Vibrant Fluorescence
Under electron microscopy, sprouting endothelial cells display vibrant fluorescence when prepared with special dyes. Endothelial cells line up the inside of blood vessels and this technique allows visualization of its extensions and junctions. This type of imaging reveals insight into how the cells proliferate and form new blood vessels, key for understanding how blood vessels develop and repair.
What Makes Us Human?
“What is that?” you ask.
A spider web?
A fractal?
A neural net?
No, a cell.
Invisible to the human eye,
too detailed for the human mind,
too intricate for the digits.
The nucleus.
A center full of life,
the hearth of human design,
branching endlessly out of sight.
A cell.
Invisible to the human eye,
too intricate for the digits:
clandestine to our sensation,
confined to our imagination:
yet so profoundly human.
“What is that,” you ask?
Well,
’tis but a cell,
the spark that makes us human.
Jacob Aronow, RE ‘26
Insights
The structure of a cell is nothing unique. Take a look at a neural net or a fractal and it will be hard to miss the similarities between them an the sprouting cell. However, what a neural net and others do not have in common with the cell is humanity. The cell is eminently human, profoundly intricate, and plainly fascinating. While the other things I mentioned are concepts invented by humans to explain certain truths of the universe, they will never be as human as a cell. The precision of nature beats the clumsy attempts of human invention every time. In other words, whatever humans do, no matter how close they may come, they will never synthesize something as truly human as a cell.
This realization is particularly relevant in today’s technological age, where the line between human and artificiality is being rapidly blurred. But I hope my poem serves as a reminder that this line, no matter how fuzzy it may become, will never fully disappear.
| Fields the author associated with the art | Biology, Technology, Psychology, Philosophy |
The Colors Untold: Silent And Unseen
In the quiet art gallery of space,
A work of art, sits out of place,
Rainbow in color, with an ever shifting hue,
The architect of life, sits proud and true.
A tapestry of cells beginning to bloom,
Unfold the secrets of this room.
The root of change, silent and unseen,
Yet under a microscope, glows a bright green.
Each curve and line, a story to be told,
Of vessels forming, strong yet bold,
The delicate and intricate dance,
Life’s design begins a subtle trance,
The art reflects a deeper view,
Of growth that’s silent, yet so true,
A glimpse of what’s beneath the skin,
Where life chooses to end and begin.
(after reading the whole poem, try reading odd & even stanzas such as 1:3:5:7 or 2:4:6:8)
Liam Diaz, Nova ‘28
Insights
Mainly a realization of the beauty of which science allows us to view, which we would not otherwise be able to. The beauty of life unseen, among many other things.
| Fields the author associated with the art | Biology |
Web Of Life
The cell’s web lies passing blood, electrolytes.
It lays its colorful roots in time for life’s amassing
Rooted in the beginning of life, colorless mass lying in time.
Blood lies in a web of cells, electrons passing.
David Martinez, RE ‘25
Insights
The workings of electron microscopes, cell staining, cell division, origin of life, evolution, solutes/solvents.
| Fields the author associated with the art | Physics, Chemistry, Biology |
The Essential
God, the bright yellow center.
The foundation and root of our existence.
Without the brilliant nucleus, we lack purpose and everything is a matter of opinion.
Without it, our lives would crumble and gravity would cease to exist.
Each appendage is a testament to our creator, who forms us with unique characteristics.
When we lose focus on its splendor, divisiveness swallows our world
and those differences amongst us result in catastrophe.
The yellow center, a reminder of where we come from and how we are connected.
David Serra, Wake Forest ‘28
Insights
The similarity between a nucleus and the rest of the cell and our Creator and the rest of humanity.
| Fields the author associated with the art | Philosophy |