This is a bacteriophage.
Kind of eerie and ghostly, isn’t it?
It’s a virus that infects bacteria, looks like the lunar lander, and was among the first viruses ever discovered. These guys may also be the most ubiquitous biological entities on the planet; you may be swallowing untold millions in every accidental mouthful of fresh or seawater. Did I mention the water’s teeming with the bacteria and archaea they prey on too?
Most viruses are either simple rods, spheres, or polyhedrons (often icosahedrons — 20-sided polyhedra, of course). This baby is both and then some. In the world of virus architecture, this is the fully loaded Corvette with T-tops, all-leather seats, and pre-installed hot chick. It is a natural work of art.
So why didn’t someone think of this sooner?
I have no idea who this guy is but I like how he thinks. There’s a certain delicious irony in using old computers to build models of . . . viruses. My capsid’s off to you, sir. Who needs a lawn gnome when you can have a lawn phage?
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I never thought that hot chicks and bacteriophages would ever be used together, but dagnabbit, you did it.
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/science-tattoo-emporium/?nggpage=7
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