Marie Skłodowska-Curie: A Legacy of Innovation and Empowerment for Women in Science

I previously wrote a blog post about Ada Lovelace, often celebrated as “the world’s first computer programmer.” While I genuinely enjoyed crafting that piece, I wished for the opportunity to write about a scientist who is much closer to my heart: Maria Skłodowska-Curie. She has always been and remains a personal role model.

Maria Skłodowska-Curie (commonly known as Marie Curie) revolutionized our understanding of the atomic world. Her work had profound, long-lasting effects on medicine, technology and the course of human history. 

Growing up and going to school in Poland, I learned about Curie early on in an elementary school science course. I also remember seeing her pictures in every physics and chemistry classroom. 

An extraordinary scientist, wife and mother, Curie paved a path into science for generations of women who came after her. Over time, I’ve come to recognize many parallels between our lives. 

Like her, I was born in Poland during a period of Russian control. Although Communism officially ended in 1989, its effects lingered for years afterward. From a young age, I developed a love for mathematics, which led me to pursue it through college. I initially trained to become a math and computer science teacher. During my studies, I realized how great my passion for learning and discovery really is. So after earning my mathematics degree, I shifted my focus toward pursuing a Ph.D. in physics. 

Growing up in a country where the first scientist to win a Nobel Prize was a woman may have made it a little easier to pursue science. Throughout my education, I never heard anyone say, “Girls can’t do math” or “Girls can’t do science.” 

Knowing how much Maria Skłodowska-Curie achieved became a driving force in my education and career. It instilled a powerful “I can do it” attitude in me that I’ve carried with me throughout my varied career. I pivoted from theoretical quantum information in graduate school to science education and, later, to AI for quantum technologies. 

The latter turned out to be a great career switch and led me to NIST. Today, my research integrates AI and computer vision with mathematics and physics to advance quantum technologies. A quantum computer takes advantage of physics’ counterintuitive processes. When fully developed, quantum computers may be able to do complex tasks that current computers struggle to do, such as designing drugs or simulating complex molecules. 

Like Maria, I am married to a scientist who shares my passion for research and discovery and who has always encouraged and supported me in pursuing my career.  As theorists, we never had a chance to share a lab space like the Curies did, but we do have a whiteboard in our house where we used to discuss our work. We even co-authored a paper together! 

Like Maria and Pierre, we are scientists and working parents of two amazing, curious kids. Despite our busy schedules, we work hard to make sure we always have time to teach them about the world around us — from reading together to exploring outdoors to performing mini-experiments in our house and in our daughter’s school. We try to show them how fun learning and science are and ignite their curiosity. I hope that what we do together will inspire them to do great things in the future. 

Early Life and Education: Growing Up in Russian-Occupied Poland

Maria Skłodowska was born on Nov. 7, 1867, the fifth and youngest daughter of Bronisława and Władysław Skłodowscy. Russian occupation — and the resulting suppression of Polish culture and language — had a profound impact on her early life. 

Skłodowska’s father was a math and physics teacher, as well as a principal. Due to his pro-Polish sentiments and outspoken views against Russian oppression, Russian authorities demoted and forced him into a series of progressively lower academic posts. 

Even though the family’s financial situation deteriorated, her father was deeply dedicated to education and his children’s intellectual pursuits. On Saturday evenings, he read literary classics to them. He brought home scientific equipment when Russian authorities eliminated laboratory instruction from the Polish curriculum. This greatly influenced Maria’s formative years.

Education was a cornerstone in her family. Even though opportunities for women in occupied Poland were severely limited at the time, Maria excelled in school and hoped to get an advanced degree. Unable to enroll at the University of Warsaw, Maria and her sister attended an illegal night school. Its students’ lofty goal went beyond mere self-improvement. They hoped their grassroots educational movement would raise the likelihood of eventual Polish liberation. 

In 1891, at the age of 24, she moved to Paris to study at the Sorbonne, one of the few places where women could pursue a degree in science.

Life in Paris: Meeting Pierre Curie and Breakthroughs in Radioactivity

In Paris, Skłodowska encountered both opportunity and hardship. While studying physics and mathematics at the Sorbonne, she lived in near poverty, often sustaining herself on bread and tea. 

Nevertheless, she graduated at the top of her class with a master’s degree in physics in 1893. A year later, Skłodowska obtained a second degree in mathematics. In 1894, she met Pierre Curie, a professor who would become her husband and closest scientific collaborator. 

“Soon he caught the habit of speaking to me of his dream of an existence consecrated entirely to scientific research, and he asked me to share that life. It was not, however, easy for me to make such a decision, for it meant separation from my country and my family, and the renouncement of certain social projects that were dear to me,” she wrote in a book about her husband’s life. 

In 1895, she married Pierre. Instead of a bridal gown, Maria chose to wear a dark blue dress that she found “practical” and could later wear to her laboratory, as described in her daughter Eve Curie Labouisse’s book Madame Curie: A Biography. 

After marriage, she became known as Marie Skłodowska-Curie; Marie is the French spelling of her name. Two years later, in 1897, their first daughter, Irene, was born. 

In 1896, inspired by Henri Becquerel’s discovery of spontaneous radiation from uranium, Marie began investigating the mysterious emissions from certain elements, calling it “radioactivity.” 

She hypothesized that the radiation was not a result of chemical reactions but a property intrinsic to the atoms of certain materials. This led to the discovery of two new elements in 1898: polonium, which Marie named after her native Poland, and radium. 

These discoveries laid the groundwork for a new understanding of atomic structure, establishing the field of atomic physics. 

In 1903, the Curies shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with Becquerel for their joint research on radioactivity. Marie became the first woman ever to win a Nobel Prize, breaking barriers in a male-dominated field. Earlier that year, she received her doctorate degree in physics from the University of Paris for her work investigating radioactive bodies — the first woman in history to receive a Ph.D. in science in France. 

Winning the Nobel Prize changed the Curies’ lives. The prize money allowed them to hire a paid lab assistant. In recognition of his scientific achievement, Pierre was appointed to a professorship at the University of Paris. Marie, for the first time in her career, received an official title — chief of laboratory — and a university salary. In 1904, their second daughter, Eve, was born. Not long after giving birth, Marie returned to the lab and her research. In the meantime, Pierre’s health began to deteriorate. 

On a rainy midafternoon in April 1906, Pierre was run down by a heavy carriage, dying instantly. Despite Pierre’s tragic death, Marie continued her research with even greater resolve. 

She succeeded him as a professor at the University of Paris, becoming the first woman to hold that position. In 1911, she was awarded a second Nobel Prize, this time in chemistry (and solo), for her discovery of radium and polonium. Marie was the first and, to date, the only person to ever win two Nobel Prizes in different scientific fields.

Death and Legacy

Curie’s work went beyond pure scientific research. She was also instrumental in applying her discoveries for medical purposes. 

During World War I, she recognized the potential of X-rays in treating wounded soldiers. She championed the use of mobile radiography units — known as “Little Curies” — that could be transported to battlefields to help doctors locate bullets and shrapnel in soldiers’ bodies. 

She personally oversaw the training of radiologists and was actively involved in the deployment of these units, directly saving countless lives during the war. After the war, she continued her research into the medical applications of radioactivity, establishing the Radium Institute in Paris in 1914. It became a leading center for scientific research.

Her achievements came at great personal cost. The dangers of working with radioactive materials were not well understood at the time. Curie often handled highly radioactive substances without proper protection. The long-term exposure eventually took a toll on her health. She developed aplastic anemia, a condition that would lead to her death in 1934.

Even after her death, Curie’s influence on science continued through her family. Her daughter, Irène Joliot-Curie, followed in her footsteps, winning the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1935 alongside her husband, Frédéric Joliot-Curie, for their work on artificial radioactivity. This remarkable mother-daughter achievement remains unique in Nobel history.

Marie Curie’s life was defined by relentless resolve, intellectual brilliance and a commitment to advancing science. Her discoveries not only transformed our understanding of atomic physics and radioactivity but also paved the way for advancements in medicine, particularly in cancer treatment. 

Today, she remains an enduring symbol of scientific achievement, resilience and the pursuit of knowledge against all odds. Her life, her passion for science and her ability to balance motherhood and a scientific career have always inspired me.