began to destroy bacteria, and then Fleming isolated the active substance - penicillin.

How was vulcanization discovered?

American Charles Goodyear accidentally discovered a recipe for making rubber that does not soften in the heat and does not become brittle in the cold. He mistakenly heated a mixture of rubber and sulfur on the stove (according to another version, he left a rubber sample by the stove). This process is called vulcanization.

It happens that scientists spend years and even a decade in order to present a new discovery to the world. However, it happens in a different way - inventions appear unexpectedly, as a result of a bad experience or a simple accident. It's hard to believe, but many devices and drugs that have changed the world were invented by accident.
I offer the most famous of these accidents.

In 1928, he noticed that one of the plastic plates with pathogenic staphylococcus bacteria in his laboratory was moldy. However, Fleming left the lab for the weekend without washing the dirty dishes. After the weekend, he returned to his experiment. He examined the plate under a microscope and found that the mold had killed off the bacteria. This mold turned out to be the main form of penicillin. This discovery is considered one of the greatest in the history of medicine. The significance of Fleming's discovery became clear only in 1940, when mass research began on a new type of antibiotic drugs. Thanks to this accidental discovery, millions of lives were saved.

Safety glass
Safety glass is widely used in the automotive and construction industries. Today it is everywhere, but when the French scientist (as well as the artist, composer and writer) Edouard Benedictus accidentally dropped an empty glass flask on the floor in 1903 and it did not break, he was very surprised. As it turned out, a solution of collodion was stored in the flask before, the solution evaporated, but the walls of the vessel were covered with a thin layer of it.
At that time, the automotive industry was developing intensively in France, and the windshield was made from ordinary glass, which caused many injuries to drivers, which Benedictus drew attention to. He saw real life-saving benefits in using his invention in cars, but the automakers found it too expensive to produce. And only years later, when during the Second World War, triplex (this was the name of the new glass) was used as glass for gas masks, in 1944 Volvo used it in cars.

pacemaker
The pacemaker that is now saving thousands of lives was invented by mistake. Engineer Wilson Greatbatch was working on a device that would record heart rate.
One day, he inserted the wrong transistor into the device and discovered that oscillations arose in the electrical circuit, which are similar to the correct rhythm of the human heart. Soon, the scientist created the first implantable pacemaker - a device that delivers artificial impulses for the heart to work.

Radioactivity
Radioactivity was discovered by accident by the scientist Henri Becquerel.
This was in 186, when Becquerel was working on the phosphorescence of uranium salts and the recently discovered x-rays. He conducted a series of experiments to determine whether fluorescent minerals could emit radiation when exposed to sunlight. The scientist faced a problem - the experiment was carried out in winter, when there was not enough bright sunlight. He wrapped the uranium and photographic plates in one bag and began to wait for a sunny day. Returning to work, Becquerel discovered that the uranium had been imprinted on a photographic plate without sunlight. Later, together with Marie and Pierre Curie (Curie), he discovered what is now known as radioactivity, for which, together with a scientific married couple, he later received the Nobel Prize.

Microwave
The microwave oven, also known as the "popcorn oven", was born precisely due to a happy coincidence. And it all began - who would have thought! - from a project to develop weapons.
Percy LeBaron Spencer is a self-taught engineer who developed radar technology for Raytheon, one of the largest companies in the global military-industrial complex. In 1945, shortly before the end of World War II, he was doing research to improve the quality of radar. During one of the experiments, Spencer discovered that the chocolate bar that was in his pocket had melted. Contrary to common sense, Spencer immediately discarded the idea that chocolate could melt under the influence of body heat - like a true scientist, he seized on the hypothesis that chocolate was somehow "affected" by the invisible radiation of the magnetron.
Any sane man would immediately stop and realize that the "magic" heat rays passed within a few centimeters of his dignity. If the military were nearby, they would certainly have found a worthy use for these "melting rays". But Spencer thought of something else - he was delighted with his discovery and considered it a real scientific breakthrough.
After a series of experiments, the first water-cooled microwave oven weighing about 350 kg was created. It was supposed to be used in restaurants, aircraft and ships - i.e. where food needs to be heated quickly.

Vulcanized rubber
It will hardly shock you to learn that rubber for automobile tires was invented by Charles Goodyear - he became the first inventor whose name was given to the final product.
It wasn't easy to invent a rubber capable of handling the top speed and car racing that everyone has been dreaming of since the day the first car was made. And in general, Goodijr had every reason to say goodbye forever to the crystal dream of his youth - he kept going to prison, lost all his friends and almost starved his own children, tirelessly trying to invent stronger rubber (for him it turned almost into an obsession ).
So, it was in the mid-1830s. After two years of unsuccessful attempts to optimize and strengthen conventional rubber (mixing rubber with magnesia and lime), Goodyear and his family were forced to take refuge in an abandoned factory and fish for food. It was then that Goodyear made a sensational discovery: he mixed rubber with sulfur and got a new rubber! The first 150 bags of rubber were sold to the government and…
Oh yes. The rubber was of poor quality and completely useless. The new technology proved to be ineffective. Goodyear was ruined - for the umpteenth time!
Finally, in 1839, Goodyear wandered into a general store with another batch of failed rubber. The people gathered in the store watched the crazy inventor with interest. Then they started laughing. Enraged, Goodyear hurled the wad of rubber onto the hot stove.
After carefully examining the burnt remains of rubber, Goodyear realized that he had just - quite by accident - invented a method for the production of reliable, elastic, waterproof rubber. Thus, an entire empire was born from the fire.

Champagne
Many people know that Dom Pierre Perignon invented champagne, but this 17th-century monk of the Order of St. Benedict did not at all intend to make wine with bubbles, but quite the contrary - he spent years trying to prevent this, since sparkling wine was considered a sure sign poor quality winemaking.
Initially, Pérignon wanted to cater to the tastes of the French court and create an appropriate white wine. Since it was easier to grow dark grapes in Champagne, he came up with a way to get light juice from it. But since the climate in Champagne is relatively cold, the wine had to ferment for two seasons, spending the second year already in the bottle. The result was a wine filled with bubbles of carbon dioxide, which Pérignon tried to get rid of, but to no avail. Fortunately, the aristocracy of both French and English courts liked the new wine very much.

Plastic
In 1907, shellac was used for insulation in the electronics industry. The costs of importing shellac, which was made from Asian beetles, were enormous, so chemist Leo Hendrik Baekeland thought it would be a good idea to invent an alternative to shellac. As a result of experiments, he received a plastic material that did not collapse at high temperatures. The scientist thought that the material he invented could be used in the production of phonographs, however, it soon became clear that the material could be used much more widely than expected. Today, plastic is used in all areas of industry.

Saccharin
Saccharin, a well-known sugar substitute for weight loss, was invented due to the fact that the chemist Konstantin Fahlberg did not have the healthy habit of washing his hands before eating.
This was in 1879, when Fahlberg was working on new ways to use coal tar. Having finished his working day, the scientist came home and sat down to supper. The food seemed sweet to him, and the chemist asked his wife why she added sugar to the food. However, the food did not seem sweet to the wife. Fahlberg realized that it wasn't really the food that was sweet, but his hands, which he hadn't washed before dinner as usual. The next day, the scientist returned to work, continued research, and then patented a method for obtaining an artificial low-calorie sweetener and began its production.

Teflon
Teflon, which made life easier for housewives around the world, was also invented by accident. DuPont chemist Roy Plunkett studied the properties of freon and froze gaseous tetrafluoroethylene for one of the experiments. After freezing, the scientist opened the container and found that the gas was gone! Plunkett shook the canister and peered into it, where he found a white powder. Fortunately for those who have made an omelette at least once in their lives, the scientist became interested in the powder and continued to study it. As a result, the very Teflon was invented, without which it is impossible to imagine a modern kitchen.

Ice cream waffle cones
This story is a perfect example of a chance invention and a chance encounter that had a worldwide impact. And it's quite tasty too.
Before 1904, ice cream was served on saucers, and it wasn't until that year's World's Fair, held in St. Louis, Missouri, that two seemingly unrelated foods became inextricably linked.
At that particularly hot and muggy World's Fair of 1904, the ice-cream stand was doing so well that all the saucers quickly ran out. A nearby stall selling Zalabia, thin waffles from Persia, was not doing well, and its owner came up with the idea of ​​rolling the waffles into a cone and putting ice cream on top. This is how ice cream in a waffle cone was born, and it seems that it is not going to die in the near future.

Synthetic dyes
It sounds strange, but it's a fact - synthetic paint was invented as a result of an attempt to invent a cure for malaria.
In 1856, the chemist William Perkin was working on the creation of artificial quinine to treat malaria. He did not invent a new cure for malaria, but he got a thick dark mass. Looking closely at this mass, Perkin found that it gives off a very beautiful color. So he invented the first chemical dye.
His dye turned out to be much better than any natural dye: firstly, its color was much brighter, and secondly, it did not fade or wash off. Perkin's discovery turned chemistry into a highly lucrative science.

Potato chips
In 1853, in a restaurant in Saratoga, New York, a particularly cranky customer (railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt) constantly refused to eat the French fries he was served, complaining that they were too thick and wet. After he refused several plates of increasingly thinly sliced ​​potatoes, the restaurant's chef, George Crum, took revenge by fried some waffle-thin potato slices in oil and served them to the customer.
At first, Vanderbilt began to say that this last attempt was too thin and impossible to stick on a fork, but after trying a few pieces, he was very satisfied, and all the restaurant patrons wanted the same. As a result, a new dish appeared on the menu: "Saratoga chips", which was soon sold all over the world.

Post-it stickers
The humble Post-It stickers are the result of a casual collaboration between a mediocre scientist and a disgruntled churchgoer. In 1970, Spencer Silver, a researcher for the large American corporation 3M, was working on a strong adhesive formula, but was only able to create a very weak adhesive that could be removed with little or no effort. He tried to promote his invention in the corporation, but no one paid attention to him.
Four years later, Arthur Fry, a 3M employee and member of the church choir, was greatly annoyed by the fact that the pieces of paper he kept in his hymn book as bookmarks kept falling out when the book was opened. During one worship service, he remembered Spencer Silver's invention, had an epiphany (perhaps a church is the best place to do it), and then applied some of Spencer's weak, but paper-friendly glue to his bookmarks. It turned out that the little sticky notes did just the right thing, and he sold the idea to 3M. Trial promotion of a new product began in 1977, and today it is already difficult to imagine life without these stickers.

9th grade student Egorova Alexandra.

Material for a radio broadcast held in the framework of "Chemistry Day" at school.

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Radio broadcast as part of the "Chemistry Day at School" event

Chemistry - it is a science that can work miracles. In this wonderful definition of chemistry, which only by chance did not enter the textbooks, one must firmly grasp that chemistry is a science. And like any science, it requires the most serious, most responsible attitude towards itself. Chemistry is the science of substances and transformations so extraordinary that they seem miraculous to the uninitiated.

By the end of the 19th century, organic chemistry was formed as a science. Interesting facts will help you better understand the world around you and find out how new scientific discoveries were made.

accidental discovery

Interesting facts about chemistry often concern discoveries made by accident. So, in 1903, Edouard Benedictus, a famous French chemist, invented safety glass. The scientist accidentally dropped the flask, which was filled with nitrocellulose. He noticed that the flask was broken, but the glass did not shatter into pieces. After conducting the necessary research, the chemist found that shockproof glass could be created in a similar way. This is how the first safety glasses for cars appeared, which significantly reduced the number of injuries in car accidents.

live sensor.

Interesting facts about chemistry tell about the use of the sensitivity of animals for the benefit of humans. Until 1986, miners took canaries underground with them. The fact is that these birds are extremely sensitive to mine gases, especially methane and carbon monoxide. Even with a small concentration of these substances in the air, the bird may die. The miners listened to the singing of the bird and monitored its well-being. Even today, no device has been invented that senses ore gases as subtly as a canary.

Rubber.

Another accidental invention is rubber. Charles Goodyear, an American scientist, discovered a recipe for making rubber that does not melt in the heat and does not break in the cold. He accidentally heated up a mixture of sulfur and rubber, leaving it on the stove. The process of obtaining rubber was called vulcanization.

Penicillin.

Penicillin was invented by accident. Alexander Fleming forgot about the vial of staph bacteria for a few days. And when he remembered her, he discovered that the colony was dying. The whole thing turned out to be mold, which began to destroy bacteria. It was from mold fungi that the scientist obtained the world's first antibiotic.

Gray cardinals among plants.

Interesting facts about proteins. Chemistry can explain the behavior of animals and plants. Over the course of evolution, many plants have developed defense mechanisms against herbivores. Most often, plants secrete poison, but scientists have discovered a more subtle method of protection. Some plants secrete substances that attract… predators! Predators regulate the number of herbivores and scare them away from the place of growth of "smart" plants. Such a mechanism exists even in plants familiar to us, such as tomatoes and cucumbers. For example, a caterpillar undermined a cucumber leaf, and the smell of the secreted juice attracted birds.

Defenders - proteins: chemistry and medicine are closely related. During experiments on mice, virologists discovered interferon. This protein is produced in all vertebrates. A special protein, interferon, is secreted from a virus-infected cell. It does not have an antiviral effect, but it contacts healthy cells and makes them immune to the virus.

The smell of metal

We usually think that coins, handrails on public transport, railings, etc. smell like metal. But this smell is emitted not by metal, but by compounds that are formed as a result of contact with the metal surface of organic substances.

Construction material

Interesting facts about proteins. Chemistry has been studying proteins relatively recently. They arose more than 4 billion years ago in an incomprehensible way. Proteins are the building material for all living organisms; other forms of life are unknown to science. Half of the dry mass in most living organisms is made up of proteins.

Interesting Facts. Chemistry and soda

In 1767, Joseph Priestley became interested in the nature of the bubbles that come out of beer during fermentation. He collected the gas in a bowl of water, which he tasted. The water was pleasant and refreshing. Thus, the scientist discovered carbon dioxide, which is now used to produce sparkling water. Five years later, he described a more efficient method for obtaining this gas.

cat and iodine

An interesting fact about chemistry is that the most ordinary cat was directly involved in the discovery of iodine. The pharmacist and chemist Bernard Courtois used to dine in the laboratory, and he was often joined by a cat who liked to sit on his master's shoulder. After the next meal, the cat jumped to the floor, knocking over containers with sulfuric acid and a suspension of algae ash in ethanol, which were standing at the desktop. The liquids mixed, and a purple vapor began to rise into the air, settling on objects in small black-violet crystals. Thus, a new chemical element was discovered.

An amazing world is around us, a lot of interesting things surround a person, he doesn’t even know about a lot, it’s enough just to remember interesting facts about chemistry and understand what a wonderful world a person lives in.

1. To ensure a standard flight of a modern aircraft, about 80 tons of oxygen are needed. The same amount of oxygen is produced by 40 thousand hectares of forest during photosynthesis.

2. About twenty grams of salt is contained in one liter of sea water.

3. The length of 100 million hydrogen atoms in one chain is one centimeter.

4. About 7 mg of gold can be extracted from one ton of ocean water.

5. About 75% of water is contained in the human body.

6. The mass of our planet has increased by one billion tons over the past five centuries.

7. The thinnest matter that a person can see is the walls of a soap bubble.

8. At a temperature of five thousand degrees Celsius, iron turns into a gaseous state.

9. The sun produces more energy in one minute than our planet needs for a whole year.

10. Granite is considered to be the best conductor of sound compared to air.

12. Joseph Black discovered carbon dioxide in 1754.

13. In addition to mercury at room temperature, francium and gallium pass into a liquid substance. 14. Water containing methane can freeze at temperatures above 20 degrees Celsius.

15. Hydrogen is the most common substance in the world.

16. In honor of the countries was named a large number of chemical elements.

17. The substance sulfur is found in onions, which causes tears in humans.

18. Earwax protects a person from harmful bacteria and microorganisms. 32. French explorer B. Courtois discovered iodine in 1811.

19. More than 100 thousand chemical reactions take place every minute in the human brain.

20. Silver is known for its bactericidal properties, therefore it is able to purify water from viruses and microorganisms.

21. Geosmin is a substance that is produced on the surface of the earth after rain, causing a characteristic odor

22. Alexander Fleming first discovered antibiotics.

23. It is easier to get ice from hot water.

24. Emeralds contain beryllium.

25. The ocean contains a large amount of sodium.

26. Silicon is used in computer chips.

27. Phosphorus is used to make matches.

28. Scandium is used to make baseball bats, which improves their impact resistance.

29. Titanium is used to create jewelry.

30. Spoons containing gallium can melt in hot water.

31. Mobile phones use germanium.

32. Arsenic is a toxic substance from which rat poison is made.

33. Bromine can melt at room temperature.

34. Technetium is used in x-rays.

35. Uranium is used to produce nuclear weapons.

36. Radon is considered the rarest element of the atmosphere.

37. Tungsten has the highest boiling point.

38. Mercury has the lowest melting point.

39. Small amounts of methanol can cause blindness.

40. About thirty chemical elements are part of the human body.

41. In everyday life, a person often encounters salt hydrolysis, for example, while washing clothes.

42. Due to the oxidation reaction, color drawings appear on the walls of gorges and quarries.

43. Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide.

44. Semyon Volfkovich was engaged in experiments related to phosphorus. When he worked with him, the clothes were also impregnated with phosphorus, and therefore, returning home late at night, the professor emitted a bluish glow.

46. ​​The famous chemist Dmitry Mendeleev was the 17th child in the family.

47. The first Russian textbook "Organic Chemistry" was created by Dmitry Mendeleev in 1861.

Edward Benedictus was an incredibly versatile person. He was engaged not only in chemistry, but also in literature and music, one of his close friends was the brilliant French composer Maurice Ravel. In general, Benedictus began his professional career as a bookbinder, then developed furniture fittings and even published articles on this topic in magazines. As we can see, Edward Benedictus was constantly in search of something new, something that could change the world for the better. And it was this quality of his nature that led to the discovery of safety glass, which subsequently led to a revolution in technology.

Edward Benedictus - Inventor of safety glass

Once Edward Benedictus was conducting a curious series of experiments with nitrocellulose and accidentally dropped one of the flasks on the floor. Incredibly, the flask did not break, as it usually did before! The glass was only covered with a network of cracks, but in general remained intact. Another scientist would not have paid attention to this, writing it off as a happy coincidence, but Benedictus decided to find out what was the reason for such a sudden resistance of the glass. He found that nitrocellulose formed a layer of a strong film on the surface of the test tube, which held the glass together and prevented the formation of fragments. This happened in 1903, and already on November 25, 1909, after fully realizing his discovery and improving technology, Benedictus received a patent for safety glass (French patent 405,881).

After obtaining a patent, Edouard Benedictus founded the firm Société du Verre Triplex. This company initially produced only windshields for cars. Then similar glasses began to be produced for the needs of the military industry, in particular, for aircraft and gas mask eyepieces. Despite the fact that safety glass was quite expensive in those days due to the imperfection of production technology, it gained incredible popularity, and the name "triplex" became a household name.

What is triplex

The term "triplex" is currently understood as laminated glass. Most often, these are two ordinary glasses, between which a polymer film is glued, i.e. The composition of the triplex includes at least three main elements. Hence the name - in Latin triplex means triple. The production of triplex is quite simple, a polymer film is laid between the glass sheets and everything is pressed together when heated, so the glasses stick together. The quality of finished triplex in Russia is regulated by GOST R 54171-2010 Laminated glass.

As at the very beginning of its victorious march around the world, triplex is used for the production of automotive and in general all glass for any transport - rail, air and sea. Double-glazed windows are produced for glazing buildings using safety laminated glass, armored glass in bank cash desks is also triplex. Well, in any military equipment, all optical devices are also made using the technology proposed by Edward Benedictus at the beginning of the 20th century.

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One way or another, everything in the world is built on chance. Surely each of us can find confirmation of this thought in our own lives.

website made a selection that in the history of the world, accidents and mistakes have more than once played a decisive and even fatal role.

Meteorite and Christianity

The events that are described as "the road to Damascus" played a colossal role in the development of Christianity. And most likely, they are associated with the fall of a meteorite.

The Apostle Paul was on his way to Damascus to capture the local Christians. On the way, he saw the brightest light in heaven, was knocked down by a shock wave and heard a deafening roar. He was blind for 3 days and received his sight only in Damascus, after meeting with the Christian Ananias.

Paul interpreted what happened as God's sign and began to actively preach Christianity.

Sources: newscientist , ancient-origins

Lost in translation and the atomic bomb

In 1945, the United States demanded that Japan surrender. In his response, Japanese Premier Suzuki used the word mokusatsu, which can be translated as "no comment", "remain in neutral silence", or "we will think about it".

When translated, this word turned into “we ignore”, and then, according to the principle of a deaf phone, into “we reject” and “we consider your question with contempt”.

This response offended US President Truman, which prompted him to drop a couple of atomic bombs on Japan.

Sources: wikipedia , thisjapaneselife , pangeanic

"Titanic" and assistant captain

The keys to the closet where the Titanic crew's binoculars were stored could have saved the lives of everyone who died in the crash of the liner. If not for David Blair, who received the position of second officer on the Titanic and was removed at the last moment before the fatal voyage.

As Blair left the ship, he forgot to put the keys to the binoculars cabinet out of his pocket. Therefore, part of the crew was deprived of the opportunity to see the same iceberg before the irreparable happened.

Sources: telegraph, wikipedia

Negligence and penicillin

Scientist Alexander Fleming didn't keep a lot of things in order. He forgot to clean his lab, left staphylococci in a petri dish and went on vacation for 2 weeks.

All this time no one entered the laboratory, and when Fleming returned, an amazing picture appeared before him. The cups were filled with mold and the staph died.

So the antibiotic penicillin was discovered and people stopped dying from a number of bacterial infections.

Sources: pbs,

The fall of the Berlin Wall and the distraction of politics

In 1989, East German politician Günther Schabowski called a press conference to explain minor changes to the Berlin Wall crossing law. There was a hint in his speech that any travel restrictions would be lifted altogether. A journalist who heard just such a subtext asked when the changes would take effect.

To this, Schabowski said, "Immediately." The press immediately printed that there were no more bans. This led to a crowd of people at the wall, who demanded permission to pass. The authorities, in order to avoid a riot, allowed the wall to fall.

Why did Schabowski answer that way? He probably just got it all mixed up. But he became the man who actually brought down the Berlin Wall.
Source: independent , nytimes

Scientist clumsiness and shatterproof glass

In 1903, the scientist Edward Benedictus dropped a flask on the floor. To his surprise, it did not shatter into pieces, but only cracked. The scientist remembered that after the previous experiment, a thin layer of cellulose nitrate was preserved on the walls of the flask.

Benedictus made a "sandwich" of two panes of glass glued together with a layer of cellulose nitrate. Such glass could be beaten with a hammer - it cracked, but did not break into fragments.

So there was a glass "triplex", which is used to this day. Thanks to him, during an accident, the driver and passengers will definitely not die from shrapnel wounds.

Sources: