Picking up the work of the French physicist Henri Becquerel, Pierre and Marie Curie give the name "radioactivity" to the property possessed by certain elements of spontaneously emitting radiation. In 1898, Marie isolates polonium and radium, both of then unknown and highly radioactive elements.
Medicine grabs radium and makes it the tool in the fight against cancer. Praised for its benefits, radium becomes a source of rejuvenation for the public and a source of profit for manufacturers. It will take time and evidence to admit the danger of its radiation...