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Miraculous Malfunction: Difference between revisions
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In [[Mad Scientist|mad science]], "malfunction" does not mean fried circuits and [[Going Critical|broken equipment]]. Well okay - [[Phlebotinum Breakdown|that too]]. But quite often it turns out that a malfunction has created something wondrous (rather than just, yknow, giving you extra work). Usually there is no explanation to how a "malfunction" can make modifications that seem almost intelligent, and no mention to where it gets the parts for a technology that is entirely different from the intended - a toaster can easily become a time machine through Miraculous Malfunction, for example.
This can be used as an [[Achievements in Ignorance|Achievement In Ignorance]] for the [[Bungling Inventor]] (most of whose works are created in this manner). It can also serve as an alternative explanation to why there are [[No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup]]: it's not that the technology was lost but rather, the individual sample was a result of a one-time event that cannot be recreated. Particularly good researchers might then learn to ''reverse'' engineer this piece to create more, but usually they will be just as dumbfounded about how it works as everyone else even if they themselves have created it. Surpringly such technology will usually be surprisingly stable and not at all prone to [[Phlebotinum Breakdown]], unless the plot suddenly calls for it [[Going Critical]]. Note, however, that because of the poorly understood nature of such technology it ''can'' unexpectedly become dangerous.
(While there are real-world examples of inventors accidentally stumbling upon new things while researching something else, the fictional inventor will never need to bother with follow-up research: they will get the new tech from it ready-made.)
Sister trope to [[Freak Lab Accident]] which [[Superhero|gives people powers]] rather than creating and changing technological pieces. See also [[Instant AI, Just Add Water]].
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== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
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== [[Film]] ==
* ''[[Short Circuit (Film)|Short Circuit]]'': a robot is [[Lightning Can Do Anything|is struck by lightning]] which causes a "malfunction" that gives it sentience.
* Happens in the 1984 film ''[[Electric Dreams]]'': the hero, Miles, spills champagne on his PC while it is plugged into his company's megacomputer, causing his computer (of course!) [[Instant AI, Just Add Water|to come to life]].
* ''[[Honey I Shrunk the Kids (Film)|Honey I Shrunk the Kids]]'': a stray baseball landing on the shrinking machine is what actually makes it work. Though Wayne Szalinski is able to figure out why the baseball made the machine functional, and replicate the results.
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== [[Western Animation]] ==
* In ''[[Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs]]'', Flint hooks up his machine to the town's power station to give it enough electricity to create food from water. Instead, the extra power makes the machine take off like a rocket and start orbiting in the lower stratosphere, creating food that comes down in showers using moisture from the clouds. Later, being [[Phlebotinum Breakdown|overworked]] makes the machine start overmutating the food and it eventually [[Instant AI, Just Add Water|gains sentience]].
* Invoked in an episode of ''[[The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog]]'', where Robotnik explicitly says that the creation of his "Super-Genius Program" was a million-to-one shot - and after the program is stolen and he orders his computer to make it again, the computer has to remind him of exactly this fact (which he said himself not five minutes before!).
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