Marie Curie

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Marie Curie (1867-1934) worked closely with her scientist husband, Pierre Curie (1859-1906), and together they discovered two new elements: polonium and radium. Unfortunately, their work together was cut short when Pierre died suddenly in 1906. (Pierre had been trampled by a horse and carriage while trying to cross a street.) After Pierre’s death, Marie Curie continued to research radioactivity (a term she coined), and her work eventually earned her a second Nobel Prize. Marie Curie was the first person to be awarded two Nobel Prizes. Marie Curie’s work led to the use of X-rays in medicine and laid the foundation for the new discipline of atomic physics.