9 Greatest Discoveries Made by Accident

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From the most popular way of giving elderly men erections to the most important discoveries in medicine, we look 9 greatest discoveries made by accident.

9 – Potato Chips,

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  • MmMmm those salty snacks that have been clogging our arteries for years were actually discovered because of a picky customer.
  • In 1853 Chef George Crum was getting his fried potatoes sent back to the kitchen continuously by one customer who was probably a bit of a tool. George in a fit of pure “Fuck this guy” sliced the potatoes as thin as possible, fried them up and added some tasty salt.
  • Needless to say the dish was a hit the customer and Saratoga Chips were born, eventually spreading across the globe. So next time you crack into a packet of Salt and Vinnegar, remember that you have an entitled customer to thank…Huh I guess the customer is always right.

8 – Super Glue,

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  • The answer to breaking your mother’s porcelain swan was its self a product of a similar accident.
  • In 1942 Dr Harry Coover accidentally produced the miraculous glue while trying to actually create clear sights for guns. Not realising what he had created, Coover essentially threw it in the bin. 9 years later while working on a different project, a colleague named Fred Joyner used the junk to join together refracting prisms. Coover now saw the potential for the product and hit store shelves in 1951.
  • Super glue became popular worldwide and now we something to fix all the fragile stuff we break when playing football in the house.

7 – Gunpowder,

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  • The cornerstone for creating weapons that would eventually change the course of human history was actually a magic potion.
  • Chinese alchemists were attempting to create the long sort after elixir of life, which would give the drinker immortality. Ironically they discovered the means to kill more people than ever before. When the concoction of saltpetre, charcoal and sulphur was combined it exploded in a flash, burning the faces of the alchemists…and the building they were in.
  • Of course this lead to the art of fireworks being born as well as the obvious military uses, but wasn’t fully realised until much later.

6 – Matches,

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  • From the dawn of early man, harnessing fire has been the key to human survival against the elements.
  • But surprisingly enough we didn’t discover matches until 1827 and it was by accident. The device that would simplify fire starting drastically, came about when John Walker accidentally added friction to a mixture he had been mixing together. The mixture of antimony sulphide and potassium chlorate had dried a clump on the end of his mixing stick and when Walker tried to scrape it off and boom instant fire.
  • Walker refused to patent the invention, making them free for anyone to manufacture but in turn wasn’t credited for the invention until after his death.

5 – Viagra,

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  • Even that little blue pill that makes your Grandfather able to have sex was an accident…because no one would want to do that on purpose.
  • Pharmaceutical company Pfizer discovered the pill while testing out a medication for high blood pressure called UK-92480. The medication was useless for treating blood pressure and angina but test subjects noticed a different kind of pressure on their pants. Noticing the pattern, Pfizer realised they had a magical erection pill on their hands.
  • Ironically one of the side effects of Viagra is actually heart attacks. Try and treat Angina and instead end up treating Vaginas.

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