The Ultimate Modeling Problem: The Pancreatic Beta Cell Project
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A short film about a team of scientists collaborating to create a computational model of a cell
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The assembly of whole-cell models spanning atomic to cellular resolutions is one of the grand challenges of the 21st century, and will require the convergence of biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, computer science, and the digital arts. This video highlights a team of scientists working to change the way we approach biological research and drug design.
Microscopy in Virtual Reality
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Explore microscopy images from a shrunken perspective in virtual reality
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BASA has teamed up with microscopists from the Translational Imaging Center, virtual reality developers from the School of Cinematic Arts, programmers from the School of Engineering, and life scientists from the Bridge Institute to create an application that will allow microscopists to upload their 3D images to a virtual reality headset with a few clicks of a mouse.
Artists in Residence
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Connecting media makers and scientists in collaboration with the Bridge UnderGraduate Science summer program
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The BASA summer artists in residency program provides an opportunity for students in the USC School of Cinematic Arts to join scientists from the Bridge Institute to collaboratively create two films communicating research at the Bridge.
Why I Became
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Short documentaries about women working in science
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BASA and WiSE (Women in Science and Engineering) team up under the lead of Megan Simon to create short videos showcasing women scientists and engineers who tell stories about how they chose careers in their field. The short documentaries will be widely distributed using social media to reach young women in hopes of inspiring aspirations for pursuing a career in science and engineering.
The Cell & The City
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Interactive explorations inside a human cell
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The Cell & The City is a fully experiential virtual world inside a single human cell, presented using metaphors of the complex systems of a city. We use storytelling and world building to present scientific detail in ways that are engaging and approachable for both laymen and experts. By creating a virtual cell as a city, we allow people to explore a rich biochemical world while engaging concepts, pathways, and implications through narrative, all backed by scientific rigor. The Cell & The City project brings together a broadly interdisciplinary team of scientists, storytellers, artists, programmers, and conceptual thinkers, all with a proven track record of creating the next wave of content and experiences. Our long-term goal is to create a rich and diverse world that scales from the atomic-level, to cellular-level, to organ-level, all the way to the human body-level. Immersive media like virtual reality provide a unique portal into systems both large and small, and when combined with narrative elements based on scientific rigor, promises to enable a new generation of education, research, and collaboration.
The Heroes of Disease
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Painting that depict stem cells as saviors in pop art style
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Pop art is synonymous with comics and super heroes. The Heroes of Disease uses this style of art to depict stem cells as our current heroes against disease. The project showcases 6 developmental stages of stem cells through paintings on large (48x48”) canvases. The colors are bold, vibrant and evoke ideals of invincibility.
Conserving Cultures
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Documenting the global conservation of humanity’s microbial heritage
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A photojournalism campaign documenting the Global Microbiome Conservancy’s efforts to create a long-term vault of microorganisms reflecting the full diversity of human gut bacterial communities, including rare and disappearing strains found only in traditional, non-industrialized societies. These microbes represent a living legacy of shared evolutionary history and cultural heritage. Together, communities around the world are working with scientists in a race to safeguard against future bacterial extinctions caused by rapidly changing lifestyles. This project will illustrate the process and promise of groundbreaking research, while raising awareness of the threats of industrialization and urbanization to biodiversity, health and the environments of human populations worldwide.