2004 VISUALIZATION CHALLENGE

摘要

A multicolored deer tick latched onto the ear of a hamster ... water molecules shuttling across a cell membrane ... a bat's sonar locking onto its prey ... the cauldron of Mount Etna getting ready to rumble. The following pages bring to life intricate interactions, from the workings of cells to the geological processes that threaten cities. These stunning visualizations won top honors in the second Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge, co-sponsored by Science and the National Science Foundation (NSF). We launched this annual international competition last year to showcase and encourage an increasingly important aspect of science: the ability to convey the essence and excitement of research in digitized images, color diagrams, and even multimedia presentations. Investigators at the outermost frontiers of science and engineering frequently study phenomena that are extremely difficult even for most scientists to visualize-and downright formidable for the general public that ultimately supports the global research enterprise. When that research is depicted vividly and comprehensibly in pictures, everybody benefits.