Touching with the eye: science films, embodied technology and nanoscientific data

Science filmmakers have created new forms of image-based scientific data through techniques, such as stop-motion and time-lapse, predominantly using optical instrumentation. These techniques enable direct observation via the lenses of cameras and microscopes without further augmenting the human senses. However, these optical techniques cannot capture suprasensible phenomena - those that cannot be directly perceived without further translation. Observing these phenomena must be technologically mediated on multiple levels via instrumentation, hardware and software, effectively disrupting the filmmaker's experience of embodied technology, a crucial aspect of cinematographic practice. We speculate how to incorporate embodied technology that will enable filmmakers to depict suprasensible phenomena of nanoscale environments in experimental media works. This short paper details our practical experiments and experience with audio, visual and tactile representations of nano-data.