noun
Freq #266736
Meanings
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1
noun
a synthetic radioactive metallic chemical element with atomic number 96 and symbol Cm
Researchers used curium as a target material when producing heavier elements.
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Etymology
Coined from Curie + -ium by Glenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, and Albert Ghiorso after synthesizing the element in 1944. It honors physicists Marie and Pierre Curie for their pioneering work on radioactivity.