Beautiful, strange and occasionally alarming pictures from the shortlist for this year’s Wellcome image awards – which celebrate the very best in science photography and imaging – from an x-ray of a bat to a micrograph of a kidney stone. The exhibition opens on 12 March at three science centres and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. Photo: Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of an Arabidopsis thaliana flower, also commonly known as thale cress. Some of the anthers are open, revealing pollen grains ready for dispersal. Arabidopsis was the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced and is widely used as a model organism in molecular and plant biology. Horizontal width of image is 1200 microns. Magnification 100x. (Photo by Stefan Eberhard/Wellcome Images)

Deputies in the Ukrainian parliament brawled in the chamber on Tuesday, April 8, 2014 after a communist leader accused nationalists of playing into the hands of Russia by adopting extreme tactics early in the Ukrainian crisis. Two deputies from the Svoboda far-right nationalist party took exception to the charges by communist Petro Symonenko and seized him while he was talking from the rostrum. (Photo by Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters)

Kim Kardashian heads out in Miami wearing a see-through nude color top on September 17, 2016. (Photo by Splash News and Pictures)

Supporters of the United Democratic Party (UDP) opposition alliance presidential candidate, Adama Barrow attend a campaign rally in Buffer zone, Gambia November 29, 2016. (Photo by Thierry Gouegnon/Reuters)

News personality Katie Couric, left, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, center, and model Chrissy Teigen mingle during the White House Correspondents' Association dinner at the Washington Hilton on Saturday, April 25, 2015, in Washington. (Photo by Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Yuanlei Liao, the singer of hardcore band called Thank Ray wears a read scarf after performing on the stage of Mao Live House during the club's last public concert night in central Beijing, China April 23, 2016. Mao Live House, a prominent live rock music venue in Beijing, shut its doors on the weekend, the latest closure to hit China's rock music scene. Owner Li Chi said the club, popular among fans of punk, metal and alternative rock since it opened nine years ago, was forced to close due to tighter rules on live performances. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

Brazilian model Izabel Goulart for the screening of the film “Sink Or Swim (Le Grand Bain)” at the 71st Cannes Film Festival, France on May 13, 2018. (Photo by Stephane Mahe/Reuters)

A performer takes part in the annual street parade, which is part of the Carnival of Cultures celebrating the multi-ethnic diversity of the city, in Berlin, Germany on May 20, 2018. (Photo by Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters)