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Pierre Curie

Pierre Curie (1859 - 1906) You don't need to be a scientist to know who Maria Curie-Sklodowska was. You can also read about her on our website. As the only one woman in the world, she gained the Nobel Prize in two different fields of knowledge. She shared one of them with her no less famous husband, Pierre Curie. Her devotion to science made a huge impression on him.

Pierre Curie was born on 15 May 1859 in Paris. He's the son of Sophie-Claire and Eugene Curie, who was a doctor and the person responsible for his education.

The young Pierre showed a strong aptitude for mathematics and geometry and by the age of 18, he had completed the equivalent of a higher degree. Together with his brother, Jacques, he studied physics at Sorbonne. His researches were related with mainly piezoelectricity, magnetism, crystallography and radioactivity.

When he was 21 and worked with researching crystals, he discovered piezoelectricity (the ability to produce the electrical potential by crystals through compression and stretching). Later he became a lecturer at the University of Paris.
At the age of 36 he married with Maria, and two years later they discovered the elements radium and polonum.
They devoted their lives to understand the rules governing the world a little better. They didn't care about the fame, all they wanted was to help people and make life easier for everybody.

Pierre Curie made an experiment with radium on his own body. This experiment was later used to fight oncological diseases.
He received the Nobel Prize in physics in 1903 for his achievements together with his wife and Henri Becquerel. Two years later he got the title of professor and became a member of the French Academy of Sciences.

The joy didn't last long. He died in tragic circumstances on 19 of April 1906,  hit by a horse drawn carriage in Paris. He bereaved two daughters, Eve Curie and Irène Joliot-Curie, who also, together with her husband  Frédérik Joliot-Curie, got a Nobel Prize for continuing the researches of her parents in radioactivity.
In April 1995 Pierre and Marie were enshrined in the crypt of the Panthéon in Paris.

Physics

Berühmte Chemiker

Pierre Curie (1859 - 1906) You don't need to be a scientist to know who Maria Curie-Sklodowska was. You can also read about her on our website. As the only one woman in the world, she gained the Nobel Prize in two different fields of knowledge. She shared one of them with her no less famous husband, Pierre Curie. Her devotion to science made a huge impression on him.

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Jospeh John Thomson ( 1856 - 1940 ) A person who did many researches on cathode rays that, finally, led to the discovery of the electrons. Moreover, he was interested in the atomic structure and won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1906.

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André-Marie Ampère (1775 – 1836)

The flow of electric charge is named electric current. Maybe you heard something about electric current and in addition to this about the measure ampere (A) in your every day life, too. But do you know or asked yourself after what this measure is named? If not, here is the answer: after the founder of electrodynamics- after André-Marie Ampère.

 

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Johannes Gutenberg ( c. 1395 - 1468 ) How many newspapers, magazines and posters have you seen or read today? Many. But have you ever thought about the inventor who changed our life with the printing press? It was Johannes Gutenberg in 1440 with his printing press and movable blocks of letters and graphics that made materials available for the whole population.

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Marie Curie (1867-1934)

discovered the beta activity which was used in the Second World War to help injured soldiers. Because of this and some other cognition she won the Nobel price twice, in chemistry and physics; but that is only an extract of the achievements Marie Curie reached in her life.

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Isaac Newton ( 1643 – 1727 )

was an English Physicist and Mathematician. He is one of the most important characters of the 17th century because he developed principles of modern physics, as the law of motion. He is the person who has a great influence for our understanding of optics and motion today.

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Albert Einstein (1879-1955) Einstein's career began as a teacher for mathematics and physics while he was expanding the idea of Max Planck's quantum theory by adding the hypothesis of the light quantum. Einstein's discoveries were revolutionary even for today's physics: it develops a new understanding of the ration between space and time, and also of the force of gravity. Of course, he won a Nobel prize for his discoveries.

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Max Planck (1858-1947)

He had a big influence on the foundation of the basics in physics. A lot of his discoveries are named by his surname, like for example: the "Plancksche medal", the "Plancksche action quantum" or the "Plancksche radiation law".  In 1918 Planck lent with the Nobel prize because he has established the quantum theory which succeeded 20 years later the break through with the help of Einstein and Niels Bohr.

 

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Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger (1887- 1961)

After studying mathematics and physics in Vienna, Schrödinger became a professor for theoretical physics like Einstein and Max von Laue before him. Later he enunciates the "Schrödinger- equation" which builds the foundation of the quantum mechanics. In addition, he embosses the development of the molecular biology. With a lot of great chances to teach in different universities, Schrödinger also got awarded with a Nobel Prize in physics.

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