FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY DIVISION OF RESEARCH
ART OF SCIENCE PHOTO CONTEST
Research in Focus In an effort to highlight the cutting-edge research across the colleges, the Division of Research hosted its first Art of Science photo contest in 2019 for all members of the FAU community students, faculty and staff. Almost 150 submissions poured in showing research in the field, in the lab and across all disciplines. For example, the first-place winner, Charlene Fournier, works with Kate Detwiler, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters. In 1994, Detwiler was the first to provide genetic evidence that two distinct species of monkeys inhabiting Gombe National Park, were mating and producing hybrid offspring. Six judges chose more than 35 photo finalists. Judges included: •
Adlai Moss, assistant director of graphic design and marketing, College of Engineering and Computer Science
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Ata Sarajedini, Ph.D., professor of physics, dean of Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
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Katherine Jones, director of communications, College for Design and Social Inquiry
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Sharon Hart, assistant professor of photography, College of Arts and Letters
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Patricia Liehr, Ph.D., RN, Schmidt distinguished professor, associate dean for nursing research and scholarship, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
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Melanie Lorenz, Ph.D., assistant professor of marketing, College of Business
visit: fau.edu/research/art-of-science
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FIRST PLACE
Monkey-Human Connection Photo by Charlene Fournier Charles E. Schmidt College of Science The picture represents Ice, a red-tailed monkey individual from the Mkenke valley group A, which is a mixed-species group between red-tailed monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius), blue monkeys (C. mitis), and their hybrids, in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Specific facial features, such as a white nose spot in the red-tailed monkeys, make individuals recognizable. Ice is a subadult male close to being sexually mature. He is at the edge of dispersing from his natal group to find non-genetically related females for reproduction. The photo was taken during my first field season in May 2019, in the goal of creating a photographic database for the creation of a facial recognition software for individuals in our study group. Due to a long-lasting habituation process in Gombe, scientists are able to spend valuable time observing the animals and collect the data needed to complete long-term research projects. However, it is also an incredible way to share space, looks, and emotions with wild primates in their natural environment. By spending months in the forest among them, we begin feeling part of their social group and sometimes wonder who the individual being followed is.
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SECOND PLACE
Water Bear 1 Hunter Hines, graduate student, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute A freshwater Tardigrade (water bear) magnified 400 times. I collected this micro animal from a freshwater spring here in Florida. The animal is full of algae, and imaged using Phase contrast microscopy. These famously tough micro animals have 8 legs with claws, and the ability to survive in extremes of various conditions (including temperature and space). I photographed this creature as part of my doctoral research (at HBOI) investigating microbial ecology in Florida.
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THIRD PLACE
From Beach Sand Photo by Ellie Vilakazi, student, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters A researcher in the FAU Geoscience Department is working to find out how beach sand affects sea turtles. Sand samples are collected from beaches in Boca Raton all the way up to Jupiter. Samples are then brought back to the Coastal Studies Lab, put through several sieves, and weighed. The image above shows the next step which is to put the sand into a diluted hydrochloric acid solution in order to dissolve the calcium carbonate fraction (e.g., shells), a process that produces the bubbles seen here. The purpose of this step is to determine the relative mineral composition of the beach sand.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Blepsias Cirrhosus Fish Andrea Hernandez, student, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science A cleared and stained image of Blepsias cirrhosus taken in the FAU High School Owls Imaging lab under the dissecting scope.
Fungus Among Us Photo by Christopher Spagnolia, researcher, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Fungi are distinct organisms that form complex soil webs; connecting plants from vast distances as they share nutrients and water. They react to other life and capitalize on resources and energy, and continuously competing with bacteria and have contributed to antibiotics, like penicillin. This image of Dacryopinax spathularia, often called the yellow-fanned jelly fungus, growing out of a stump, was taken after several days of rain, which the fungus needed to proliferate through the wood and eventually fruit to release its spores.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Skate Skeleton Photo by Marianne Porter, Ph.D., assistant professor, biological sciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Skates are close relatives of stingrays and sharks and their skeleton is composed entirely of cartilage. This preserved clearnose skate (Leucoraja eglanteria) has been stained to reveal the skull and skeletal elements. A series of chemical treatments renders the tissue transparent and stains the cartilage blue. This enables researchers to study the skeleton in an intact animal. The body of the skate is comprised of individual fin rays that branch as they extend to the body margin.
Flamingo Tongue Photo by Anton Oleinik, Ph.D., associate professor, department of geosciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Marine snail commonly known as “flamingo tongue,� Cyphoma gibbosum. The bright spots are thin layer of animals tissue called the mantle.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Gecko Toes Photo by Tricia Meredith, Ph.D., assistant research professor, FAU High School A scanning electron microscope image of the setae on the toes of a gecko taken in the FAU High School Owls Imaging Lab.
Surface of a Brain Coral Photo by Anton Oleinik, Ph.D., associate professor, department of geosciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Surface of a brain coral Pseudodiploria strigosa with a tiny Sharknose goby (Gobiosoma evelynae) fish. Picture is taken in 20 feet of water during the research dive off Tavernier, Florida Keys.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Seahorse Portrait Photo by Rachel Shanker, student, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science This image shows a lined seahorse (Hippocampus erectus) hiding among the seagrass of the Lake Worth Lagoon as a diver photographs something in the background, unaware of the seahorse’s presence.
Swarm Technology Photo by Michael Boltri, graduate research assistant, FAU College of Engineering and Computer Science This is a picture of basic research in swarm technology conducted at the FAU Hydro Dynamic Lab, using a soap film channel, a high-speed camera and simplified geometric representation of schooling fish. This experiment allows visualization of an object’s hydrodynamic properties in a realworld environment, and allows for a greater understanding through qualitative observation of how different parameters such as frequency, amplitude, phase difference and spacing affect a similar swarm’s hydrodynamic interaction.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
Caribbean Reef Squid at Night Photo by Anton Oleinik, Ph.D., associate professor, department of geosciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Caribbean reef squid Sepioteutis sepioidea at night. These cephalopod mollusks are free swimmers and are attracted to the dive light. Picture taken during the research dive at night off Deerfield Beach, FL.
Cross Section of Retina Photo by Wen Shen, Ph.D., associate professor, biomedical science, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science Retina cross-section image, showing the major structures of photoreceptors, bipolar and ganglion cells and their synaptic layers.
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HONORABLE MENTIONS, PHOTO ILLUSTRATION
Transportation Planners 2 Photo by Amir Koleini, graduate research assistant, FAU College for Design and Social Inquiry Transportation planners regularly engage communities through public meetings to seek input on planning for the future, and other two-dimensional (2D) media, such as photo renderings. Three-dimensional (3D) virtual and augmented reality visualizations are increasingly affordable and accessible to display on devices such as Microsoft HoloLens Goggles and glasses that connect to smartphones, such as Samsung Gear VR. This U.S. DOT-funded research project compares 3D technologies depicting sea level rise (SLR) in a South Florida location and tests whether 3D technology helps residents better understand the impacts of SLR on transportation infrastructure and communities.
ART OF SCIENCE PHOTO CONTEST 2020
SUBMIT HERE:
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FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY DIVISION OF RESEARCH
561.297.0777 fau.research@fau.edu FAUResearch FAUDivisionOfResearch fauresearch
www.fau.edu/research 12