Books Are Dangerous

Not all books, and defining dangerous is probably a really subjective term when it comes to books. I mean, there are places that consider On The Origin Of The Species a dangerous book, but today I'm talking about books that are truly dangerous. So dangerous that you have to sign a waiver if you want to see them. And this is a dead serious waiver.

The books in question were written by the lady below:

Most dangerous author EVAR.

That's Maria Skłodowska, better known by her married name, Marie Curie. She both figured out that radiation was an atomic phenomenon not a molecular one, and she also coined the term radiation. She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize, and the first person to have won two Nobel prizes (one for physics with her husband, one for chemistry by herself). She's pretty much a huge deal in science.

So you can probably guess why the books she wrote are dangerous, and you're right: They're still radioactive enough to be dangerous. The notebooks and cookbooks she used in the years 1897 through 1901 will still set a Geiger counter ticking away like mad. The three notebooks are kept in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France and to get access to them you need to sign a waiver acknowledging that you're aware of the danger they represent. They're slightly less radioactive than is required for a substance to be considered "contaminated" by most nuclear regulatory bodies, but they're still radioactive enough that you wouldn't want to lick them or anything. The funny, but not surprising thing is, the radioactivity is highest on the surfaces where Mrs. Curie's hands would have held them.

Books: Not always just dangerous ideas, sometimes just plain old dangerous.

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Sources:
Marie Curie image taken from NobelPrize.org
About.com
Women scientists in history
American Institute of Physics
Science Links Japan
MarieCurie.co.uk
Nobel Prize official website
Bibliothèque Nationale de France
Wikipedia article on Marie Curie
Wikipedia article on Nobel prize multiple laureates
Czech Republic State Office for Nuclear Safety