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Definition: curie from Philip's Encyclopedia

(symbol Ci) Unit formerly used to measure the activity of a radioactive substance. Named after Marie Curie, it is defined as that quantity of a radioactive isotope that decays at the rate of 3.7 x 1010 disintegrations per second. The curie has been replaced by an SI unit, the becquerel (symbol Bq).

Curie

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(kürē'), family of French scientists. Pierre Curie , 1859–1906, scientist, and his wife, Marie Sklodowska Curie , 1867–1934, chemist and physicist, b. Warsaw, are known for their work on radioactivity and on radium. The Curies' daughter Irène (see under Joliot-Curie , family) was also a scientist. Pierre Curie's early work dealt with crystallography and with the effects of temperature on magnetism; he discovered (1883) and, with his brother Jacques Curie, investigated piezoelectricity (a form of electric polarity) in crystals. Marie Sklodowska's interest in science was stimulated by her father, a professor of physics in Warsaw. In 1891 she went to Paris to continue her studies at the Sorbonne. In 1895 she married Pierre Curie and engaged in independent research in his laboratory at the municipal school of physics and chemistry where Pierre was director of laboratories (from 1882) and professor (from 1895). Following A. H. Becquerel 's discovery of radioactivity, Mme Curie began to…
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Full text Article Curie

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(kürē'), family of French scientists. Pierre Curie , 1859–1906, scientist, and his wife, Marie Sklodowska Curie , 1867–1934, chemist and physicist, b. Warsaw, are known for their work on radioactivity and on radium. The Curies' daughter Irène (see under Joliot-Curie , family) was also a scientist. …
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Full text Article curie

From Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary
a unit quantity of any radioactive nuclide in which 3.7 × 10 10 disintegrations occur per second a unit of radioactivity equal to 3.7 × 10 10 disintegrations per second Cu*rie \k -rē\ Pierre (1859–1906) and Marie Słodowska (1867–1934), French chemists and physicists. The Curies were two of the most…
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Full text Article Curie, Marie

From A to Z of Women: Women in Science and Math
Also known as: Madame Curie; Marya Salomee Skłodowska Curie (b. 1867–d. 1934) Polish-born French physicist and chemist When people are asked to name a woman scientist, the one person sure to be mentioned is Marie Curie. With her husband, Pierre, Curie discovered two chemical elements and proved that…
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Full text Article Curie, Marie

From Chambers Biographical Dictionary
originally Maria née Skłodowska 1867-1934 Polish-born French physicist and Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie was born in Warsaw and brought up in poor surroundings after her father, who had studied mathematics at the University of St Petersburg, was denied work for political reasons. After brilliant…
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Full text Article Curie, Pierre

From Chambers Biographical Dictionary
1859-1906 French physicist and Nobel Prize winner Born in Paris and educated at the Sorbonne, he was laboratory chief at the School of Industrial Physics and Chemistry until 1904, when he was appointed to a new chair in physics at the Sorbonne. With his brother Jacques, he discovered…
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Full text Article Curie, Marie

From Encyclopedia of Women's Health
Marie Curie lived from 1867 to 1934 and made enormous contributions to science. She won two Nobel Prizes (in 1903 for physics and in 1911 for chemistry) and had a daughter, Irene, who also won this high honor of science in 1935. Born in Warsaw during the time that Poland was under Russian rule, …
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Full text Article Curie, Marie

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
(born Nov. 7, 1867, Warsaw, Pol., Russian Empire—died July 4, 1934, near Sallanches, France) Polish-born French physical chemist. She studied at the Sorbonne (from 1891). Seeking the presence of radioactivity —recently discovered by Henri Becquerel in uranium—in other matter, she found it in…
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Marie Curie in her laboratory
(born Nov. 7, 1867, Warsaw, Congress Kingdom of Poland, Russian Empire—died July 4, 1934, near Sallanches, France) Polish-born French physicist Marie Curie is known for her work on radioactivity and for winning two Nobel Prizes. With Henri Becquerel and her husband, Pierre Curie, she was awarded the…
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Full text Article Curie, Marie

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Polish scientist who, with husband Pierre Curie , discovered in 1898 two new radioactive elements in pitchblende ores: polonium and radium. They isolated the pure elements in 1902. Both scientists refused to take out a patent on their discovery and were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in…
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Full text Article MARIE CURIE

From Great Lives: A Century in Obituaries
Mme Curie, whose death we announce with regret on another page, had a worldwide reputation as the most distinguished woman investigator of our times. Her claim to fame rests primarily on her researches in connection with the radioactive bodies and particularly for her discovery and separation of the…
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