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Born
Marie Curie was born on November seventh 1867 to her parents Wladyslaw and Bronislawa Sklodowska. Her parents named her Manya however, she eventually changed her name to Marie. She was the youngest of five children, three sisters and one brother. She grew up in Warshaw, Poland while her family suffered through great poverty and hardship. (Asimov, 155) -
15th Amendment
On February 3rd 1870 the 15th amendment of the US Constitution was passed. It gave African American men the right to vote. They now had a say in who they wanted to hold authoritative positions in their society. This was important because it was a step in the right directions towards equal rights in the United States. (Byers 674) -
End of Ashanti War
In Africa a war called the Ashanti War was taking place. The Ashanti were the people of the Akon empire. After Great Britain tried to interfere with their trade the Ashanti became angry because they did not what Great Britain invading their territory. Thus broke out a war. After many battle the Ashanti finally rid their territory of Great Britain in 1874. (Byers 671) -
Treasure Island Published
On May 23rd 1883 the novel Treasure Island was published. It was written by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. The book is follows the story of a young boy as he searches for the hidden treasure he’s found on an old map. Treasure Island became one of the most widely read books of it’s time. (Byers 676) -
Symphony No. 5 Composed
In May of 1888 Tchaikovsky composed his Symphony No. 5. It was first performed in St. Petersburg. Symphony No. 5 is categorized as a cyclical symphony because it has a repeating theme or chorus in it. The symphony is forty-five minutes long however segments of it are popularly used in theater or dance today. (Byers 677) -
College
In September of 1891 Marie Curie attended the University of Paris or the Sorbonne. This was a big deal due to the fact that girls at this time period did not attend college and most of the time were not allowed to. At the University of Paris Marie Curie worked hard in getting her degree in math and physics. (Rubin, 22) -
Marries Pierre Curie
On July 26th, 1895 Marie Sklodovska married Pierre Curie. They met while Pierre was a professor at the School of Physics. The both attended the University of Paris and were very interested in the subjects of math and science. Both of their careers were greatly aided by the other throughout their lifetime. Pierre and Marie both worked with radioactivity and were both awarded the Nobel Prize in 1903. (Marks 201) -
Thirty Day's War
In February of 1897 the Thirty Day’s war began. There was dispute over the fact that Crete was a Greek island however it was still under Ottoman rule. The people of Crete were angered by this and finally began to rebel on January 21st 1897. The war offically began in February when the Ottoman empire began to fight back. In the end Greece gained control of the island of Crete after thirty days of fighting the Turks. (Byers 679) -
Discovers Polonium
On July 18th 1898 Marie Curie and her husband Pierre announced their discovery of something they said to be 400 times more radioactive than uranium and thorium. They had been working hard with a mineral called pitchblende trying to extract this new substance they had found from it. They decided to name this element polonium which would be the first element that Marie Curie was to discover. (Stevens, 204) -
Discovers Radium
On December 26th 1898 Marie Curie and her husband make another announcement. After continuing their studies of the pitchblende beyond polonium they found another radioactive element. This one containing high amounts of barium. They call their second element radium after the latin word for ray. (Marks, 204) -
First Woman to Win Nobel Prize
On December 10th of 1903 Marie and Pierre Curie receive the nobel prize in physics for their joint discovery of polonium and radium. This made Marie Curie the first women ever to receive a nobel prize. Antoine Henri Becquerel was also awarded the prize along with Marie and Pierre Curie for their works with radioactivity. (“Nobel Prize in Physics…”) -
Head of Genral Physcis
Marie Curie was appointed head of general physics in the Faculty of Sciences on May 13th 1906. This position was at the Sorbonne or University of Paris which Marie Curie had attended. Pierre Curie had held this position but after he passed away it was given to Marie Curie. This was a very big deal because she was the first woman professor at the university. (“Marie Curie…”) -
Nobel Prize 1911
On December 10th of 1911 Marie Curie was awarded the nobel prize again, this time in chemistry. She shared the prize with no one unlike her Nobel Prize win in 1903. She was given the prize for her continuation of researching her two new elements, polonium and radium. This makes her the only woman ever to have won two Nobel Prizes. Out of five hundred three Nobel Prizes to have been awarded since 2015, forty-nine have been women and Marie Curie holds two of them. (“Nobel Prize Awarded…”) -
X-Rays Machines
In October of 1914 Marie Curie began building radiological vehicles. During World War 1 Marie would take her vehicles to the battlegrounds and help get X-Ray images of injured soldiers. She and her daughter Irene studied X-Rays and taught themselves how to use their new machines to take images. Her work in World War 1 helped save many lives and set the first example of the X-Ray machines that we still use today. (Radiology at The Front) -
The Great Depression
In 1929 an era called “The Great Depression” began in America. On October 29th the stock market hit an ultimate low. Companies were forced to close and banks crashed. Many people all over America were left jobless and their families were forced into poverty. People faced great hardship and struggled to keep their homes and jobs if they had not been lost yet. It ended in the 1940s when the stock market finally began to return to normal. -
Death
After setting great examples for women scientists everywhere and developing the world of radioactivity Marie Curie died on July 4th, 1934. At the time she was living in Savoy, France. It is believed that she died of leukemia which can be caused by extreme exposure to radioactive ways. Marie Curie was one of the first women to become prominent in the world of science. (“Marie Curie…”)
