Marie Curie Day

Post by pitiburi » Tue, Oct 16, 2012, 12:09 PM UTC

b0rsuk wrote: post #29

mbq wrote: post #20

Maria Skłodowska-Curie, to be exact. She moved to France and married there, but never rejected her Polish origins. In fact she supported Polish independence, founded a scientific institute in Warsaw and named one of the elements she discovered after Poland.

While she was born Maria Salomea Skłodowska, she studied in Paris and Sorbonne. She was denied higher education in Poland because she was a woman . Later, University of Kraków also rejected her, because she was a woman . It's not nice, but I think it's OK to call her a French scientist. Poland clearly didn't want her. It is an old tradition that best polish scientists, athletes and inventors go abroad. They're not va…

Post by JoeAltmaier » Tue, Oct 16, 2012, 12:28 PM UTC

rmc wrote: post #31

beloch wrote: post #12

Marie Curie is undeniably one of the greatest female role-figures in science of the last century. I don't know why she isn't more revered, although perhaps are here are a few reasons why: (Note: I bring them up mostly in hopes of pointing out how silly they are) 1. Her work eventually killed her. There was no way for the Curies to know what effect long-term radiation exposure would have, but it's still not a huge ima…

4. Let's face it, Ada Lovelace was a bit of a looker, or at least she was painted that way. She even had a sexy sounding name. We have real, unromantic photographs of Curie on the other hand the reveal her to be rather plain by comparison, plus her name is now linked with a scary unit of radioactive decay! It's a case of the Belle vs the school-marm. We should fight this attitude. Women have a history of being judged…

Post by mbq » Tue, Oct 16, 2012, 12:35 PM UTC

bambax wrote: post #2

I too love Marie Curie and the 1927 Solvay Conference's picture (which sits in my living room for the edification of my kids!) She's a hero here in France but I don't know about her reputation in the English speaking world. She was a very amazing person. Born in Poland, she studied secretly for years in her native country, because higher education was not opened to females! Then she moved to Paris to join her sister…

Post by b0rsuk » Tue, Oct 16, 2012, 12:38 PM UTC

pitiburi wrote: post #32

b0rsuk wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While she was born Maria Salomea Skłodowska, she studied in Paris and Sorbonne. She was denied higher education in Poland because she was a woman . Later, University of Kraków also rejected her, because she was a woman . It's not nice, but I think it's OK to call her a French scientist. Poland clearly didn't want her. It is an old tradition that best polish scientists, athletes and inventors go abroad. They're not va…

So following that reasoning, a chinese scientist who made his/her PhD and research work in the USA should be called "an american researcher"? I think you can understand that that is not only not nice, but just wrong. If you think that not respecting her because she was a woman was a terrible thing (I agree), then we should not do the same, and as a sign of respect, at least, we should call her by her real name

Post by JoeAltmaier » Tue, Oct 16, 2012, 12:50 PM UTC

b0rsuk wrote: post #39

JoeAltmaier wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everybody is judged by their looks. Einstein is famously nerdy-looking - we celebrate that. I enjoy the photographs of Curie - words like formidable, determined spring to mind.

By the way, Einstein as a absent-minded scientist is a misconception and a product of FBI propaganda. He lived in the era of McCarthy. There were hotels with signs "Dogs and Jews not allowed". Einstein's file in FBI was over 800 pages, they were trying so hard to find an excuse to bust him. Einstein was active in politics and even believed it is his duty as a famous person to promote humanitarian ideas like racial eq…