"The design of the Society is specially to afford, to dwellers in remote parts of the country, by means of postal facilities, the advantages derivable from interchange of thought on such subjects of common interest as may be elucidated by the microscope." from the Journal of the Postal Microscopical Society c. 1882. It might interest you to know that the Postal Microscopical Society is still in existence and that there are other microscopical societies around the world. Now you can look at slides from the Victorian Era or present day without waiting for the mailman. [previously]
posted by jessamyn on Jun 21, 2009 - 5 comments

The Fountain "No matter how good CGI looks at first, it dates quickly...So I set the ridiculous goal of making a film that would reinvent space without using CGI." Director Aronofsky tapped into the microphotography work of Parks and Parks to bring a new look to special effects in science fiction cinema.
posted by dhruva on Feb 13, 2007 - 95 comments

In the Womb: Animals is an upcoming National Geographic special that does for animals what the 1983 broadcast of NOVA's Miracle of Life (and the 2001 update, Life's Greatest Miracles) did for our appreciation of fetal development. Lennart Nilsson would be proud.
posted by scblackman on Nov 22, 2006 - 11 comments

The Institute for the Promotion of the Less than One Millimeter proudly presents The Micropolitan Museum of Microscopic Art Forms. [via]
posted by mediareport on Oct 22, 2006 - 7 comments

Silicon Zoo: Where's Waldo? Hiding in the silicon patterns of a computer chip. Michael Davidson has found a collection of microscopic art hidden by chip designers. This practice has been going on for decades, and the hidden images range from the iconic to the commemorative to the bizarre. Be sure to read the fine print. [See also this CNET story] (via)
posted by stopgap on Oct 13, 2005 - 12 comments

Cool gallery of tiny, tiny people doing detailed farming work on pieces of fruit. Horrible flash interface, frequent use of French.
posted by jonson on Sep 20, 2005 - 32 comments

Deformation of a polyethylene folio . Polymer thin film after electric field and reactive ion etching. Cat tongue. Mouse epididymis. Meet the latest winners in Nikon's annual "Small World" photomicrography contest. The gallery goes all the way back to 1977. A little reminder that beauty is everywhere.
posted by mediareport on Feb 14, 2003 - 4 comments