Travels and Adventures of Serendipity A Study in Sociological Semantics and the Sociology of Science

"Curiosity, wonder, openness--these cohabit, comfortably, in that marvelous coinage of Walpole, serendipity. And they mark as well Merton and Barber's ebullient journey in search of all the meanings of the word. A romp of minds at play!"--Roald Hoffmann, Department of Chemistry, Cornell University, and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry "One definition of serendipity is: 'The faculty of making happy and unexpected discoveries by accident.' Notice that 'faculty' and don't you wish you had it. Merton had it--oh boy, did he--and this treat of a book exemplifies just that. Here is one of those cases where the voyage is even more fun than the destination. There are off-beat nuggets about discovery and scholarship, and about the sociology of discovery and scholarship, and then there are ironical comments about the whole enterprise as it occurs. You will experience serendipity even while you are being educated about it, and you will learn to combine fun and profit."--Robert M. Solow, Institute Professor Emeritus, Department of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences "What a splendid book!The Adventures and Travels of Serendipityis not only a guide to the extraordinary history and present-day usefulness of the blessings that can come from those unplanned, accidental events which, sagaciously employed, can shape one's life. But equally, the volume is an exemplification of superb scholarship presented in graceful style. Indeed, while reading the book one realizes that one perceives its unique subject matter from the vantage of standing on the shoulders of giants."--Gerald Holton, Harvard University "Merton and Barber's work,The Travels and Adventures of Serendipity, is a highly original sociological essay and a great work of literature at the same time. Decades ago, when I first heard about this manuscript, I wanted to read it. To have it now, as if as a gift from the late Robert K. Merton, is a pleasure long awaited. Generations of scholars to come will enjoy it and learn from it."--Wolf Lepenies, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin "This book exceeded my expectations, both for erudition and for entertainment. Its broad-gauged inquiry offers fascinating material for readers of many kinds. LikeOn the Shoulders of Giants, this book floods readers with information of every imaginable kind, introduces fantastic characters, and describes bizarre and wonderful books. It also offers something thatOn the Shoulders of Giantscould not: explicit reflections on the meaning of Merton's work. The publication of this book is a fitting tribute to a great scholar but also an intervention in current scholarly and scientific debates."--Anthony Grafton, Princeton UniversityMerton, Robert King is the author of 'Travels and Adventures of Serendipity A Study in Sociological Semantics and the Sociology of Science', published 2006 under ISBN 9780691126302 and ISBN 0691126305.