Teacher Note: In this clip, the Curies conduct their investigations in the lab. They announce their findings to an audience of their peers, and describe radioactivity. Though Marie describes the structure of the atom in the clip, that was not known at the time. That was later described by J.J. Thompson, and then Ernest Rutherford.
Group discussion questions:
• Why is it important for scientists to communicate to one another about their findings?
• What is your assessment of how their peers received the Curies’ findings?
• What other sources might you check to find out whether this scene is an accurate portrayal of their announcement?