“My Science Hero”

By: Khitch Jaywell G. Mamon

As soon as I heard that we were going to write an essay about our science hero, I immediately knew
who my hero was. The one and only Maria Salomea Sklodowska-Curie also known as Marie Curie. The
first time I heard her was when I was in 9th grade, we discussed their life as well as their contributions
along with the other scientists. She was born November 7, 1867, at Warsaw, Poland, then later on died
at the age of 66 on July 4, 1934. Sadly, the cause of her death was caused by a condition she developed
after years of exposure of radiation through her work. Although, she died quite early, I knew she spent
her life pretty well. Considering she won a noble prize twice, which is incredibly amazing.

Marie Curie was a Polish and naturalized-French Physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering
research in radioactivity. She was the woman who won two different noble prizes, the same woman who
changed modern science. She is remembered for her discovery of radium and polonium as well as her
huge contribution to finding treatments for cancer. I am incredibly amazed by her, and I think a lot of
people are still unaware of her contributions. I don’t think anyone can manage to win two different noble
prizes, but she definitely made it possible. I chose her as my hero because of her talents as well as her
contributions to science. Mind you that she was the first person to win two noble prizes, first woman to
win two noble prizes. She proved that women are also capable of doing things that men can. And for me
that makes her a hero, how she changed a lot of things during her time that definitely helped a lot of
generations. Her discovery of radioactivity developed advancements in our technology including X-rays
and radiation therapy for cancer treatments. Which is a huge help to our patients as well as making our
medical personnels work a lot easier. She developed X-rays during Worl War 1 that saved and helped
countless of lives. This proves that she really is a hero, not only my hero, but also other people’s hero.
And I think anyone would agree with me on that. Another thing is she managed to win those prizes without
a fancy lab, which is incredible. Because nowadays, people cannot advance without any modern
equipment beside them. But her, she did it without any fancy equipment or lab with her. I know that she
proved people wrong in her time, especially that there wasn’t any gender equality back in her days.

That’s why I chose her as my hero because of her talents and contributions. And how she confidently
proved that a woman could achieve things in a male dominated field. I know she faced a lot of
discrimination before reaching her achievements. And I love how she didn’t let that affect her and instead
proved those people wrong. She inspired a lot of women to pursue things they love. One of those is me,
she inspired me to study harder so in the end I’d proved those people wrong who looked down on me. I
hope she’ll receive the recognition she deserves from the next generation. And I hope a lot of people see
her the same way I see her. She’s a very strong and confident woman and that’s why I chose her as my
hero.