ABOUT THIS EPISODE
In 1968, 3M chemist Dr. Spencer Silver set out to create a powerful new adhesive for aircraft. What he ended up with was… not that. Instead, he developed a glue so weak it could be peeled off and reused without leaving a trace. For years, no one knew what to do with it—until a frustrated choir singer named Art Fry needed a bookmark that wouldn’t fall out of his hymnal.
In this episode of The Mistakes That Made Us, Stephanie Einstein Tashiro explores how an adhesive that failed its mission ended up revolutionizing communication, office culture, and paper. From yellow scraps of paper borrowed from the lab next door to a failed product launch in four cities, this is the story of persistence, innovation, and a little bit of luck. Plus, what happens when your world-changing invention belongs to your employer?
