The old saw that a picture is worth a thousand words still sticks around. And why shouldn't it? After all, that's as likely to be an understatement as an exaggeration. Nowadays, when we think of pictures, cameras come to mind. We not only have the old standby, the film camera, but also the new-fangled digital types. Moreover, all sorts of enhancements can be made to digital images, thanks to the computer age. Electron microscopy even allows detailed pictures of structures too small to be seen with the naked eye, or even a regular microscope.
With budget cuts blossoming throughout our nation, then it would seem
to be a no-brainer to cut down on courses teaching scientific illustration. But
"no-brainer cuts" often are just that. Skillful portrayal of scientific
subjects can do more than just faithfully replicate an object. Emphasis of important
details, combinations of different temporal stages, reconstructions of past life—all
sorts of imagery impossible or only poorly done by camera. Natural history museums, as
teaching and research institutions, will be among those most hurt if scientific
illustration dies.
Contributor: Arthur H. Harris, Laboratory for Environmental Biology, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso.
Desert Diary is a joint production of the Centennial Museum and KTEP National Public Radio at the University of Texas at El Paso.