The black manganese oxide “plumes” in this Australian opal serve as a good example of art and science merging in gemology. Photomicrograph by Nathan Renfro, field of view 5.85 mm.
'A psychedelic image of the spider web-like network of tiny vessels in the back of a rat's eye has won this year's Nikon's Small World photography competition. Hassanain Qambari, a diabetes researcher at the Lions Eye Institute in Australia, was awarded first prize for the detailed image of a rodent's optic nerve head.'