听读 Chapter 9 A Family of Scientists

Chapter 9 A Family of Scientists

 Winning her second Nobel Prize must have been wonderful for Marie, but the terrible scandal with Paul Langevin had taken a toll on her.

 She was worn out in every way—sick, sad, and depressed. The radium poisoning was probably still making her weak. She had other illnesses, too. For the next few years, Marie went into hiding. Her love affair with Paul was over, but the world wouldn’t forgive her for it. People threw stones at her windows. The newspapers kept writing stories about her. Marie couldn’t bear all the bad things people were saying. She traveled from place to place, leaving her children behind with a governess. Marie used fake names wherever she went. She didn’t want people to know who she was. If someone recognized her and asked, “Are you Madame Curie?” she would lie and say no.

 Finally, after a long rest in England with a good friend, Marie felt better. She went back to Paris and back to work. As time passed,  people forgot about the scandal. Once again, she was able to just be herself and do her work. Irene was growing up, too. She and Marie were becoming partners. They talked about science together, just like Marie and Pierre had. In 1914, a whole building was built for Marie’s research. At first it was called the Radium Institute, but later it was renamed the Curie Institute. Marie hoped that she and Irene would work there together there very soon.

 Before the lab opened, World War I broke out. The Germans invaded France. Marie wanted to help. She decided her first job was to take all the radium in France and hide it! She didn’t want the Germans to find it. Marie put the radium in a heavy suitcase and traveled ten hours by train. She stored the radium in a vault at a college in Bordeaux.Then she returned to Paris, having eaten nothing for a day and a half. When Marie was on a mission, nothing else mattered. Next, Marie invented a small X-ray machine that could easily be carried to wounded soldiers. Her machines were called “Little Curies.” Marie and seventeen-year-old Irene drove the machines to hospitals near the battle fields.