We see microscope images all the time but rarely grasp what scale they all are relative to one another. In a public art project titled Creative Scale Bars, everything is scaled according to actual microscopic size. There is a large poster printed with a micrograph of human skin or other well known object, then hundreds of labeled stickers of paramecia, diatoms, blood cells, and other microscopic objects all scaled to match their size relative to the large poster. Thus the microscopic objects and organisms themselves become the scale bars. Blood cells at 10 micrometers are 20x smaller than the average radiolarian, but neurons are much thinner than blood cells. All of these relationships are visualized in a fun activity of letting participants go crazy decorating the posters with stickers.
We are looking for microscope images to be created into stickers for the event! Submissions must have a scale bar or separate stage micrometer image, or be an object of a known size. ‘Whole’ objects as opposed to partial views are preferred, but this is not a requirement. Due to the large volume of stickers we can’t credit you individually, but your name will be included in the acknowledgments section. Submit your micrograph today!
© Copyright 2023 Jess Holz
