2001 Gallery

Formula One World Championship: Belgian Grand Prix, Spa Francorchamps, 28 August 1988

Ayrton Senna (BRA) McLaren MP4/4 enters Eua Rouge.
Belgian Grand Prix, Spa Francorchamps, 28 August 1988

© SUTTON MOTORSPORT IMAGES

Eyelash mite, SEM

Eyelash mite. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of an eyelash, or follicle, mite (Demodex folliculorum), a harmless parasite which lives inside human hair follicles. This mite infests hair follicles (depressions in the skin which contain the roots of hairs) around the eyelids, nose and in the ear canals of humans. It feeds on oily secretions from the skin's sebaceous glands, which empty into the follicles, as well as dead skin cells. Infestation with follicle mites is usually symptomless; they cause no harm to their host. However, allergic reactions to the mites in susceptible individuals can cause hair loss and acne. Magnification: x293 at 6x7cm size

© POWER AND SYRED/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Optical computing

Optical computing. Coloured light micrograph of a section through a hybrid electronic-optical circuit board. Optical waveguides (red) are used to transmit data in the form of light pulses. This allows data transfer at faster speeds than is possible through the electronic connections of an ordinary printed circuit board (PCB). Such an increase in data transfer speeds is required to take full advantage of the processing power of the fastest microchips, the calculating components at the heart of a computer. The optical waveguides are 0.001-millimetre-wide plastic strips. This technology has been developed by Siemens and the University of Paderborn, Germany

© VOLKER STEGER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY