What is it that makes research fascinating? There are several potential answers to this question: the luring attraction of the unknown, of the other, the obscure, or the mysterious; the desire for insight into research areas that have yet to be explored; the sheer beauty of mind games and scientific experiments; the risks attached to certain kinds of research; the visionary aspects of some projects; the challenges they pose; the thrill when you finally get it; or, as the Irish poet W.B. Yeats describes it, quite simply the fascination of what is difficult. What fascinates researchers; where does this fascination spring from; and, more importantly, how can this fascination be captured, visualised, and communicated by a photographic image?
The European Young Academies have launched an international and interdisciplinary photo contest to explore different visions and images of fascination in the sciences and the humanities. Please note that the deadline for submission has passed.
This page shows a random (and changing) sample of some of the pictures submitted.