The Great Mental Models, Volume 2: Physics, Chemistry and Biology

by Shane Parrish

Or there is the story of Botox. It’s a toxin and “is a naturally occurring by-product of the microorganism that causes botulism, a potentially lethal paralytic disease caused by eating contaminated preserved food.”31 The bacteria have likely been around a long time and have killed a lot of people. It wasn’t until the 19th century that the anaerobic bacteria that cause botulism were isolated and identified. In the 1970s, a form of the toxin was used to treat eye disorders, including uncontrollable blinking and crossed eyes. By the 1980s “the toxin was widely applied by both ophthalmologists and neurologists as a remedy for…facial, eyelid, and limb spasms.”32 In 1987, Jean Carruthers, an ophthalmologist, inadvertently discovered cosmetic uses for Botox when a patient mentioned how her eye treatments were relaxing her face. It took a few more years for Botox to hit the mainstream, but it eventually achieved widespread cosmetic application.