Maria Salomea Skłodowska (future Marie Curie) was born on November 7, 1867, in Warsaw. His father, Wladyslaw (1832-1902), was a professor of mathematics and physics, and his mother, Bronislawa (1836-1878), was a teacher, a family lacking financial resources. Physicist Marie Curie was the pioneer of radioactivity science – the study of penetrating rays emitted by rare materials. His work has revolutionized physics and chemistry, forming the basis for further research into nuclear physics. He discovered two elements unknown until then, and he also laid the foundations for an important research institute. In 1903, she shared the Nobel Prize for Physics with her husband, Pierre, with whom she worked, and with French scientist Henri Becquerel. In 1911, Marie was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry. He died in France in 1934, after a long suffering, because of a radiation-related illness. In a survey conducted among the readers of the British BBC History Magazine, Marie Curie was voted the woman with the most significant impact on the history of the world. „She (Curie) was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize in Physics, the first female professor at the University of Paris and the first person to notice the use of the word person, not a woman, who won the second Nobel Prize, said Patricia Fara, president of the British Society for the History of Science, who nominated Marie Curie.
Key words: radioactivity, penetrating rays, Nobel prize for physics and chemistry, the most significant impact on world history
Cuvinte cheie: radioactivitatea, raze penetrante, premiul Nobel pentru fizică și chimie, cel mai semnificativ impact asupra istoriei lumii