“The power of nature”. Magma, ash and gas erupt from Mount Etna in December 2015, rising to a height of several kilometres. Winner: Nature. (Photo by Giuseppe Mario Famiani/SIPA Contest)

A woman from the Tarahumara ethnic group cuts firewood with an ax while preparing for winter in Caborachi village, in Guachochi, Mexico, December 17, 2016. (Photo by Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters)

People will spout about impermanence of digital records, but books are really fragile, too. Alexis Arnold from San Francisco wanted to illustrate that with her project The Crystallized Book: collecting books and growing Borax crystals on them. Books range from literature classics to magazines, and there’s even a mysterious and arcane tome called “Linux: The Complete Manual”.

Artist Joe Hill poses on his 3D artwork, from the “Joe and Max” project as part of an advertising campaign, during its presentation at a park in Moscow, Russia, July 4, 2015. (Photo by Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters)

Students from Vida Nueva School present their dinosaur robot built with recycled materials during the annual robotics fair supported by the Bolivian Education Ministry in La Paz, August 10, 2015. (Photo by David Mercado/Reuters)

Dancers from the Philadelphia Ballet perform for Pope Francis (R) as he attends the Festival of Families rally in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania September 26, 2015. (Photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters)

A model wears a creation from the Alexandre Herchcovitch winter collection during the Sao Paulo Fashion Week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sunday, October 18, 2015. (Photo by Andre Penner/AP Photo)

A mahout rides on an elephant in the city of Amritsar, India, 08 November 2015. Such elephants are often accompanied by their caretakers who ask for alms from people in the streets. (Photo by Raminder Pal Singh/EPA)