Van cat walks in the snow in Yuzuncu Yil University's “cat villa” where they are carefully cared, in Van, Turkiye on January 21, 2022. One of the most important symbols of Van province of Turkiye endangered Van cats are taken under protection at the Van Cat Research and Application Center of Yuzuncu Yil University. They have been the subject of many scientific studies with their unique characteristics. Efforts are continuing to protect the extinction of the Van cat, which is known for its sensuality, friendliness, white silky fur, lion's walk, fluffy tail, different eye colors and fondness for water. (Photo by Ozkan Bilgin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

“Microscope images forge an extraordinary bond between science and art, said Hidenao Tsuchiya, Olympus America's Vice President and General Manager for the Scientific Equipment Group. We founded this competition to focus on the fascinating stories coming out of today's life science research laboratories. The thousands of images that people have shared with the competition over the years reflect some of the most exciting work going on in research today – work that can help shed light on the living universe and ultimately save lives. We look at BioScapes and these beautiful images as sources of education and inspiration to us and the world”. – OlympusBioScapes

Photo: Pretarsus of the third leg of a female drone fly (Eristalis tenax), ventral view, by Dr. Jan Michels, Institute of Zoology, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Germany. (Photo by Olympus BioScapes)

In this October 6, 1976 file photo a member of a Thai political faction strikes at the lifeless body of a hanged student outside Thammasat University in Bangkok October 6, 1976. For some Thais, the bloody events of October 6, 1976 are still a nightmare. On that day, heavily armed security forces shot up Bangkok's Thammasat University campus and killed scores of students, while right-wing vigilantes captured would-be escapees, subjecting them to ghoulish lynchings. (Photo by Neal Ulevich/AP Photo)

Some Iraqi candidates for Miss Iraq beauty contest pose in front of the Ishtar Gate at the ancient archaeological site of Babylon, outside the modern city of Hilla, south of the capital Baghdad on December 17, 2015. The beauty contest, which is the first one in more than 40 years, aims to boost tourism in the city and will take place on December 19, 2015. (Photo by Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP Photo)

Yan Anyu or Miss Cream rides in a taxi in Shanghai on June 13, 2020, as she makes her way to a bar in the city of Shanghai to make her first presentation as a drag queen. Attitudes toward alternative lifestyles are slowly softening in China, and members of a small but growing drag community have begun to step into the spotlight. (Photo by Hector Retamal/AFP Photo)

Residents push a makeshift raft loaded with a motorcycle through floodwaters brought about by heavy rains in Propseridad town, Agusan del Sur province on southern Mindanao island on February 1, 2024. Floods and landslides triggered by torrential rain have killed six people in the Philippines, with one other person missing, rescuers said February 1. (Photo by Erwin Mascarinas/AFP Photo)

In this photo taken on June 16, 2019 Indian stuntman Chanchal Lahiri, known by his stage name “Jadugar Mandrake”, is lowered into the Ganges river, while tied up with steel chains and ropes, in Kolkata. An Indian magician who went missing after being lowered into a river tied up in chains and ropes in a Houdini-inspired stunt is feared drowned, police said June 17. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)