- The traveling exhibition “Images of the Nanoworld”, created from photographs obtained by CEDENNA researchers using electron microscopy, will begin its tour of rural schools in southern Chile on September 3 at the San Antonio de Pocoihuén Alto Rural Elementary School, in the municipality of Cochamó.
A traveling science outreach exhibition, created to show in an attractive and artistic way the world of what is invisible to the eye and to optical microscopes, will begin its tour of rural schools in southern Chile in the Los Lagos Region, inviting students, teachers and neighbors to discover the world hidden behind the lenses of high-resolution microscopes.
The initiative, called “Art in the science of the extremely small”, is the IMAGES OF THE NANOWORLD exhibition, created with the participation of researchers fromthe Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, CEDENNA.
For a decade, the center has held an annual contest among its researchers to collect artistic images of the nano world captured through electron microscopy. Once colored, the winners form a dozen large-format panels that, starting in September, will tour different rural locations in the south.
The exhibition “Images of the Nanoworld” will be presented to students, teachers and neighbors in different locations in the south, together with explanatory and educational material that shows exactly how each image was captured and what type of material it corresponds to, specially prepared for students. Each image is accompanied by a scientific description that shows what is really in each photograph and the wonders we can find in this invisible world that amazes those who have had access to them.
Dr. Mauricio Escudey, coordinator of this initiative, highlighted the importance for new generations and the community in general of having access to science through playful outreach activities such as the one CEDENNA is offering. “This exhibition includes panels that explain in a simple way how small a “nanometer” is and how a scanning electron microscope (SEM), the instrument used to capture the images, works. There will also be material for students to color some of these images, linking science and art in an educational and simple way,” he said.
ATTENTION COCHAMÓ
The exhibition will begin its tour of rural schools in the Los Lagos Region, starting with the San Antonio de Pocoihuén Alto Rural Elementary School, municipality of Cochamó. It will remain open to the general public until it moves to other schools.
The opening of the exhibition will feature the participation of the Regional Ministerial Secretary of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation of the Los Lagos Region, Sandra Sepúlveda, as well as the remote presence of Cedenna Director Dora Altbir, who stressed the importance “of bringing science to the public”.
“Cedenna is bringing this exhibition to schools precisely with the purpose of bringing the science of the future closer to today’s generations, combining art, technology and play,” stressed Dr. Altbir.
The activity also includes a brief presentation on nanoscience and nanotechnology by Dr. Mauricio Escudey and a tour of the exhibition with the participation of the whole community.
