At our March meeting, on Friday 15th, Terry Hill told the tale of seven not so famous scientists who unfortunately met untimely deaths caused by their inventions or discoveries.
One of the seven was Sabin Arnold von Sochocky (1883 to 1928). He used the discovery of radium by Pierre and Marie Curie to invent radium luminescent paint in 1908.
Radium paint was widely used for 40 years on the faces of watches, compasses, and aircraft instruments, so they could be read in the dark. Radium is a radiological hazard, emitting gamma rays that can penetrate a glass watch dial and into human tissue.
He died at the age of 44 from radiation poisoning.
This was followed by an introduction to Rainforests and their importance to our ecosystem.
Friday April 19th is our visit to Oxford for the Science Museums. No meeting at John Godber Centre.
David Rose