Marie Curie: the power of sharing radical ideas with the world

Marie Curie profoundly impacted the world.

Born in 1867 in Warsaw, Poland, she was a child prodigy in literature and mathematics. She worked as a governess until age 24 to save money for school and became the first woman in France to earn her PhD.

She studied uranium, which was not well understood at the time. She discovered two new elements, radium and polonium, created cancer treatments and advanced x-ray technology, won a Nobel Prize in 1903, and won a second Nobel Prize in 1911.

As an extraordinary scientist, Marie Curie relied on three key strategies to understand the world, make decisions, collaborate with others, and explore new ideas.

• She embraced the unknown. Curie challenged widely-held beliefs and later proved her position.
• Making radical bets on herself. When Pierre Curie, her husband and lab partner, unexpectedly died, she did not step down from the lab as colleagues expected but stayed at the university, Sorbonne, and took over the lab herself.
• Sharing her ideas. Marie Curie would work with anyone interested in radiation, including people in healthcare.