As the days grow longer and the promise of spring fills the air, we find ourselves on the verge of St. Patrick’s Day, a holiday that celebrates tradition, festivity, and, of course, a bit of luck. But what does it really mean to have “the luck of the Irish”? While the phrase and holiday are often linked to four-leaf clovers, well-placed pots of gold, and rainbows, their origins are far more nuanced. The concept of luck traces back to Irish folklore and mythology, but the phrase itself gained popularity during the California Gold Rush, when many Irish immigrants, quite literally, struck gold.
At first glance, luck and science may seem like opposites. After all, one is ruled by chance, and the other by methodical study and measurable results. Yet history tells us a different story. Some of the most groundbreaking advances in medicine and science have come from happy accidents, or moments of serendipity. As defined in Serendipity in Scientific Research, serendipity occurs when "an unexpected and unpredicted event is noticed by an agent with the right skills to make the most of it."
In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, let’s explore the contributions of Irish scientists and medical pioneers who shaped the world of medicine through ingenuity, determination, and just a little luck.
Jocelyn Bell Burnell & the Discovery of Pulsars
Born in Northern Ireland in 1943, Jocelyn Bell Burnell pursued astronomy at Cambridge, where she made her big discovery. In her second year, while analyzing data from a radio telescope, she noticed an unusual signal, something she initially wrote off as “just a little bit of scruff” (Spradley, 2024).
Well, as luck would have it, that scruff turned out to be the first-ever discovered pulsating radio source, signals from rapidly rotating neutron stars, now known as pulsars. Thankfully, Jocelyn didn’t stop at her first theory of “scruff” or even the second theory, that the signals were from little green men trying to communicate. Instead, she persisted, uncovering one of the most significant astronomical discoveries of the 20th century.
John Joly & the Accidental Birth of Radiation Therapy
John Joly, an Irish physicist and geologist, was originally trying to determine the age of the Earth by studying radioactive decay in rocks. While working with radium, he noticed something unexpected: radiation could destroy living cells. This realization led him to wonder, if radiation could destroy healthy cells, could it also be harnessed to target cancerous cells in a controlled way?
In 1899, Joly and his colleague Walter Stevenson developed the Dublin Method, one of the first medical applications of radiation therapy for cancer. Their technique involved inserting radium needles directly into tumors, killing cancer cells while minimizing damage to surrounding tissue. “Joly’s brilliant insight was to use not the expensive radium itself, but the radioactive radon gas it emitted” (Mulvihill, 2014). His discovery was a huge leap forward in oncology, and radiation therapy remains a cornerstone of cancer treatment today.
When Science and Luck Collide
Joly wasn’t looking for a cancer treatment, he was investigating geology and radioactivity when he stumbled upon a medical breakthrough. Similarly, Bell Burnell wasn’t searching for pulsars, she was just analyzing telescope data when the universe revealed its secret to her. In both cases, luck played a role, but so did their curiosity, persistence, and ability to recognize something extraordinary when they saw it.
Much like Alexander Fleming’s accidental discovery of penicillin, these moments of scientific serendipity remind us that luck and science are not as separate as they seem. In fact, many of the greatest discoveries happen when unexpected insights meet the right minds at the right time.
If you're still feeling curious (or maybe a little lucky), check out this eBook on the psychology on how to get lucky. What Are the Chances? : Why We Believe in Luck
References
Spradley, J. L. (2024). Jocelyn Bell Burnell. Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. https://research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=7805bbe2-d486-3a0f-8af3-c6922ea0b195
Mulvihill, M. (2014, June, 12) “The Irish Man Who Brought Radiotherapy Forward.” The Irish Times, www.irishtimes.com/news/science/the-irish-man-who-brought-radiotherapy-forward-1.1828507
Ross, W. Copeland , S. Firestein, S. (2024) “Serendipity in Scientific Research.” Journal of Trial and Error, https://doi.org/10.36850/v91j-7541
“Exciting Accidental Discoveries Are Constantly Being Made, Forcing Us to Adjust Our World View.”(2021, Feburary, 20). XPRIZE. www.xprize.org/articles/ten-major-breakthroughs-that-were-happy-accidents
0 Comments.