BOOKS
Science by Accident Reviewed by George B. Kauffman
The word "serendipity" was coined and first used by Horace Walpole, 4th Earl of Oxford and English writer, connoisseur, and collector, who is best remembered today as perhaps the most prolific letter writer in the English language. In a letter dated Jan. 28, 1754, to Horace Mann (an Englishman residing in Florence, Italy, not the American educator) Walpole wrote: "This discovery indeed is almost of that kind which I call serendipity, a very expressive word, which as I have nothing better to tell you, I shall endeavour to explain to you: you will understand it better by the derivation than by the definition. I once read a silly fairy tale, called The Three Princes of Serendip: as their highnesses travelled, they were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of: for instance, one of them discovered that a mule blind of the right eye had travelled the same road lately, because the grass was eaten only on the left side, where it was worse than on the right—now do you understand serendipity? One of the most remarkable instances of this accidental sagacity (for you must observe that no discovery of a thing you are looking for, comes under this description) was . . . " Despite Walpole's insistence that the discovery must not only be accidental but must also not be the thing looked for, "serendipity" is often used today as a pretentious synonym for "accidental discovery." Indeed, much of the word's current stylishness can be accounted for by its incorrect and sloppy usage, leading to its applications to cases for which it was never intended. Even some unabridged dictionaries do not include the second condition; for example, one defines serendipity merely as "the faculty for making desirable discoveries by accident."
Chance happenings and discoveries made serendipitously have played a major role in the advance of science "Serendipity: Accidental Discoveries in Science" by Royston M. Roberts, John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10158, 1989, 270 pages, $12.95 Serendip, Sarendip, or Serendib seem to have evolved from the Sanskrit "Sinhaladvipa" and are believed to refer to Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The book to which Walpole referred in his letter was apparently first published in 1557 in Venice by Michele Tramezzino, who credited the translation (from Persian to Italian) to Christoforo the Armenian but who may himself have been the compiler of the ribald tales. The case par excellence of serendipity traditionally has been Christopher Columbus' discovery of America while seeking a sea route to the East Indies. Yet, as Royston Roberts points out in his fascinating book "Serendipity: Accidental Dis-
coveries in Science," Columbus was preceded by a less well-known serendipitous discoverer, Leif Ericson, who landed in Newfoundland about the year 1000 after bad weather had driven him far off his course to Greenland, where he had been sent by the King of Norway to proclaim Christianity. While writing a recent article, "The Role of Serendipity in Drug Discovery," for Today's Chemist, I was forced to omit a number of the most engaging stories because they did not comply with Walpole's restricted definition. Roberts, who teaches chemistry at the University of Texas, Austin, has solved this problem most ingeniously: He has coined the term "pseudoserendipity" to describe "accidental discoveries of ways to achieve an end sought for, in contrast to the meaning of (true) serendipity, which describes accidental discoveries of things not sought for." Thus he is able to include in his collection a number of discoveries that would not strictly qualify as serendipitous, such as Charles Goodyear's discovery of vulcanization, which marked the birth of the modern rubber industry. Although in 1839 Goodyear brought a sample of rubber mixed with sulfur and litharge (lead monoxide) into contact with a hot stove in Woburn, Mass., accidentally, this fortuitous occurrence took place only after five years of constant attempts to convert crude rubber from an intractable, smelly substance that became soft and sticky in summer and hard and brittle in winter into a tough, elastic, heat- and cold-stable, commercially useful product. Roberts' book succinctly recounts in a lively and captivating style more than a hundred of the most dramatic and amusing serendipitous discoveries—some earthshaking, some trivial—from the annals of science and technology, ranging in time from Archimedes to the latest top-selling and indispensible products, such as 3M's Post-its, and December 4, 1989 C&EN
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Books ranging in length from a single paragraph to an entire chapter. Inasmuch as the author is an organic chemist, it is not surprising that the majority of the stories deal with chemistry. However, physics, biology, astronomy, archaeology, medicine, pharmacology, photography, polymer and nuclear science, food and household products, and other fields of science and technology are well represented. Although most of the renowned serendipitous discoveries are featured, unfamiliar or lesser known discoveries are also included. Many of the tales include accounts of the discoveries in the discoverers' own words, biographical sketches of the discoverers, related stories, and, in sections titled "Postscript," later developments of the discoveries. Roberts' approach is a personal one; whenever pertinent, he relates his own experiences. Thus, in a chapter on quinine he discusses his own work on the synthesis of chloroquine and in a chapter on the Friedel-Crafts reaction, about which he has coauthored a book, he discusses his own 14C tracer experiments. Although Foil A. Miller and I have authored an article on Alfred Nobel, I was not familiar with the story of Nobel's three loves (reminiscent of Jacques Offenbach's "Tales of Hoffman") and a number of the other stories also were new to me. In a three-page epilogue, "How Accidents Become Discoveries," Roberts summarizes and draws general conclusions from his tales. As 1963 Nobel chemistry laureate Sir Derek H. R. Barton observes in his foreword to the book, "Reading it makes one realize how much scientific advance cannot be planned." Although Roberts' book is eminently suitable for browsing, I eagerly devoured it from cover to cover during my morning constitutionals with my faithful canine companion Vixen Kauffman. Other books with which it may be compared are "Accidental Scientific Discoveries" (21 discoveries); Alfred B. Garrett's "The Flash of Genius" (51 discoveries, some serendipitous); D. S. Halacy Jr.'s "Science and Serendipity" (11 discoveries, some serendipitous); Gilbert Shapiro's "A Skeleton in the Darkroom: 36
December 4, 1989 C&EN
Stories of Serendipity in Science" (seven discoveries); and Charles Panati's "Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things" (hundreds of discoveries and inventions, only a few serendipitous). However, none of these compares with Roberts' book in terms of the number of serendipitous discoveries. Unfortunately, the authoritative impression conveyed by the book is marred by a large number of errors (I counted 66). Most are typographical errors or misspellings, usually of proper nouns, such as "Minoxydil" for "Minoxidil" or "Novocain" for "Novocaine." But there are also a few minor errors of fact. For example, the Priestley (not Perkin) Medal is the highest honor bestowed by the American Chemical Society; Le Bel's first name is Joseph not Jules; polonium was discovered before, not after, radium and is less, not more, radioactive than radium; and Constantine Fahlberg worked in Ira Remsen's laboratory but was never his student. Although my name is spelled correctly (a rare occurrence in many books that I have re-
viewed), the volume number in a reference to one of my articles is incorrect, leading me to wonder whether other references are likewise incorrect. These minor shortcomings notwithstanding, I recommend this spellbinding and delightful book, intended primarily for the general reader, to both novice and expert alike. Well researched, meticulously documented, and thoroughly up-todate (references as late as 1988), it will whet your appetite for more accounts of serendipitous discoveries from the author. Educators at all levels, from elementary school to university, will find these tales ideal for enlivening lectures and stimulating discussions. At its moderate price, it's a rare bargain in today's marketplace of overpriced books. Read it. George B. Kauffman, professor of chemistry at California State University, Fresno, is author of 15 books and more than 800 papers, articles, and reviews (including several on scientific serendipity) and a former chairman of the ACS Division of History of Chemistry. D
Inverse Gas Chromatography: Characterization of Polymers and Other Materials. ACS Symposium Series 391. Douglas R. Lloyd et al. xii + 331 pages. American Chemical Society, 1155— 16th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.1989. $69.95. Masters Theses in the Pure and Applied Sciences. Vol. 32. Wade H. Shafer, editor, xiv + 373 pages. Plenum Press, 233 Spring St., New York, N.Y. 10013.1988. $115.
Neil S. Ostlund. xiv + 466 pages. McGraw-Hill, 1221 Ave. of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10020. 1989 $39.95.
Mechanistic Principles of Enzyme Activity. Joel F. Liebman, Arthur Greenberg, editors, xii + 404 pages. VCH Publishers, Distribution Center, 303 N.W. 12th Ave., Deerfield Beach, Fla. 33442-1705.1989. $89. Membrane Processes. R. Rautenbach, R. Albrecht. x + 459 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.1989. $168. Methods in Computational Chemistry. Vol. 2: Relativistic Effects in Atoms and Molecules. Stephen Wilson, edi+ 291 pages. Plenum Press, 233 Spring St., New York, N.Y. 10013. 1988. $59.50. Modern Quantum Chemistry: Introduction to Advanced Electronic Structure Theory. 1st Rev. Ed. Attila Szabo,
Neuromethods. Vol. 12: Drugs as Tools in Neurotransmitter Research. Alan A. Boulton, Glen B. Baker, Augusto V. Juorio, editors, xviii + 512 pages. Humana Press, Crescent Manor, P.O. Box 2148, Clifton, N.J. 07015. 1989. $84.50 U.S., $94.50 export. Nitrones, Nitronates and Nitroxides. Eli Breuer, Hans Gunter Aurich, Arnold Nielsen, ix + 435 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.1989. $139. Peptide Hormones as Prohormones: Processing, Biological Activity, Pharmacology. Jean Martinez, editor, x + 354 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016. 1989. $115. Photoreactive Polymers: The Science and Technology of Resists. Arnost Reiser, xii + 409 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.1989. $49.95. Physical Property Data for the Design Engineer. C. F. Beaton, G. F. Hewitt, editors, xxiv + 394 pages. Hemisphere Publishing Corp., 79 Madison Ave.,
New York, N.Y. 10016-7892. 1989. $58.50.
Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.1989. $150 (set).
Physicochemical Hydrodynamics. Manuel G. Velarde, editor, xvi + 1111 pages. Plenum Press, 233 Spring St., New York, N.Y. 10013.1988. $165.
Seventh International Conference on Jojoba and Its Uses. A. R. Baldwin, editor, xxiii + 453 pages. American Oil Chemists' Society, 1608 Broadmoor Dr., P.O. Box 3489, Champaign, 111. 61821-0489.1989. $95.
Polymers: Structure and Properties. C. A. Daniels, vii + 107 pages. Technomic Publishing Co., 851 N e w Holland Ave., Box 3535, Lancaster, Pa. 17604. 1989. $55. Properties of Selected Ferrous Alloying Elements. Vol. III.l. Y. S. Touloukian, C. Y. Ho, editors, xvi + 269 pages. H e m i s p h e r e Publishing Corp., 79 Madison Ave., New York, N.Y. 100167892.1981. $80. The Risk Assessment of Environmental and Human Health Hazards: A Textbook of Case Studies. Dennis J. Paustenbach, editor, xxviii + 1155 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016. 1989. $125. The Safe Handling of Chemicals in Industry. Vols. 1 & 2. P. A. Carson, C. J. Mumford. vii + 1089 pages. John
Paperbacks Biopolymers. Vol. 28, No. 1. Murray Goodman, editor. 530 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.1989. $50.
548 pages. Technomic Publishing Co., 851 New Holland Ave., Box 3535, Lancaster, Pa. 17604.1989. $55. Cell Differentiation, Genes and Cancer. T. Kakunaga et al. ix + 203 pages. Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016. $60. Determination of Dose Equivalents from External Radiation S o u r c e s Part 2. International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements, vii + 52 pages. ICRU Publications, 7910 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda, Md. 20814.1988. $17.
The Cambridge Guide to the Material World. Rodney Cotterill. 352 pages. Cambridge University Press, 32 East 57th St., New York, N.Y. 10022. 1989. $27.95.
Frontiers in Chemical Engineering: Research Needs and Opportunities. National Research Council. National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418. 1988. $19.95.
Carbon Reinforced Epoxy Systems. Part VI. Kier M. Finlayson, editor, vi + 442 pages. Technomic Publishing Co., 851 New Holland Ave., Box 3535, Lancaster, Pa. 17604.1989. $55.
Gas Chromatography /Mass Spectrometry Operation. S.-T. F. Lai. vii + 153 pages. Realistic Systems Inc., P.O. Box 678, East Longmeadow, Mass. 01028. 1988. $55.
Carbon Reinforced Epoxy Systems. Part VII. Kier M. Finlayson, editor, vi +
IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans.
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Books Supplement 6. International Agency for Research on Cancer. 729 pages. WHO Publications Center USA, 49 Sheridan Ave., Albany, N.Y. 12210. 1987. $64.
Polymeric Materials: Chemistry for the Future. Joseph Alper, Gordon L. Nelson, xv + 110 pages. American Chemical Society, 1155—16th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.1989. $14.95.
IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Vol. 43: Man-Made Mineral Fibres and Radon. International Agency for Research on Cancer. 300 pages. WHO Publications Center USA, 49 Sheridan Ave., Albany, N.Y. 12210.1988. $52.
Practical Raman Spectroscopy. D. J. Gardiner, P. R. Graves, editors. 157 pages. Springer-Verlag, New York, 175 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10010. 1989. $39.50.
IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Vol. 44: Alcohol Drinking. International Agency for Research on Cancer. 416 pages. WHO Publications Center USA, 49 Sheridan Ave., Albany, N.Y. 12210.1988. $52. Modern Synthetic Methods 1989. D. H. G. Crout et al. 304 pages. SpringerVerlag, New York, 175 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10010.1989. $39.50 Perspectives in Biochemistry. Vol. 1. Hans Neurath, editor, xi + 259 pages. American Chemical Society, 1155— 16th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.1989. $14.95.
Toxic Substances Controls Guide. Mary Devine Worobec, Girard Ordway. xi + 239 pages. BNA Books. 1231—25th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037. $30.
Quick Selection Guide to Chemical Protective Clothing. Krister Forsberg, S. Z. Mansdorf. iv + 60 pages. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 115 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10003.1989. $9.95.
Ultrastructural Cytochemistry of BloodBrain Barrier Endothelia. Andrzej W. Vorbrodt. viii + 99 pages. VCH Publishers, Distribution Center, 303 N.W. 12th Ave., Deerfield Beach, Fla. 33442-1705.1988. $57.
Science for All Americans, ix + 217 pages. American Association for the Advancement of Science, Books, Dept. 2061, P.O. Box 753, Waldorf, Md. 20604. 1989. $11.50 AAAS members, $14.50 others.
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Synthon Model of Organic Chemistry and Synthesis Design. J. Koca et al. vi + 207 pages. Springer-Verlag, New York, 175 Fifth Ave., New York, N.Y. 10010.1989. $27.40.
Process Sensing and Diagnostics. AIChE Symposium Series C. Jaromir J. Ulbrecht, editor, iii + 105 pages. American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Publications Sales, 345 East 47th St., N e w York, N.Y. 10017. 1989. $18 AIChE members, $36 others.
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Standards for Steam Jet Vacuum Systems. 4th Ed. Heat Exchange Institute Inc. vi + 115 pages. Heat Exchange Institute Inc., 1230 Keith Bldg., Cleveland, Ohio 44115-2180.1988. $75.
The XENIX* Command Reference Guide. Kaare Christian, Susan Richter. xv + 420 pages. John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016. 1989. $24.95. •
