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Knight Library Exhibit Captures Beauty of UO Science Research


February 6, 2009

A new exhibit in Knight Library, "Scientia venustior"  ("Charming Knowledge"), showcases the beauty and wonder of scientific imagery generated by researchers at the University of  Oregon.

Researchers from science departments and labs around campus submitted about 120 images for the exhibit. A panel of UO art librarians and artists selected 13 of the images for display in the exhibit cases in the two entryway corridors of Knight Library. All the images submitted are included in a digital slideshow displayed on the large-screen monitors near the display cases.

The selected images in the exhibit, which was developed by UO Science Librarian Dean Walton, represent a wide range of the scientific research carried out in campus laboratories. Here are the winners, their sponsoring departments and labs, and a brief description of the image.

First Place
Ethan Walker, Department of Chemistry, Lonergan Lab
A microscope image showing short-chain polymer crystals on the surface of an organic photovoltaic device

Second Place
Richard Taylor, Department of Physics, Taylor Lab
"Bubbles," a digital photograph capturing bubbles formed by water pouring into a sink

Third Place
Mark Currey, Department of Biology, Cresko Lab
Pea pufferfish (Carinotetraodon travancoricus) spines and underlying bones fixed and stained with alizarin red, a dye that specifically binds to calcium in bone

Honorable Mentions

  • Mark Currey, Department of Biology, Cresko Lab
    Developing facial bones and cartilage of a threespine stickleback fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus) stained with alizarin red, which binds to bone, and with alcian blue, which binds to cartilage
  • J.T. Neal, Department of Biology, Guillemin Lab
    Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) eye
  • Leslie VanOs, Department of Chemistry, Berglund Lab (2 images)
    Two images of crystals of the protein lysozyme
  • Kathy Cashman & John Donovan, Department of Geology, Cashman Lab (2 images)
    (1) Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of pumice clast from Little Glass Mountain, a volcanic landform in Northern California and (2) Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) image of the surface of volcanic clast (a volcanic product) from Isola di Vulcano, a volcanic island territory of Italy
  • Dan Ruscitto, Department of Geology, Wallace Lab
    A melt inclusion, a pocket of parental liquid trapped during the growth of a crystal from a magma
  • Richard Taylor, Department of Physics, Taylor Lab
    The Buckley Tree, an image generated by computer at the request of the editors of the magazine Scientific American
  • Vivian Tyng and Michael Kellman, Department of Chemistry, Kellman Lab
    A highly excited vibrational motion of the acetylene molecule, a critical molecule in combustion
  • Beth Ann Wisely, Department of Geology, Crustal Deformation Lab
    Colorful images of various models of surface deformation for a portion of the southern San Andreas fault system in California

The exhibit runs through March 30, 2009. The library's Exhibit Services unit prepared the exhibit material for mounting.

For Knight Library hours during which the exhibit can be viewed, click here.


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