Introduction: Serendipity, science's well-guarded secret -- Part I: The dawn of a new era: infectious diseases and antibiotics, the miracle drugs -- How Antony's little animals led to the development of germ theory -- The new science of bacteriology -- Good chemistry -- The art of dyeing -- Mold, glorious mold -- Pay dirt -- The mysterious protein from down under -- "This ulcer 'bugs' me!" -- Part II: The smell of garlic launches the war on cancer -- Tragedy at Bari -- Antagonists to cancer -- Veni, vidi, vinca: the healing power of periwinkle -- A heavy metal rocks: the value of platinum -- Sex hormones -- Angiogenesis: the birth of blood vessels -- Aspirin kills more than pain -- Thalidomide: from tragedy to hope -- A sick chicken leads to the discovery of cancer-accelerating genes -- A contaminated vaccine leads to cancer-braking genes -- From where it all stems -- The industrialization of research and the war on cancer -- Lessons learned -- Part III: A quivering quartz string penetrates the mystery of the heart -- An unexpected phenomenon: it's electric! -- What a catheter can do -- "Dottering" -- A stitch in time -- The Nobel committee says yes to NO -- It's not you, honey, it's NO" -- What's your number? -- Thinning the blood -- Part IV: The flaw lies in the chemistry, not the character: mood-stabilizing drugs, antidepressants, and other psychotropics -- It began with a dream -- Mental straitjackets: shocking approaches -- Ice-pick psychiatry -- Lithium -- Thorazine -- Your town, my town, Miltown! -- Conquering the "beast" of depression -- Librium and valium -- "That's funny, I have the same bug!" -- LSD -- Conclusion: taking a chance on chance: cultivating serendipity.