Radium Craze Still Haunting Paris-- Part 1

From the August 2nd Chicago Tribune by Michel Rose and Marion  Douet, Reuters.

"The Belle Poche, France's golden era at the turn of the 19th century, bequeathed Paris elegant landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower, but also a more sinister legacy of radioactive floors and backyards that the capital is only now addressing."

After Marie Curie discovered the radioactive element radium in 1898, it set off a craze for the luminescent material that led for using it for everything from clock dials to lipsticks to water fountains.  The companies that produced them are long out of business, but their sites have left small doses of radium that can be dangerous over prolonged exposure.

Marie Curie never patented her discovery and a lot of people jumped in to make money from it.  After she proved that it could destroy cancerous cells, people assumed it had healing powers and started putting it in everything from body lotions to cough syrups.

And There I Was Playing With the Mercury.  --Cooter