These days, it's easy to take visualizations of biological molecules for granted, what with the
easy availability of an ever-increasing supply of high-resolution
X-ray and neutron crystallography data, as well as
freely available software that render them into beautiful and useful images that help us understand how life works. The lack of computers and computer networks in the mid-1950s made creating these illustrations a painstaking collaboration, requiring an artist's craftsmanship and aesthetic sense, as well as, most importantly, the critical ability to visualize the concepts that scientists wish to communicate. One such scientific artist was
Irving Geis, who painted the first biological macromolecule obtained through X-ray data: an iconic watercolor representation of the structure of sperm whale myoglobin, as seen in the third slide of this
slideshow of selected pieces. His first effort was a
revolutionary work of informatics, including coloring and shading effects that emphasized important structural and functional features of the myoglobin protein, simultaneously moving the less-important aspects into the background, all while stressing simplicity and beauty throughout. The techniques that Geis developed in this and
subsequent works influenced the standards for basic 2D protein visualization that are used today.
posted by Blazecock Pileon
on Aug 8, 2012 -
6 comments
August Wind is a top-down 'free-roaming shooter' about mining valuable metals off the backs of cloudeels. It's the Bachelor Thesis project for Jeremy Spillmann at the Zürich School of the Arts. It features charming 2D graphics and a gypsy soundtrack.
[more inside]
posted by juv3nal
on Aug 28, 2009 -
7 comments
Friday Flash Fun: "'
Make My Head Grow' is a two player battle game. Each player control a small angry guy trying to push the other guys box over the edge. As everyone knows smacking your head into the ground makes your head grow - maybe even enough to make your box move..."
[more inside]
posted by Rinku
on Feb 13, 2009 -
14 comments
M.U.G.E.N [
wikipedia] is a 2D fighting game engine, originally developed by Elecbyte and released in 1999. The engine is highly customizable;
characters,
backgrounds, and sound files -- whether from existing games or original works -- can be easily integrated. Some examples of the engine in action [youtube]:
Homer Simpson vs. Peter Griffin,
Ryu vs Popeye,
Green Power Ranger vs Osama Bin Laden,
Fat Albert vs Juggernaut,
Marvin the Martian vs. Duck Dodgers. Also, game crossovers:
Homer in NES Land,
Thunder Force III vs. Duck Hunt. [mi]
WARNING: some of the videos are very loud.
posted by milquetoast
on Jun 17, 2007 -
10 comments
Halo Zero. The Fall of Reach, old-school style. Some plucky French coders have borrowed a page from
Codename: Gordon, the side-scrolling
homage to Half-Life. As a result, Master Chief and his cohorts are now fighting the Covenant in 16-bit, 2D graphics. PC download only - though Mac owners at least have
Boot Camp to avoid waiting for an OS X port.
via Aeropause
posted by Smart Dalek
on Jul 7, 2006 -
9 comments
CG Challenges - the largest online art contests of their kind, where artists are challenged to create outstanding artworks based upon set themes, while working under restrictions. For CG students, an additional bonus is the view of the creation process.
posted by Gyan
on May 23, 2005 -
8 comments
Ryan , the Oscar winner for Best Short Film, is a canadian 3d and 2d animated masterpiece. I wish I could provide more than the material already provided by Andy Baio, but I just felt like you all should see this. It's the true story of
Ryan Landis, a brilliant artist devastated by the real world. It's also the story of his impact on the director. That really doesn't do it justice. Please just click.
apology inside
posted by shmegegge
on Mar 1, 2005 -
21 comments
