EPISODE 20
The Princes of Serendip with Samantha Copeland
Duration - 2hr and 33 mins (in two parts)
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A common theme in many sciences is the role of chance or accidents leading to significant discoveries...like penicillin, radioactivity, x-rays, teflon...even post-it notes. It may be that 50% of ALL scientific discoveries have their genesis in this manner. The world of mineral exploration is no different. The discovery of Ertzberg (Grasberg) by Jean Jacques Dozy while trying to climb glaciers in Irian Jaya. Voisey's Bay was discovered while exploring for diamonds. We often attribute these discoveries to luck. But it is serendipity. And the difference is not just semantics.
We often define serendipity as an uncontrollable event with a favourable outcome. But it could be better defined as a favourable outcome and the accompanying realisation of the value of that outcome. If we were to look at serendipity in this way... we may still not be able to control the occurrence of the event, but what if we could get better at realising the value of those events? Would our understanding of serendipity change? Could we more confidently identify serendipitous outcomes and gain a better understanding of what conditions lead to a discovery? And perhaps, could we even get better at cultivating serendipity?
In this two-part interview, Samantha Copeland, a philosopher who has researched the effects of serendipity in scientific discoveries, joins us to talk about how serendipity can be a driver of knowledge in many fields...how our understanding is often affected by our biases...the roles that chance and expertise, or wisdom, play...and ultimately how a network, rather than the individual, is the key to recognising the value of serendipitous outcomes.
We often define serendipity as an uncontrollable event with a favourable outcome. But it could be better defined as a favourable outcome and the accompanying realisation of the value of that outcome. If we were to look at serendipity in this way... we may still not be able to control the occurrence of the event, but what if we could get better at realising the value of those events? Would our understanding of serendipity change? Could we more confidently identify serendipitous outcomes and gain a better understanding of what conditions lead to a discovery? And perhaps, could we even get better at cultivating serendipity?
In this two-part interview, Samantha Copeland, a philosopher who has researched the effects of serendipity in scientific discoveries, joins us to talk about how serendipity can be a driver of knowledge in many fields...how our understanding is often affected by our biases...the roles that chance and expertise, or wisdom, play...and ultimately how a network, rather than the individual, is the key to recognising the value of serendipitous outcomes.
Photo copyrighted by Norwegian University of Life Sciences