Sometimes an accident and a shortcut can add up to a hit product.
In 1952, Don Stookey, a chemist at the Corning Incorporated, was experimenting with a new glass formula. To test it, he put a sample in an annealing oven. However, the oven’s controls failed and the temperature soared to 900°C. Thinking he had wrecked the oven, he rushed to pull the sample out but it fell on the floor; rather than shatter, the sample landed without shattering. Stookey had discovered a new class of materials–pyrocerams–but what could Corning do with Pyroceram?
