Who Was Marie Curie?
Marie Curie, born Maria Salomea Skłodowska in 1867 in Warsaw, Poland, was a pioneering physicist and chemist. She moved to Paris in 1891 to study at the Sorbonne, where she met her husband, Pierre Curie. Despite facing gender barriers in academia, she became the first woman to earn a Ph.D. from the Sorbonne and the first female professor at the University of Paris.
Key Scientific Achievements
Curie's major achievements centered on radioactivity, a term she coined. With Pierre, she discovered the radioactive elements polonium (named after Poland) and radium in 1898. She conducted extensive research on uranium rays, laying the foundation for nuclear physics. Her work earned her the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903, shared with Pierre and Henri Becquerel, and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1911 for isolating radium.
Practical Example: Isolation of Radium
A notable example of Curie's meticulous work was the isolation of radium from pitchblende ore. Over four years, she and Pierre processed tons of ore in a makeshift shed, using chemical techniques to extract the pure element. This breakthrough not only confirmed radium's properties but also enabled its use in medical treatments, such as for cancer therapy.
Importance and Lasting Impact
Curie's discoveries revolutionized medicine and physics, leading to advancements in X-ray technology and radiation therapy. During World War I, she developed mobile X-ray units, known as 'Little Curies,' to treat wounded soldiers. She was the first person to win two Nobel Prizes in different sciences and the first woman honored by the French Academy of Sciences, inspiring generations of scientists, particularly women, despite her death in 1934 from radiation-related illness.