by The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not “Eureka!” (I found it!) but “That’s funny…” ~Isaac Asimov
Think about what Isaac Asimov says in this quote. Often times people will hypothesize an idea, so that if they follow the steps they planned out they will prove their idea and make a “discovery”. This of course is the most productive way for scientists to expand the field of science and human knowledge; but this is not what Asimov is talking about in his quote. Think, instead, the discoveries made that challenge what is understood offer a new facet to the field of science. Because when one proves a hypothesis, it is of course a victory for everyone as it is further solidifying knowledge, but when someone stumbles across an unknown phenomena or pattern, this “heralds new discoveries”.
Some of the most important discoveries to this day have come from obstacles in previous experiments. The creation or should I say discovery of penicilin, the first ever antibiotic was due to the improper hygiene of a bacterial colony experiment and a curious scientist. Sir Alexander Fleming, a scientist in 1928 was growing Staphylococcus bacteria colonies in petri dishes trying to find a medication for infections. However, only when he returned to his lab one day to find that mold had infested his petri dishes that there was a peculiar effect it had. A large radius around the mold had no living bacteria. Something about the mold prevented the bacteria from replicating. Id put a bet that at that point he said, “That’s funny…” Then went on to publish his work and bring the first treatment for infections to the world known as Mould Juice, later renamed Penicillin. Who would have thought that a mold, a microscopic pest, would have properties that kill bacteria without killing the people its treating.
A massive discovery that led to the modern era of physics, a story most of you are familiar with, happened because a professor fleeing the Bubonic plague sat under a ripened apple tree. The apple fell on his head, a common occurrence of course, but stimulating the thought: Why did that happen? Similar to Asimov’s phrase, “That’s funny…” This led to the discovery of gravity, which had existed much longer than people, but till then the field of science had no explanation for it, let alone the question of why things fall. Isaac Newton made many discoveries, theories, and equations after that, and surely they all started with the thought, “why does that happen?”
Science builds off of science. One discovery leads to the next; humans couldn’t have discovered the properties of quantum mechanics before they discovered the earth is round and Newton couldn’t have discovered gravity before the wheel was invented. The technology just wouldn’t have existed at the time. A scientist should always make a hypothesis before they experiment to connect what is already known to what is hoped to be learned, but when there is an unforeseen circumstance, a peculiar reaction, or bizarre event, the discovery might be bigger than ever hoped for.