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Polish physicist Marie Curie made history in 1903 as the first
woman to win a Nobel Prize, in physics, and then again in 1911 as the only
woman to ever (thus far) win a second Nobel, in chemistry. She earned these
honors for her groundbreaking work in discovering two new elements: radium
and polonium. Though she received much acclaim for her research, Curie also
suffered many hardships in her life, including the death of her beloved
husband and research partner, Pierre Curie, as well as long-term physical ailments
from her work with radioactive materials. Through it all, Curie remained
hopeful and optimistic. In her 1937 biography, she wrote, “Life is not easy
for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all
confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something,
and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.”
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