GENIUS #8: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
A study on Marie Skłodowska-Curie, the first person to win the Nobel Prize twice
Welcome to this edition of GENIUS: a study on the top intellectuals and creatives from modern history. In today’s newsletter, we’re profiling Marie Curie, a renown chemist and physicist who won the Nobel Prize twice for her work in radiology.
Marie Skłodowska-Curie
1867 - 1934
Background:
Marie Skłodowska Curie is quite possibly the most heralded female scientist in the last century. She is the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and is also, the only woman to win the award in two different fields: physics and chemistry.
Growing up, she followed the lectures of Paul Appel, Gabriel Lippmann, and Edmond Bouty. Later she studied with more well-known physicists like Jean Perrin, Charles Maurain, and Aimé Cotton. In 1893, while at the Sorbonne, university renown for mathematical and science excellence since 1257, she placed first in physical sciences and second in mathematical sciences.
As she deepened her experience in the field of physics, Marie continued to experiment in radiology. Eventually, she discovered radioactivity and the elements radium and polonium. Her work developing use cases for X-rays led to the installation of hundreds of mobile radiology vehicles that later served millions of French soldiers during World War I.
Historical Accomplishments:
Discovered the chemical elements polonium, which she named after her native country, Poland, and radium in the summer of 1898.
Discovered the existence of radiological activity, which disproved the assumption that atoms were indivisible. This finding later helped scientists in the field of nuclear physics. Using an enhanced version of an electrometer, a sensitive device for measuring an electric charge, she found that uranium rays caused the air around a sample to conduct electricity. She hypothesized that radiation came from the atom itself and not from the outcome between the interactions of molecules.
For the finding of radiological activity, she shared the Nobel Prize for Physics with Henri Becquerel, who also helped uncover the theory of radioactivity. She would never have received this distinction if not for Swedish mathematician Magnus Goesta Mittag-Leffler, who demanded her inclusion on the nomination. In 1903, she became the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize.
Became the first woman to teach in the Sorbonne as a professor of radiology in 1906. During her tenure, she published her fundamental treatise on radioactivity.
Defined an international standard for radioactive emissions that was eventually named after her: the curie.
Awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for the isolation of pure radium in 1911. At this point, she became the first woman to win the award in two different fields.
Became the director of the Red Cross Radiology Service and set up France’s first military radiology center. This center was instrumental in servicing millions of French soldiers during World War I as it developed the technology to build and deploy hundreds of radiological units at field hospitals. While in the same position, she produced hollow needles containing “radium emanation” to be used for sterilizing infected tissue.
Became a member of the International Commission on Intellectual Cooperation by the Council of the League of Nations.
Enshrined in the Panthéon in Paris, becoming the first woman to receive this honor.
What makes her a GENIUS:
Curie’s immeasurable contributions to humanity, especially within the field of nuclear medicine, were all derived for her single-minded commitment to science. This is best explained by Cornell University professor L. Pearce Williams stating:
The result of the Curies' work was epoch-making. Radium's radioactivity was so great that it could not be ignored. It seemed to contradict the principle of the conservation of energy and therefore forced a reconsideration of the foundations of physics. On the experimental level, the discovery of radium provided men like Ernest Rutherford with sources of radioactivity with which they could probe the structure of the atom. As a result of Rutherford's experiments with alpha radiation, the nuclear atom was first postulated. In medicine, the radioactivity of radium appeared to offer a means by which cancer could be successfully attacked.
Not only did Curie excel as a scientist, but she also triumphed within historically male-dominated institutions. Her influence on subsequent generations of nuclear physicists and chemists is a fraction of what she meant to ambitious women, who now had a powerful role model to look up to. Curie set a precedent for a woman to win the Nobel Peace prize, to serve as an educator at the best universities in the world, and to lead global scientific initiatives. To not only discover scientific breakthroughs, but also to break down gender barriers, is why Marie Curie is truly a genius that should be remembered throughout history.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Curie
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1903/marie-curie/biographical/
https://www.biography.com/scientist/marie-curie
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marie-Curie