Microscopic Worlds: Ecosystems invisible to the naked eye

Human eyes are the great window into a world surrounding us, but what a universe we would see if they were capable of 100x magnification. If witnessing a brachionus rotundiformis’ meal pass through its translucent body or seeing a water fleas’ heart beat were a daily occurrence, what an astounding awareness we would have. Realizing the vast scale of nature and how vital each element is to our chain of existence, both up and down the evolutionary web is a powerful thing.

Explore more notes from Daniel Stoupin’s dreamworlds or support his vision by purchasing prints.

A History of the Sky: Time lapse over San Francisco

Every 10 seconds, everyday for a year, an image was captured of the sky above San Francisco. Collected and chronicled, each day passes in perfect synchronicity, displayed next to its neighbor as if comparing themselves against one another. They all watch as the winter solstice sacrifices its hue before the rest and takes its precious time waking from night. They watch each others cloud cover slowly disappear in noon’s heat and wonder what distant ocean current is shifting their winds this day. But somewhere over the course of a year they stop watching, comparing, thinking and simply exist. Day becomes days, year becomes years.

I highly recommend watching this at full screen. Learn more about Ken Murphy‘s time lapse project History of the Sky here.

All is flux, imagined is The Flow

“The evolutionary play of quarks and electrons resulted in nuclei and atoms. The computational outburst of atoms resulted into molecules and star systems. The intricate relationships between molecules created the fascinating entities of DNA, proteins and membranes. The interplay of which created the many species of cells, which through an inherent need to reduce their entropy and ensure their propagation would congregate into organs and advanced interacting organisms. These organisms would grow interfaces that would mirror their predecessors, and in a game of survival of the fittest would evolve complex processing capabilities creating virtual worlds, artifacts and cultural codes.” – MRK

If reading this has left your mind intact, I highly recommend reading the full theory behind The Flow, which touches on ideas of digital physics, complexity and information theories as well as the concepts of universal Darwinism, emergence and supervenience. The rabbit hole gets pretty deep with this one, explore it here.

James Miller’s 40mm Snail Cinema

There are strange creatures among us.

Watching James Miller‘s lens study, aided by a Jean Michel Jarre soundtrack, I feel as though I’ve slipped into a science fiction film noir. My character sits alone in a large cinema, the kind found in the inner-workings of a government laboratory, beneath the earth. It smells of musk and decaying fabric. Curiously and with intent, I observe the foreign object in front of me, magnified almost beyond recognition, committing to memory all nuances of the creatures movements. I prepare myself for our encounter ahead. The mission leaves day after next.

via The Fox is Black

Katie Scott’s scientific illustrations for an alternate universe

UK illustrator Katie Scott has developed a style all her own, dwelling somewhere within the realms of science textbook and vintage psychedelia. Her posters present organisms both odd and familiar, interweaving them until we no longer know what it is, or was. It’s as if these are pages fallen from an ancient encyclopedia, documenting life in an alternate universe, now lying somewhere on the floor of a great subconscious library. Thankfully, Katie has unearthed them for us to study and observe as fungi become amoeba, then evolve into water-colored bilateral cephalopods.

You can see more of these alternate perspectives of science on her site. There are also prints available which I imagine have the ability to fuel many hours of thought. I need one to put on my bookshelf, next to Netter’s.

via but does it float via It’s Nice That