Who Was Marie Curie And Why Did She Give Her Name To A European Research Program?

In 1895 she married Pierre Curie, a promising physicist with whom, in addition to sharing a life and two daughters, she also shared her first Nobel Prize, awarded to the couple in 1903. In this article we tell you more about her and why one of the most important research programs of the European Union bears his name.

Who was Marie Curie?

In 1867, one of the most brilliant minds of the 20th century and a benchmark for science and feminism was born in Poland. Pioneer for her studies of radioactivity (used to fight diseases such as cancer) graduated from college when women had a hard time attending classes and had a tremendously successful career, also becoming the first woman professor at the University of Paris.

His daughter, Irène, also a lover of the science instilled by her parents, would obtain another Nobel Prize for joint studies with her husband on the applications of radioactivity. Today Marie Curie is remembered as an exponent of researchthe fight for women’s rights and for having saved millions of lives.

Why does it give its name to a European research program?

The program Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) It is a worldwide reference for providing the necessary instruments to researchers during their doctorates and post-doctorates. This program has up to five aspects:

PhD networks: supporting candidates in academic and non-academic institutions through the relationship between them and the stimulation of creativity.
Scholarships for postdoctoral studies: support for researchers’ careers, guaranteeing their activity and the development of new skills.
Researcher exchanges: thanks to the development of contact networks between the different centres.
Co-financing of regional, national and international programs.
MSCA and citizens: promotion of research among European citizens, transferring innovation to everyday life and growing interest in science among the youngest.

The development of talent and support for research is a fundamental piece of this project that, in addition, provides funding opportunities that over the years will bring benefits to the whole society.

The MSCA program doesn’t just stop there. Among the projects that can be found, offer job opportunities to pursue doctorates or postdoctoral they have vacancies and what you can find here.

All of this has been possible thanks to small steps over the years and, in this case, thanks to people like Marie Curie, who dedicated her life to research and who is remembered throughout Europe, and in the rest of the world, for her work that has contributed so much, not only in the field of physics and chemistry, but also in other fields where their studies have found practical applications, such as medicine.