Talk Description:
Drew Berry will describe the challenges of accurately representing the molecules of your flesh and blood – a world so tiny it is literally smaller than the wavelength of light and cannot be directly observed even with the worlds most powerful microscopes. He will also explore the tension between scientific accuracy and creating content that is appropriate for the non-scientific audience...with an astonishing resolution that consistently keeps all types of audience happy and entertained.

Biography:
Drew Berry is a biomedical animator whose scientifically accurate and aesthetically rich visualizations reveal the microscopic world inside our bodies to a wide range of audiences. His animations have exhibited at venues such as the Guggenheim Museum, Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Royal Institute of Great Britain and the University of Geneva. In 2010 he received a MacArthur Fellowship "Genius Award". Trained as a cell biologist at the University of Melbourne, Drew Berry brings a rigorous scientific approach to each project, immersing himself in the relevant research in structural biology, biochemistry, and genetics to ensure that the most current data are represented. In three-dimensional renderings of such key biological concepts as cell death, tumor growth, and the packaging of DNA, Drew Berry captures the details of molecular shape, scale, behavior, and dynamics in striking form. His groundbreaking animations of the intricate biochemistry of DNA replication, translation, and transcription demonstrates these multifaceted processes in ways that enlighten both scientists and the scientifically curious. In these and many other projects in progress, Drew Berry synthesizes data across a variety of fields and presents them in engaging and lucid animations that both inspire a sense of wonder and enhance understanding of biological systems.