Breaking the Atom: Marie Curie

Marie Curie remains the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different scientific categories: Physics and Chemistry. However, she was nearly excluded from her first award because women were then considered their husband’s property; consequently, the committee’s initial letter was addressed only to Pierre Curie. Pierre insisted she be included, recognizing the discovery was largely hers. Even after being named, she could not accept the prize in person because women were barred from Nobel Hall.

Her breakthroughs fundamentally changed our understanding of matter. While atoms were previously thought to be indestructible, her experiments proved radioactivity is an intrinsic property, unaffected by an element's state or temperature. She concluded that energy must emanate from within the atom itself, meaning atoms are built of smaller particles and are therefore destructible—a conclusion that dismantled the prevalent scientific theories of her time.