“When I was 8 years old, my parents paid a smuggler to take me across the Himalayas, a weekslong walk over the mountains from Tibet to India. It was a trek that tens of thousands of other Tibetans have taken since the Dalai Lama fled a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule. My parents must have had their reasons to send me here; they must have had the best of intentions. But 18 years later, I still don't know why they did it. They are not political people. They are small farmers who raise barley and a few yak in a rural area not far from Lhasa, the Tibetan capital. I have not seen them since I left...”. – Tsering Topgyal via The Associated Press. (Photo by Tsering Topgyal/AP Photo)

With its huge eyes, comical name and diminutive size, Mark R. Smith’s image of a baby Hawaiian bobtail squid can’t help but raise a smile. A curiously endearing creature, the cephalopod is just 1.5cm across, its mantle cavity bearing more than a passing resemblance to a rather natty shower cap. But it is also a beautiful example of symbiosis – nature’s version of “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine” – for on the underside of the squid is a light organ which houses bioluminescent bacteria. The squid offers the bacteria protection and food, while the bacteria emit a glow – a handy trait that the squid uses to offset its silhouette, helping it to evade predators in the depths below. Mark R. Smith’s entry combines several images of a Hawaiian bobtail squid with different focus lengths to create a final picture with greater depth of field than normal. (Photo by Mark R. Smith/Wellcome Images/Macroscopic Solutions)

Medical personnel jump in the COVID-19 unit at the CHR Centre Hospitalier Regional de la Citadelle Hospital, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Liege, Belgium, April 22, 2020. (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)

A girl picks catkins at a field amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Sarighat, on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh, October 2, 2020. (Photo by Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)

People walk during a polluted day in Shenyang, Liaoning province, March 31, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Jeffrey Shiau, 35, a volunteer from the crowd, spits water into the mouth of Sam Kaufman, 27, a performer from the Human Fountains, during a reopening party held as coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions are gradually lifted in Los Angeles, California, U.S. June 15, 2021. (Photo by Cheney Orr/Reuters)

Australia's State Emergency Service (SES) personnel gather at the scene of a light plane crash near the Capital Golf Course, in Melbourne, Australia, 22 June 2021. A pilot was injured and rushed to hospital after his light plane crashed shortly after taking off from Moorabbin Airport. (Photo by James Ross/EPA/EFE)

Hindu devotees offer prayers during “Chhat Puja” festival on the banks of the Brahmaputra River in Guwahati on November 10, 2021. (Photo by Biju Boro/AFP Photo)