Science Visualized

  1. Health & Medicine

    One number can help explain why measles is so contagious

    The basic reproduction number, or "R naught," of measles shows how contagious the disease is compared with other pathogens.

    By Helen Thompson
  2. Animals

    Peacock spiders’ superblack spots reflect just 0.5 percent of light

    By manipulating light with tiny structures, patches on peacock spiders appear superblack, helping accentuate the arachnids’ bright colors.

    By Carolyn Wilke
  3. Animals

    These award-winning photographs capture rarely seen wildlife and landscapes

    Winners of the California Academy of Sciences’ annual photo contest dove deep underwater and hiked to great heights to create these striking images.

    By Maanvi Singh
  4. Life

    See beautiful fossils from top Cambrian sites around the world

    Troves of Cambrian fossils are known at more than 50 places around the world.