Scientists capture first images of molecules before and after reaction
Every chemist’s dream – to snap an atomic-scale picture of a chemical before and after it reacts – has now come true, thanks to a new technique developed by chemists and physicists at the University of California, Berkeley.
Using a state-of-the-art atomic force microscope, the scientists have taken the first atom-by-atom pictures, including images of the chemical bonds between atoms, clearly depicting how a molecule’s structure changed during a reaction. Until now, scientists have only been able to infer this type of information from spectroscopic analysis.
Taking inspiration from the proverb “You are what you eat.” Portland, Oregon-based artist Wendy Wallin Malinow has been working on an awesome series of intricately cut and layered paper designs entitled Bone-A-Day.
Each piece depicts an animal’s exterior shape and skeleton. Inside the ribcage of each animal is whatever they last ate, sometimes also in skeletal form. Some pieces seem true to life: a squirrel eats acorns, a bird eats a worm, a rabbit eats a carrot, and a fish eats other fish. But then things get more imaginative and playful: a jellyfish got the better of a mermaid, the Big Bad Wolf ate Little Red Riding Hood (part of her, at least), and Sylvester the
Puddy TatCat finally managed to gobble down Tweety Bird. It also looks like Jonah never did get out of that whale.Follow Wendy here on Tumblr to view more of her wonderful artwork.
[via My Modern Metropolis]
It’s X-Ray Vision Day on Geyser of Awesome!
