NEW TECHNOLOGY TURNS ANCIENT BIOTECH INTO FINE ART NOW

Cells are a biotechnology that developed over 3.5 million years ago. Now, due to new technology, they can be seen like never before.

Physicist Jack Challoner’s new book, The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life, shows us the remarkable beauty of cells, from the inside, thanks to new technology-enhanced cameras.

There are more than 8 million species on the planet that are made up of cells. Many are composed of billions, even trillions, of different types of cells. From producing the pigment in flower petals to constructing bones, each highly specialized cell plays a distinct mechanical-like role.

Challoner presents a stunning collection of photographs that show us the remarkable structures, otherwise invisible to us, that enable cells to function. 

This book contains 250 micrographs -- photos taken using specialized microscopes. Blown up large, they look like abstract art.

Dispersed among the beautiful images are some of the most intriguing questions that are currently fueling scientific research into stem cells and other biotechnologies. 

Cells were first observed in the late 17th century. But it was not until the 19th century that their importance became apparent.

“Since then, increasingly rapid strides have been taken toward understanding what goes on inside cells – and how such processes relate to growth, reproduction, inheritance, disease, and the origin of life on Earth,” Challoner writes.

The majority of  living things on the planet exist as single cell and are just as successful and diverse as multicellular organisms.

Challoner notes that every person starts as one cell, that is comparable in size to the period at the end of this sentence. 

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Lily Pollen Grains.
2. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life.
3. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Ebola Virus.
4. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Cotton Bud.
5. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Algae Colonies.
6. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Klebsiella pneumoniae.
7. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Marsh Plant Root.
8. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Striated Muscle Fibers.
9. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Human Skin Cell.
10. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Amphioxus Gills.
11. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Human Embryonic Stem Cell.
12. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Tip of a Corn Root.
13. Image: by BN App - Download now!
14. Image: Courtesy of University Of Chicago Press. The Cell: A Visual Tour of the Building Block of Life. Prostate Cancer Cells.