PHENOMENAL MOMENTS

Photos of everyday objects taken from extreme close-up perspectives introduce readers to fascinating discoveries.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher and science photographer Frankel seeks out visual patterns in our physical world. Using a Nikon digital SLR or just her camera phone, sometimes through a microscope, she photographs everyday objects. This volume contains a selection of her photos with narrative descriptions that convey her enthusiasm. The book is organized into five sections: “Light and Shadow,” “Form,” “Traces,” “Transformation,” and “Surfaces.” Each category opens with a teaser photograph—an intriguing image of something that’s tricky to identify. A page turn reveals what the object or scene is—a close-up of silk fabric or bubbles, for example. Each photo is accompanied by two paragraphs of text, one labeled “Moment,” which describes what caught Frankel’s eye, and one called “Phenomenon,” which explains the science behind the image. The author uses and defines terms like tessellate, capillary action, viscosity, and diffraction in an easily understood way. She often references explanations from her friends in STEM fields who contribute context about the phenomena she photographs, modeling professional collaboration and encouraging readers to reach out to others. This visually stimulating book dives deep into beautiful, rarely seen patterns of the natural and human-made worlds and the science behind them.

Exquisitely highlights the often-ignored beauty surrounding us, igniting scientific curiosity.