December 21st in history has been of considerable significance for many reasons, mostly for bad reasons. Some of the incidents that impacted the lives and livelihood of humanity are listed below.
Radium discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie on 21st December
Henri Becquerel, an 1896 uranium researcher, discovered a new form of radiation that could penetrate metal. Marie Curie, a physicist, was intrigued by his research and investigated these uranium radiations. Her breakthrough discovery was that radiating power did not depend on how atoms are arranged in molecules but rather on the interior of an atom. Marie’s husband, Pierre, studied uranite, also known as pitchblende, a uranium-rich mineral, and ore. After removing uranium, the pair were left with radioactive material that they determined to be two new elements: radium or polonium. In July 1898, Marie’s native Poland was the first to discover polonium. In their documentation, they wrote that the substance extracted from pitchblende contained a new metal, similar to bismuth and that it was 300 times more active than uranium. The pair used radioactivity for the very first time in this paper.
The Curies discovered radioactive compounds similar in structure to barium compounds. They named this new element radium after emitting energy in rays. Radium’s intensity was approximately 3,000 times that of uranium. Marie Curie was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1911 in Chemistry to discover radium, polonium, and other elements. Radiotherapy and nuclear medicine were made possible by the discovery of radioactivity.
Moreover, this discovery revolutionized cancer treatment, and later radioactive source application was used to cure skin cancer. It was documented as early as 1899. Because Marie and her husband were not aware of radiation’s harmful effects immediately, the research had a devastating impact on the Curies’ health. Radiation poisoning was discovered through the widespread use of radium in daily life, and Marie died from anemia in 1934 after being exposed to radiation.
Marie’s coffin was lined in the lead because the laboratory notes of the pair are still radioactive. She and her husband were awarded the Nobel Prize Physics in Physics in 1903 for their “extraordinary services” in radioactivity research. Now, the SI-derived unit of radioactivity is the becquerel. Pierre and Marie Curie, future Nobel Prize winners, discovered radioactivity in 1898.
December 21st in World History- Important Events on this Day
1561- Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle, Archbishop of Mechelen, made Cardinal on this day.
1598- Battle of Curalaba: the Mapuche people led by Pelentaru revolt and inflict a major defeat on Spanish troops in southern Chile.
1620- Mayflower Pilgrims come ashore at in Plymouth Bay, traditionally thought to be at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts.
1650- Johan de Witt installed as Dutch Pensionary of Dordrecht
1784- John Jay becomes acting US Secretary of State (1789-990)
1788- Hue Tay Son becomes emperor Quang Trung of Vietnam on 21st December.
1804- Benjamin Disraeli, British statesman and novelist who was twice prime minister (1868, 1874–80), was born.
1845- The Battle of Firoz Shah began between British and Sikh forces during the First Sikh War.
1864- General William Tecumseh Sherman captured Savannah, Georgia, during his “March to the Sea” in the American Civil War.
1911- American professional baseball catcher Josh Gibson was one of the game’s most prodigious home-run hitters. Also known as “the Black Babe Ruth” was born on this day.
1913- The New York World published the first modern crossword puzzle.
1937- The classic animated movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs premiered, establishing Walt Disney as one of the world’s most innovative and creative moviemakers.
1945- U.S. General George Patton, known as “Old Blood-and-Guts” by his men, died following an automobile accident in Germany.
1958- Charles de Gaulle was elected president of the French Fifth Republic.
1968- Apollo 8 was launched from Cape Kennedy (Cape Canaveral) and eventually completed 10 lunar orbits.
1988- Pan Am Flight 103 was destroyed by a terrorist bombing in Lockerbie, Scotland. In 2003, the government of Libya took responsibility, and, in 2004, it agreed to compensate the families of those who were hurt.
2012- The music video for South Korean singer PSY’s humorous pop song Gangnam Style became the first video on YouTube to garner one billion views.
2017- American astronaut Bruce McCandless II was died at the age of 80. He was the first person to conduct an untethered free flight in space.
December 21st in Indian history – Important Events that Took Place
1955- 2nd National Film Awards (India): “Mirza Ghalib” wins the Golden Lotus.
2016- Indian sports drama film Dangal directed by Nitesh Tiwari and starring Aamir Khan, Fatima Sana Shaikh, and Sanya Malhotra, premieres – first Indian film to earn $300 million worldwide.
December 21st in the History of India – Birth Anniversaries of Famous people
1959- Kris Srikkanth, former captain of the Indian cricket team.
1963- Govinda, Indian film actor, comedian, dancer, and former politician.
1972- Yeduguri Sandinti Jaganmohan Reddy, Indian politician serving as the 17th and current Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
1973- Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, Indian film director, screenwriter, author and activist.
1983- Karishma Tanna, Indian film, television actress and anchor who works in Hindi films and shows.
1985- Andrea Jeremiah, Indian actress, playback singer and musician.
1989- Tamannaah, well-known Indian film actress who appears in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi films.
1989- Shashaa Tirupati, National Award, Screen, and Filmfare award-winning Indo-Canadian playback singer, songwriter, music producer.
1801- Prasanna Kumar Tagore was a son of Gopi Mohan Tagore, one of the founders of Hindu College.
1907- Moazzam Jah was the son of the last Nizam of Hyderabad.
December 21st in the history India – Death Anniversaries of Famous People
2003- Ganapathi Venkataramana Iyer was dead on 21st December. He was a well-known Indian film director and actor.
2004- Autar Singh Paintal FRS was a medical scientist who made pioneering discoveries in the area of neurosciences and respiratory sciences.
2007- Teji Harivansh Rai Srivastava Bachchan was an Indian social activist.