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Eric Clarke, Richard Arnett and Jane Burns, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
Every day, scientists work to understand the aspects of the world that are completely unknown to the rest of us. Some study the way blood vessels provide oxygen to an African Grey parrot, others follow tiny bobtail squid that light themselves up while hunting for shrimp, and others try to understand the pain and physical symptoms of diseases like Crohn's.
Most of the time, we can't "see" this work in a way that helps us understand it and shows how fascinating and even beautiful it can be. In the images below, showing the winners of the $4 contest, first established in 1997, you can see all this - and it's beautiful indeed.
The winners include photos, illustrations, paintings, and more.
They're all supposed to uncover or "open up a world of
The overall winner will be announced on March 15. We've republished the winning collection below, along with some information about what each image depicts and how it was created.