居里夫人自傳 第12章 婚後生活 (5)
    Ihadoccasiontoexamineacertainnumberofminerals.Afewofthemshowedactivity;theywerethosecontainingeitheruraniumorthorium.Theactivityofthesemineralswouldhavehadnothingastonishingaboutit,ifithadbeeninproportiontothequantitiesofuraniumorthoriumcontainedinthem.Butitwasnotso.Someofthesemineralsrevealedanactivitythreeorfourtimesgreaterthanthatofuranium.Iverifiedthissurprisingfactcarefully,andcouldnotdoubtitstruth.Speculatingaboutthereasonforthis,thereseemedtobebutoneexplanation.Theremustbe,Ithought,someunknownsubstance,veryactive,intheseminerals.MyhusbandagreedwithmeandIurgedthatwesearchatonceforthishypotheticalsubstance,thinkingthat,withjoinedefforts,aresultwouldbequicklyobtained.Neitherofuscouldforeseethatinbeginningthisworkweweretoenterthepathofanewsciencewhichweshouldfollowforallourfuture.

    Ofcourse,Ididnotexpect,evenatthebeginning,tofindanewelementinanylargequantity,asthemineralshadalreadybeenanalyzedwithsomeprecision.Atleast,Ithoughttheremightbeasmuchasonepercentoftheunknownsubstanceintheminerals.Butthemoreweworked,theclearerwerealizedthatthenewradioactiveelementcouldexistonlyinquiteminuteproportionandthat,inconsequence,itsactivitymustbeverygreat.Wouldwehaveinsisted,despitethescarcityofourmeansofresearch,ifwehadknownthetrueproportionofwhatweweresearchingfor,noonecantell;allthatcanbesaidnowisthattheconstantprogressofourworkheldusabsorbedinapassionateresearch,whilethedifficultieswereeverincreasing.Asamatteroffact,itwasonlyafterseveralyearsofmostarduouslaborthatwefinallysucceededincompletelyseparatingthenewsubstance,nowknowntoeverybodyasradium.Hereis,briefly,thestoryofthesearchanddiscovery.

    Aswedidnotknow,atthebeginning,anyofthechemicalpropertiesoftheunknownsubstance,butonlythatitemitsrays,itwasbytheseraysthatwehadtosearch.WefirstundertooktheanalysisofapitchblendefromSt.Joachimsthal.Analyzingthisorebytheusualchemicalmethods,weaddedanexaminationofitsdifferentpartsforradioactivity,bytheuseofourdelicateelectricalapparatus.Thiswasthefoundationofanewmethodofchemicalanalysiswhich,followingourwork,hasbeenextended,withtheresultthatalargenumberofradioactiveelementshavebeendiscovered.

    Inafewweekswecouldbeconvincedthatourprevisionhadbeenright,fortheactivitywasconcentratinginaregularway.And,inafewmonths,wecouldseparatefromthepitchblendeasubstanceaccompanyingthebismuth,muchmoreactivethanuranium,andhavingwelldefinedchemicalproperties.InJuly,,weannouncedtheexistenceofthisnewsubstance,towhichIgavethenameofpolonium,inmemoryofmynativecountry.

    Whileengagedinthisworkonpolonium,wehadalsodiscoveredthat,accompanyingthebariumseparatedfromthepitchblende,therewasanothernewelement.Afterseveralmonthsmoreofcloseworkwewereabletoseparatethissecondnewsubstance,whichwasafterwardsshowntobemuchmoreimportantthanpolonium.InDecember,,wecouldannouncethediscoveryofthisnewandnowfamouselement,towhichwegavethenameofradium.

    However,thegreatestpartofthematerialworkhadyettobedone.Wehad,tobesure,discoveredtheexistenceoftheremarkablenewelements,butitwaschieflybytheirradiantpropertiesthatthesenewsubstancesweredistinguishedfromthebismuthandbariumwithwhichtheyweremixedinminutequantities.Wehadstilltoseparatethemaspureelements.Onthisworkwenowstarted.

    Wewereverypoorlyequippedwithfacilitiesforthispurpose.Itwasnecessarytosubjectlargequantitiesoforetocarefulchemicaltreatment.Wehadnomoney,nosuitablelaboratory,nopersonalhelpforourgreatanddifficultundertaking.Itwaslikecreatingsomethingoutofnothing,andifmyearlierstudyingyearshadoncebeencalledbymybrother-in-lawtheheroicperiodofmylife,IcansaywithoutexaggerationthattheperiodonwhichmyhusbandandInowenteredwastrulytheheroiconeofourcommonlife.

    WeknewbyourexperimentsthatinthetreatmentofpitchblendeattheuraniumplantofSt.Joachimsthal,radiummusthavebeenleftintheresidues,and,withthepermissionoftheAustriangovernment,whichownedtheplant,wesucceededinsecuringacertainquantityoftheseresidues,thenquitevalueless,andusedthemforextractionofradium.HowgladIwaswhenthesacksarrived,withthebrowndustmixedwithpineneedles,andwhentheactivityprovedevengreaterthanthatoftheprimitiveore!Itwasastrokeofluckthattheresidueshadnotbeenthrownfarawayordisposedofinsomeway,butleftinaheapinthepinewoodneartheplant.Sometimelater,theAustriangovernment,onthepropositionoftheAcademyofScienceofVienna,letushaveseveraltonsofsimilarresiduesatalowprice.WiththismaterialwaspreparedalltheradiumIhadinmylaboratoryuptothedatewhenIreceivedthepreciousgiftfromtheAmericanwomen.
本站首頁 | 玄幻小說 | 武俠小說 | 都市小說 | 言情小說 | 收藏本頁