Radium Memes

Excitement followed by existential dread! Marie Curie's journey from "I discovered radium!" to "Why are my fingertips glowing and my hair falling out?" is the original scientific cautionary tale. The pioneers of radiation research had no idea they were basically microwaving themselves from the inside out. Curie carried radioactive isotopes in her pocket and stored them in desk drawers—because nothing says "groundbreaking scientist" like keeping deadly elements next to your sandwich. She eventually died of aplastic anemia from radiation exposure, which is possibly the most ironic scientific death since the guy who invented the guillotine got guillotined. (That's not actually true, but it should be.)

The infamous "Elephant's Foot" at Chernobyl isn't your average tourist attraction. This horrifying mass of corium (a radioactive lava-like material) formed when nuclear fuel melted through the reactor floor during the 1986 disaster. When first discovered, standing near it for just 5 minutes would deliver a fatal dose of radiation. The meme perfectly captures how other radioactive elements have "practical" applications, while corium is just... gestures vaguely ... a deadly blob that will kill you before you can even take a decent selfie with it. Nuclear science: where some elements power cities and others create nightmare fuel that glows for centuries!