BACKGROUND

Marie Curie was a famous scientist known for her work with radioactivity. She was born on November 7th, 1867, in Warsaw, Poland. As a young woman, Marie was very interested in science, but it was difficult for women to study in Poland at that time. Therefore, she moved to Paris, France, to continue her education at the University of Paris.

There, she met her husband, Pierre Curie, who was also a scientist. Together, they discovered two new elements: polonium and radium. 

Her discoveries helped make important advances in medicine, especially in the treatment of cancer. Marie died in 1934 due to exposure to radiation.

THEORY

1. Scientific Discoveries

Marie became fascinated by rays that were recently discovered by scientists Wilhelm Roentgen and Henri Becquerel. Roentgen discovered X-rays and Becquerel had found rays given off by an element called uranium. Marie began to do experiments. Marie and Pierre Curie in the lab Photo by Unknown One day Marie was examining a material called pitchblende. She expected there to be a few rays from the uranium in pitchblende, but instead Marie found a lot of rays. She soon realized that there must be a new, undiscovered element in pitchblende.

Marie and Pierre discovered two new elements: polonium and radium.

Marie and her husband spent many hours in the science lab investigating pitchblende and the new element. They eventually figured out that there were two new elements in pitchblende. They had discovered two new elements for the periodic table! Marie named one of the elements polonium after her homeland Poland. She named the other radium, because it gave off such strong rays. The Curies came up with the term "radioactivity" to describe elements that emitted strong rays.

2. New Element In Table Periodic