Anna Guerrero

Anna is a PhD candidate in Biology and Society. She studies how scientists use images, from conceptual diagrams to models to micrographs, to experience the microscopic universe. She is particularly interested in how scienctists use visual representation to conceptualize microbial communities. Utilizing techniques from history of science, philosophy of science, and microbiology, she documents how reserachers understand "invisible" biological phenomena, or those phenomena that are too small, large, or abstract to experience without the help of technology. Anna tries to help scientists see how images influence their ideas about microorganisms, and, less obviously, how their ideas about microorganisms influence the images they make. Finally, she is curious about the methods scientists use to communicate experiences of microorganisms to other scientists and the broader public, the consequences of current communication practices, and the ways in which current practices may be changed or improved. 

Anna is also a professional scientific illustrator. She is thrilled to continue her work with the Center for Biology and Society at ASU, where she instructs the Embryo Project Illustration Course.