Title: Waiting for the Money Bug
Media: Watercolor
Scientific Concepts: Bacteria contain plasmids as well as chromosomes, but it is the plasmid which is circular. Flagella are long and often curly projections on bacteria that can aid in transportation. A quadrant streak plate is made by an original streak, and then a clean tool is used to make a new streak that crosses the original 3 times, repeat but with 2 crossings, then repeat with 1 crossing. This will create isolated colonies. The final concept is that of viruses such as bacteriophages inserting the genetic material from inside the phage into a bacterium.
Artistic Concepts: In all sectors of science there is always the determining factor of money. Through science anything is possible with the proper funding. This painting represents the struggle astrobiologists face when looking for other forms of life in the universe. The bacteria is a form of life we already know, so this knowledge carries our planet earth, (within the plasmid) with a flagella propelling the vessel, towards our goal of a planet we think might have once carried life or still does, Mars. In my painting, Mars is a quadrant streak plate, which represents the research that can be done once we reach the planet. Since we can accidently infect other planets with our own life forms once we get there, the bacteria also symbolizes this concept. The bacteriophage is the feature that is the inspiration of the title. Once the bacteriophage of money reaches the bacteria, Earth can finally reach its destination with the input of genetic material (or in the representation: money). Of course the sun is present to symbolize the bright future that biology can look forward to when money is put into the system.
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