Modern Exploration of the Spatiotemporal Dimension - A 100-Year Illustrated Chronicle of Nobel Prize Winners - Revealing the Concise/Orderly/Abstract Laws of the Universe (Full-Color Visual Edition)

Author: Li Li
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-10-01
Features: Marie Curie
Marie Curie (France, 1867—1934) was originally Polish, born on November 7, 1867, in Warsaw to a teacher family. Both of her parents were descendants of Catholic landowners and intellectuals, and she was the fourth daughter in the family. When she was four years old, her mother passed away. At that time, Germany had occupied Poland, which limited her father's job opportunities and gradually made their family's financial situation dire. As a result, her father had to take in boarders at home, while she helped with household chores and worked as a family teacher for six years. Due to Germany's invasion of Poland, she grew to resent invaders deeply in her later life. Out of nostalgia for her homeland, the chemical element "polonium" she discovered in her later research was named in honor of her country. It was also the income from her six years of teaching that enabled her sister Bronia to study in Paris and later earn a medical doctorate. In 1891, Marie also went to Paris, France, to study. Her life was simple and poor, but through diligent study and excellent grades, she was able to continue her education with a scholarship. In 1892, Marie obtained a master's degree in physics and met Pierre Curie in Paris. Their shared ideal of dedicating themselves to science brought them together, and they married in 1895.
Pierre Curie
Pierre Curie (France, 1859—1906) was born in Paris. His grandfather and father, Eugene Curie, were both general practitioners with intermediate medical skills. Pierre came from a middle-class family, and his parents lived modestly, with a close-knit family and shared interests in knowledge. When Pierre was young, his parents noticed his solitary, independent, and imaginative personality and realized he was not suited for ordinary schooling, so they taught him to read at home. During his childhood, Pierre was somewhat slow in his reactions and could only focus on one subject at a time. At home, he showed an extreme love for nature. By the time he was 14 and a family teacher was hired for him, his mathematical and physical talents became evident. At 16, Pierre passed the university entrance exams. Soon after, he earned a master's degree from the University of Paris and became a faculty member there. In 1880, he and his older brother Jacques Curie discovered the piezoelectric effect, a significant finding. At the time, Pierre was only 21. Later, he continued his research on crystals and achieved many results. In 1900, Pierre was promoted to professor at the Faculty of Sciences in the University of Paris and then turned to studying magnetism, discovering the property of ferromagnetic materials that changes with temperature. By then, he had become a renowned experimental physicist in France. In 1903, Pierre Curie received the Davy Medal from the Royal Society of London and the Nobel Prize in Physics; in 1904, he also received the Maneuci Gold Medal from the Italian Science Association. His major works include Pierre Curie's Works and Magnetism of Matter at Different Temperatures.
The Research Contributions of the Curies
The Curies conducted in-depth research on radioactive elements. They searched tons of uranium ore for unknown elements. In July 1898, they discovered the radioactive element "polonium"; in December of the same year, they discovered the radioactive element "radium." Afterward, they determined the radioactivity and atomic weight of these elements. Due to the properties of radium,