My Great-Great-Aunt Discovered Francium. And It Killed Her
The scientific discoveries that were made in the past were without any doubt full of risks and repercussions associated with the exposure to the radioactive materials that resulted in the damage to the bodies and over exposure to radiation led to the death of the researchers. Some researchers were enthusiastic about discoveries that they tend to ignore the long-term repercussions they may have to face due to their exposure to toxic materials, and Marguerite Perey was one of them. She mixed in different materials and ingredients and applied different theories without any care and concern regarding the contamination of the elements and the risk she was posing to her own body as well as the other researchers. She discovered an element known as francium that emitted radiation to the utmost extent .
The Mendeleev diagram mapped those elements that could not be further broken into other elements which are the main component of the matter. This is the direct antecedent of the periodic table, we use today . The table is arranged in a manner that elements have similar qualities. Below cesium, the spot was left unfilled which was later filled by the discovery of francium. The discovery of new elements also helped in the realization that the elements gave in radiation released by the atoms as they decayed into the other element form.
I did not know the interesting facts regarding radium that it can be used in a different manner. The doctors used to sew the capsules of radium into the wounds after the surgery of the cancer patient and were quite enthusiastic regarding the use of radioactivity which was not simply limited to the doctor’s office but was used in various tonics, candies and even face creams. According to the research that it could even improve the quality of the soil if added to it. One of the interesting facts is that the radioactive materials that remain ingested can concentrate in the bones of a human being and continue to decay resulting in deep poisoning for as long the person continues to live. Until the time, the discoveries were made by Peary, she was highly exposed to radiation and has been contaminated . She believed the qualities of radium that she had discovered and the francium would help in cancer reduction and will be a breakthrough in science, but had to spend the last 15 years of her life treating her traumatic bone cancer that had affected her entire body, affecting her eyesight and the exposure to francium radiation had affected her hands. This made her realize that after exposure to radiation is harmful, with an intense warning to her students to be careful in this regard.
There were not many precautionary measures taken in the first half of the 20th century as the scientists were exposed to hazardous materials, for example, the scientists who worked with X-ray had the tendency to lose their hairs tremendously with suffering from skin burning and even resulting in cancer. The Clarence Dally, who was the X-ray assistant of Thomas Edison, died of cancer and had to get his both arms amputated because the cancer was spreading rapidly in his body. Hence, even though radioactive rays have been anticipated fighting cancer, was also resulting in the spread of this disease. Another known danger where the woman was hired in the radium paints were exposed directly without any safety measures. They were told that this paint, was harmless, whereas later on, they suffered from physical deterioration with melting jaws and the tumors larger than their fists with cancerous bodies. This means that the scientists were heavily exposed to radiations and other toxic materials that were harmful to their bodies .
Even though these scientific discoveries have resulted in great discoveries, but in many cases, the loss of lives has been in vain. For example, in the case of Marguerite Perey, the francium element hardly exists these days and her effort to prove that radioactive material helps cure cancer has failed, but she lost her life for no good.
Reference
Greenwood, V. (2014, Dec 03). My Great-Great-Aunt Discovered Francium. And It Killed Her. Retrieved Jan 03, 2017, from The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/07/magazine/my-great-great-aunt-discovered-francium-and-it-killed-her.html?_r=0
