io9: nano-art

There's A Hole In The Microverse!

Charlie Jane Anders — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:23:41 PDT

This awesome piece of nano-art shows dislocations in an arrangement of nano-crystals, each one 300 times smaller than a human hair. But it looks like the micro-universe is about to break into our own.

"Aesthetic Imperfections" by Dr. Hans Danzebrink was chosen as part of last fall's "Science As Art" exhibition, and purchased by Jennifer Millar, who blogged about it:

Entitled "Aesthetic Imperfections", the atomic force photomicrograph reveals dislocations in a photonic crystal arrangement of polystyrene nanospheres. Without the vivid colours generated by computer software, these transparent structures are instead defined by their topography, geometry and symmetry. It is these characteristics which give rise to the optical effects in the material, visible to the human eye. It is fascinating to ponder the interplay between different faces of the same object- the colourless world of the nano scale, and the iridescent play of colours on the macro scale.

The creator of "Aesthetic Imperfections" is Dr Hans Danzebrink of the German metrology institute, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt. Upon seeing the artwork exhibited as part of RIT's "Images From Science", I contacted Dr Danzebrink to ask him more about it. I was thrilled by his prompt response- he was only too happy to impart his experience, and pronounced himself honoured by my request to reproduce the image. It was refreshing to encounter a research scientist so willing to share his work! The exhibition recognises the impact of photography in science, which is perhaps not appreciated to the same degree as in the art world. The plethora of images presents scientific data artistically, thus making scientific concepts accessible to society at large.

Here's the full image, plus another Hanzebrink original, "Data Channels," showing data moving through a computer chip:

The Haunting Beauty At The Heart Of A Cell's Wounded Monolayer

Charlie Jane Anders — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 07:30:00 PST

Here's a microscopy image of a fibroblast, stained with a few different antibodies. The green is microtubuli, the red is cell-contacts and the blue is DNA. It's just one of Jan Schmoranzer's amazing nano-art images.

Schmoranzer's microscopy images of "wounded monolayers," "starved fibroblasts" and a "nuclear face" come from the 2008-2009 NanoArt competition organized by NanoArt21.org.

Schmoranzer is a group leader and head of the BioImaging facility at the Molecular Cancer Research Center of Charite Berlin. He says:

Seeing the beauty of cellular structures, like microtubules, after many hours of tiring and repetitive lab-work often gives me the kick to go on. I am glad that scientist like me receive public attention for display of scientific imagery and I am excited to expand on projects like ‘Cell Portraits' by exploring different cellular structures and cell types. I believe that visualizing science – the process of research as well as its end products – will gain importance in the future, not only to draw attention to a particular scientific subject, but also for science education itself.

You can see the rest of the gorgeous nano-art here. [via AzoNano]

The Terrible Beauty In The Heart Of A Rat

Charlie Jane Anders — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:12:07 PDT

These luminous shapes are cardiac fibroblasts from a newborn rat, suspended in a collagen-thick film which is stimulating the environment around the cells. This makes them express a protein called DDR2, which scientists believe help cells to sense their surroundings and signal to the cells that they need to remodel themselves in response. The blue part is the cell nucleus, the green part is the cell's cytoskeleton and the red staining is the DDR2 at work. This image is just one of Chris Robinson's last-minute entries in the 21st. NanoArt competition, which have become my favorite entrants. Click through to view the others.

This looks like baby stars forming in a nebula of gas and dust, but it's actually a visualization of light being scattered by gold nanorods, which are embedded in a collagen gel populated by human cells. Researchers at the University of South Carolina NanoCenter used a dark field microscope to view the patterns of light coming off the nanorods. You can vote for Robinson's images, or anyone else's, by going to NanoArt21. [Chris Robinson]

Biotech Is The New Nanotech

Charlie Jane Anders — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 06:30:07 PST

Not only could we use algae as a new fuel source soon, but we also might use it to create better nanotechnology. Diatoms, tiny phytoplanktons, come encased in a unique cell wall made out of silica, which has pores and channels that increase its surface area dramatically. Using the existing complexity of these natural structures in nature could be a cheap way to make "lab-on-a-chip" systems for micro-analysis... without any industrial chemical processes. Diatom image by Peter Webber, from Nikon Small World. [Nanowerk]

A Lab Disaster Makes For Great Nano-Art

charliejane — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 06:20:07 PST

When things go wrong at the nano-scale, it can yield the coolest images. Like this failed oxidation of a piece of silicon, which went south because the artists didn't use enough chromium. Some of the nano-art in the 21st Nano Art Competition looks a tad cheesy and fake, but the best contenders show off something unexpected (and maybe migraine-inducing) that really happened in the lab. Check out more of our favorites after the jump, and vote for your favorite here.

Image by Pran Mukherjee, Eleanor Howe and Mark Stock. [Azonano]