The Micro-level Beauty of Science on Display at UMass Amherst

*** MEDIA ADVISORY ***

The Micro-level Beauty of Science on Display at UMass Amherst

DATE:       Thursday, April 25
TIME:        2-5 p.m.
WHAT:       Second Annual Research Art-Science Exhibition
WHERE:    Digital Media Lab on the third floor of the W.E.B. DuBois Library

About 40 students, mostly from STEM backgrounds, will present artistic representations of their own research activities that they created while participating in the media lab’s drive to support their skills such as networking, sharing ideas and results, and practicing research presentations with peers.

The gallery images depict the beauty of such materials as meta-lenses for manipulating light, a model of the human gut that includes a realistic mucus layer to enhance microbiome studies and a pyrite-graphite rock mixture from the Adirondack Mountains. This year’s art event also offers visitors a chance to walk through a digital version of last year’s Research Art-Science Exhibition using virtual reality (VR).

“The great thing here is, even though the original idea was intended for CNS students, we had submissions from students in other colleges such as Engineering and Education, so we welcomed them to broaden the experience for everyone,” says Steve Acquah, the lab coordinator and an adjunct professor of chemistry.

The media lab is also hosting a competition for a student to win a Lenovo Mirage Solo virtual reality headset “to encourage student ideas about how VR can be integrated into and enhance the campus community.”

The Digital Media Lab, which loans out cameras, microphones, stands and other digital media equipment, now has expanded to include VR services.