Proteus Video Response – Isabel Byrnes

This film greatly expanded my knowledge on radiolarians. I learned that they are a type of plankton that absorbs silica from sea water and uses it to form a unique glass-like skeleton. I found it interesting how these organisms are more than five million years old and there are thousands of different species. I also learned that they exist in a large variety of forms and they all have different structures. I thought it was interesting how Haeckel was always interested in biology and went to medical school, but he decided to follow through with his passion for nature and single-celled organisms. It is also interesting how he spent ten years studying specimens of radiolarians and found three thousand new species. The fact that he sometimes had to search one thousand droplets of water before he would find a new organism and he had to draw their structure fast because they would die quickly is incredible. I admire his dedication to his work and patience. This film made me recognize how art and science are connected in many ways. Haeckel was a passionate painter as well as a scientist and he continued painting landscapes while also studying new organisms. This shows how nature is present in both art and science and can show and prove similar things. Ancient stories such as the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner are connected to the discovery of new life and traveling the world, similar to how scientists on the Challenger explored the deep sea and found marine organisms on their cables. I thought it was interesting how Haeckel expressed how there is one spirit in all living things and how he explained how his organisms were connected to God. Many people of the time did not agree with him because he rejected revelation and theological faith. Since the 19th century was a time of many new and different discoveries, peoples’ religions and faiths were challenged by science and many issues between science and religion were faced. I think the conceptual implications of creating radiolarian sculptures based on Haeckel’s drawings are that we are honoring his life and work, as well as discovering the new species he found and studied in his lifetime. He made a significant contribution to the worlds of art and science and his life, history, and connection to God and nature all played a role in his discoveries.

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