Marie Curie - A True Inspiration
I wrote an idea list about the 10 Philosophers/Mathematicians/Physicists That Have Helped Me See The World Differently, and one of them was Marie Curie.
While arranging my books, I found a small booklet I brought from The Nobel Museum in Stockholm. The title was Legacy, and there were many mentions of Marie Curie.
"Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood." - Marie Curie
1. She holds many “firsts”
Marie Curie was the first woman to receive the Nobel prize, the first person to receive it twice, and the first to receive it in more than one field.
She was the first woman to become a professor at the University of Paris.
2. She chose impact over fame
Marie and her husband, Pierre, did not patent radium so other scientists could build off their work and continue researching.
Einstein quoted, “Marie Curie is, of all celebrated beings, the only one whom fame has not corrupted.”
The above makes me wonder if our patent system’s restrictions are still relevant in today’s fast-changing, uncertain world—an idea list topic for another day.
3. She left a legacy
Her daughter Irène also became a scientist and went on to win her own Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1935.
“The hero of mine is Madame Curie, the scientist. Her work, and how she lived as a scientist - and even as a mother - that just captured my imagination.” - Elizabeth H. Blackburn, The Nobel prize is Physiology/Medicine 2009
4. She had Ikegai
Curie believed scientific research was a public good. She loved her work, which gave her both joy and raison d’etre.
“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” - Marie Curie
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