The thalidomide ordeal that started in the 1950s is a tragic case of what happens when key players in the scientific community dismiss or ignore widespread correlations among two or more coinciding events. In the mid-century, a German pharmaceutical company named Chemie Grunenthal discovered and developed a synthetic sedative called thalidomide that was used to treat sleeplessness, and reduce morning sickness and nausea commonly experienced by pregnant women. While most countries around the world embraced and sold the product for a short period of time, including Canada, the United States’ Food and Drug Administration at the time, which was headed by a Canadian-born medical doctor named Dr. Kelsey, refused to approve its use in the countr ...