© 1995-1998 by Michael W. Davidson
and The Florida State University
(click on image to see more)
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DNA Phase Transition © 1995-1998 by Michael W. Davidson and The Florida State University (click on image to see more) |
Looking like a crazy stairway or cliff from another planet, this photomicrograph shows the liquid crystalline structure of DNA. As the aqueous solution concentration of in vivo DNA is slowly increased, the macromolecule undergoes spontaneous phase transitions to form at least three distinct lyotropic phase transitions. Microscopist Michael W. Davidson captures these and other molecular moments, and shares them at the Molecular Expressions Web gallery, and in his new book, Magical Display: The Art of Photomicrography.
Science for Art’s Sake
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A Portrait of DNA by Roger Berry Photo by Perry Johnson © 1998, UC Davis (click on image to see more) |
This stairway to knowledge is both a sparkling public art project and a giant replica of a DNA strand. The 48 foot glass and steel sculpture by California artist Roger Berry hangs in the stairwell of the Life Sciences lobby at UC Davis. Berry uses dichroic glass for the base pairs, which both transmits and reflects light; a round wafer of the glass can appear to be either of two colors,
depending on the viewer's vantage point. Gazing up or down through multiple layers of bases turns the pattern into a confusion of other hues -- deep blue, forest green
and scarlet -- "a sort of visual noise," Berry says, much like the jumble of information within DNA that scientists are striving to
understand.