Marie Curie: Short biographies

It has been extraordinary luck for me, having been able to enjoy for 20 years the serene and sublime friendship of Mrs. Curie. I have been increasingly admiring the greatness of her humanity, her strength, the purity of her will, the austerity she has shown towards herself, her objectivity, and her flexible judgment, qualities that are very rarely found in one person. The most outstanding scientific achievement of her career, the demonstration of the existence of radioactive elements and their subsequent isolation, is due not only to pure intuition but also to immense tenacity and dedication to the studies that were conducted in means of hardships hardly imaginable. Of course, the history of the experimental sciences has offered other examples. If only a tiny part of the strength of character and dedication of Mrs. Curie were present in the intellectuals. Humanity would face a brighter future. Albert Einstein