Accidental Game-changing Ideas (Innovations)

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Innovation.

Innovation involves producing or discovering a new idea for the benefit of society. We can also refer to the invention as a process that covers creating new machines, products, services, or software (Kojabayev & Maziliauskas, 2017). A new device, equipment, or machinery is also an innovation. It covers processes researchers and technicians develop to solve problems and make life easier.

Although some experts accidentally created specific ideas, processes, or machines, various individuals and organizations around the globe have enjoyed particular benefits due to innovation. Due to the tremendous benefits for society, more individuals, organizations, and government agencies are investing in research and development to promote innovation.

Accidental Game-changing Innovations (Ideas)

While some researchers and experts consciously created some ideas and machines, they accidentally did some. For some products, they conducted research, monitored processes, and ran tests before launching the concept. However, they discovered others while playing around or conducting unrelated research (Austin et al., 2012). We refer to those products and ideas as “accidental ideas.” Although accidental, they are still highly beneficial to humans. I will discuss two examples below;

  • Implantable Pacemaker. 

Medical professionals use the implantable pacemaker to help a patient's heart perform typically. However, Wilson Greatbatch accidentally discovered it in 1956. Although he was conducting a heart-related experiment, he did not channel his effort into creating the pacemaker. He accidentally discovered it. While trying to record the rhythm of a person’s heartbeat, Wilson used the wrong resistor. In the process, he found that the device was not recording sounds but was giving off electric impulses like the human heart. 

Before Wilson’s accidental invention, hospitals had ambiguous and painful pacemakers. Wilson paid close attention to his invention and consciously modified it. After research and modifications, Wilson teamed up with  William Chardack, who tried the pacemaker on a man in 1960. They got favorable results and prolonged the man's life by eighteen months. 

Pacemaker

  • X-Ray

Like Wilson Greatbatch, Physicist Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen also accidentally discovered X-Rays. While experimenting with whether a cathode tube could pass through glass. In the process, he saw an incandescent green light that escaped and projected onto a nearby fluorescent screen. The mysterious glow surprised him. He named the rays “X” as he could not correctly identify their origin. He kept playing around with the light and then discovered that the light could pass through human tissue, and he could see his bones. Other experts located in different countries heard about this exciting innovation. Some doubted it, and I've lived that it was dangerous. However, others eagerly tried it. With time, other experts made a few modifications that led to the perfect X-ray. This innovation plays an essential role in the medical field as it assists in identifying gunshot wounds, broken bones, swallowed objects, and kidney stones.  The creation of X-ray also paved the way for other similar medical innovations, computed tomography scans and ultrasound.

X-ray 

Forces that Supported the Invention of Implantable PaceMaker and X-Ray

  1. Governments of various countries welcomed these ideas due to their benefits. In their way, both innovations prolonged life spans. Government agencies who want the best for their citizens allowed doctors to learn about pacemakers and X-rays. They went as far as sending doctors to inventors so they could learn more. Although using these innovations was expensive, the government offered to cover these costs to ensure their local hospitals enjoyed the benefits of these products.

  2. Societal forces also supported these innovations. The news of these inventions and their benefits spread like wildfire. Locals of the immediate society shared superb information with others, promoting the use and trust of these machines. Although some individuals were initially scared of the processes involved in using these pieces of machinery, testimonies and use of them convinced them otherwise.

  3. Technological advancements supported these innovations. Between the dates of creation and today, we can tell that each of these products has evolved. Although the experts responsible for the changes retained the original idea, they made the innovations more efficient and easy to use. Today, there are several hospitals with these facilities.

  4. Educational forces promoted these inventions as institutions taught students at various levels about these facilities. In the medical field, teachers curate particular courses specifically for X-rays and implant training. They teach students how to operate these machines, how the inventors formulated them, and the risk involved. Teachers also give assignments that would promote the understanding and use of these innovations. The original innovators also conducted specific research and tests to confirm that these items were good to go. For example, they tried the implantable pacemaker on dogs before trying it on humans. 


References

Austin, R., Devin, L. S., & Sulivan, E. E. (2012). Accidental innovation: supporting valuable unpredictability in the creative process. Organization Science, 23(5). 10.2307/23252320



Kojabayev, T., & Maziliauskas, A. (2017). The definition and classification of innovation. Journal of Business and Public Administration, 8(1), 61-63. 10.1515/hjbpa-2017-0005


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