In my 8th grade yearbook, I said I wanted to be a microbiologist or an art teacher. This is funny because my mother was a microbiologist and very creative. Clearly, she was the first and most influential person in my life that made me think I could be a scientist. And actually, scientists are some of the most creative people I know. But there was one other significant nudge towards a career in science. It’s the book in the photo: The Story of Madame Curie. I’m not sure what age I was when I read this, but I remember thinking, “WOW; a woman discovered radium! And she won the Nobel Prize!” Even with a college-educated mother with a science degree, it was the 60’s and I somehow understood that women in science wasn’t always a given, or at least uncommon.
I went off to college thinking I wanted medical technology. In my freshman year I fell in love with chemistry – or at least ‘in like’ with my chemistry professor. I’d had chemistry in high school, and didn’t like it; amazing the difference the teacher can make. When I was close to completing my chemistry degree I started thinking about medical school and while I was somewhat daunted by the commitment to that much more education, I eventually realized that being a doctor would not suit my perfectionist personality. I couldn’t imagine being sued for a death when I knew I gave the care my very best effort.
Not long after that, I discovered industrial hygiene – a field that protects employee from illness in workplaces. It was the perfect blend of chemistry with medicine (health). And it was not just a little ironic to me that Madame Curie died of aplastic anemia, most likely caused by her long-term exposure to radioactivity – a work-related illness. It was like I’d gone full circle. One more irony to my early admiration of Madame Curie…one of her more well-known quotes is, “Have no fear of perfection; you’ll never reach it.” Exactly why I’m not a doctor today!
I went off to college thinking I wanted medical technology. In my freshman year I fell in love with chemistry – or at least ‘in like’ with my chemistry professor. I’d had chemistry in high school, and didn’t like it; amazing the difference the teacher can make. When I was close to completing my chemistry degree I started thinking about medical school and while I was somewhat daunted by the commitment to that much more education, I eventually realized that being a doctor would not suit my perfectionist personality. I couldn’t imagine being sued for a death when I knew I gave the care my very best effort.
Not long after that, I discovered industrial hygiene – a field that protects employee from illness in workplaces. It was the perfect blend of chemistry with medicine (health). And it was not just a little ironic to me that Madame Curie died of aplastic anemia, most likely caused by her long-term exposure to radioactivity – a work-related illness. It was like I’d gone full circle. One more irony to my early admiration of Madame Curie…one of her more well-known quotes is, “Have no fear of perfection; you’ll never reach it.” Exactly why I’m not a doctor today!