Read the passage.

excerpt from "Marie Curie and the Discovery of Radioactivity" by Mara Rockliff

To the Austrian mine owners who had sent the pitchblende ore, it was just dirt. After all, they had already taken out the valuable part—the metallic element called uranium—and dumped what was left over in a nearby pine forest. If a pair of eccentric French scientists wanted them to scoop up the worthless stuff and ship it, the mine owners were happy to oblige.

But Marie and Pierre Curie knew the secret of the dull brown ore. Hidden deep within it was a new chemical element. No one, the Curies included, had ever seen this element. Still, the husband-and-wife team had given it a name: radium. And Marie was determined to prove radium was real.

It could be inferred that the word eccentric in the text means "odd."

Which context clue best helps confirm this meaning of the word eccentric?

A. "scientists wanted them to scoop up the worthless stuff and ship it"

B. "deep within it was a new chemical element"

C. "After all, they had already taken out the valuable part…called uranium"

D. "No one…had ever seen this element"