Marie Sklodowska Curie (nov 7, 1867 – jul 4, 1934)

Description:

Marie Sklodowska Curie (November 7, 1867 - July 4, 1934) , Chemist and Physicist

Life:
She grew up in Russia where she started her education and followed her older sister to Paris, where she completed her higher degrees and advanced scientific work. She married Pierre Curie in 1895, and together with physicist Henry Bequelel, she was awarded her first Nobel Prize in physics for “radioactivity”. In 1906, Pierre died in a street accident. Marie won her second Nobel prize in chemistry for her discovery of polonium and radium.

Contributions to Science:
She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize, the first and only woman to win the Nobel prize twice, and the only person to win two Nobel prizes in 2twoscientific fields. With the foundation for radium laid down by Marie, treatments for neoplasm were formulated using radioactive isotopes. Two centers of medical research were started by Marie, Curie Institute in Paris and Curie Institute of Warsaw. She also developed mobile radiographic units for use in field hospitals.

Fun Facts: The research that Marie completed to win her first Nobel prize was completed in a shed behind the building behind where Pierre worked in order to find enough space.

Death: Marie died at 66 in 1934 of aplastic anemia, believed to be caused by the lifelong exposure to radiation from research but also from the time that she worked as a radiologist in field hospitals during World War I. There were no safety measures in place to protect people from radiation at this time.

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