My Science School

 

                         Marie Curie and her husband Pierre began their research into radioactivity in 1895. They soon discovered the new element thorium, and in 1898 they discovered two other elements — polonium and radium. They received the Nobel Prize for physics for this work in 1903, although they shared the prize with Henri Becquerel, who researched the same subject. After her husband’s death, Marie continued her research, winning a second Nobel Prize before dying in 1934 of cancer caused by unprotected exposure to atomic radiation. A new element discovered in 1944 was named curium in her honour.

   

                      Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was a physicist who was born in Germany but lived in Switzerland and the USA in later life. He developed the theory of relativity, which led to the famous equation E = (which very few people actually understand).

                     Einstein’s work is the basis for most of our theories about the nature, history and structure of the Universe. He laid down the rules that govern objects moving close to the speed of light, and explained why travel at this sort of speed could distort time itself. His work also proved invaluable in the development of the atomic bomb.

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                              Luigi Galvani (1737-1798) was an Italian scientist. He accidentally noticed that severed frogs’ legs twitched when the nerve was touched with a pair of metal scissors during a thunderstorm. Alessandro Volta (after whom the volt is named) explained why this happened. It was because an electrical current was produced between two metals, which provided the stimulation to the nerves. This discovery later led to the realization that the nervous system works by means of electrical signals.

 

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                    The scientists James Watson and Francis Crick studied genes in an attempt to find out about their structure. The genetic material DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is a complicated molecule, and it had been difficult to understand how DNA could copy itself when cells reproduce. Watson and Crick found that it was shaped like a stepladder twisted into a spiral, and that if the two sides were pulled apart the ‘rungs’ of the ladder would automatically reproduce the rest of the molecule.

 

                      Ben Franklin (1706-1790) was an American with many talents. He was a printer, scientist and politician who played an important part in founding the United States. He discovered the nature of lightning while flying a kite during a thunderstorm. Franklin noticed sparks jumping from a key tied to the end of the wet string. This could easily have killed him, but it did not. He went on to invent the lightning conductor, a strip of copper that is run from the top of a building to the ground in order that lightning can earth itself safely.

 

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                   Archimedes was a Greek mathematician who lived between about 287 and 212BC. Unlike many Greek philosophers of the time, Archimedes believed in making experiments to prove that his theories worked. He made practical inventions, such as the Archimedean screw which is still used today to lift water for irrigation. He also worked out the laws which govern the use of levers and pulleys.

                Archimedes is most famous for allegedly leaping out of his bath in excitement shouting ‘Eureka!’ (The Greek for ‘I have found it!’). He did this when he realized that his body displaced a volume of water equal to its own volume.

 

                Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) built several telescopes and observed the movements of the Moon and planets. He was the first person to discover that the surface of the Moon is rough and cratered, and not smooth as had been supposed for centuries. He also found that he could use the swing of a pendulum to measure time.

               Galileo got into trouble with the authorities when he claimed that the Earth moved around the Sun, rather than the Sun moving around the Earth. This idea was thought to be a threat to biblical teaching, and Galileo was placed under house arrest for the remainder of his life.