Verbing Science! with Beata Mierwa

4. Beata Mierzwa, “The Splendor in our Cells” Have you heard the expression “can’t see the forest for the trees”? One of the biggest challenges in science is holding the forest AND the trees in your mind at the same time. Whether their trees are actually chromosomes in a cell, specific experiments that reveal small pieces of a much larger puzzle, or even literal trees in a literal forest, scientists are continually toggling between the big picture and the small picture – paying attention to the details of their work, but never losing sight of how those details relate to the overarching questions they’re trying to answer. In this episode, molecular biologist, artist, and fashion designer Dr. Beata Mierzwa uses examples from her research on cell division to explain how her art has helped her think about the relationship of the part to the whole, and how the snapshots she takes of chromosomes are little windows into big questions about how cells “know” what to do when.