An Open Letter: The Power of Science Illustration

Dear Everyday DNA Readers, 

If you’ve been part of the Everyday DNA journey for a while, you’ve likely smiled at one of our signature illustrations. Maybe you remember the mischievous peanut witch from our ‘No Tricks, Just MAGIC!’ post, or the adorable DNA-helix ice cream cones from ‘The Many Flavors of Genetic Sequencing.’ Behind every one of those joyful, accessible images has been our incredibly talented graphic designer, Cathleen Shaw. 

After years of lending her creativity to the blog, Cathleen is retiring. While we will deeply miss her artistry, we are grateful for everything she has brought to this space, not only her visuals but also her ability to take my stick figure ideas and turn them into something that helps our readers truly understand the science I’m explaining. 

This is both a thank-you note to Cathleen and a reflection on why science communication, especially science illustration, matters so profoundly to us right now. 

The Importance of Science Communication 

Science, particularly genetics, is a complex and challenging field. It can be hard to picture DNA twisting through the microscopic spaces of a cell or understand how changes in a microscopic molecule can affect your health. Many scientific fields operate in a world that is too small, too fast, and often too abstract for the naked eye. 

When I first began my journey in science communication, I saw myself solely as a writer. I loved storytelling, I understood the science, and I genuinely believed I could change the world with a perfectly crafted sentence. But I quickly realized words, sometimes, just aren’t enough.

We all learn differently. While I benefit from reading books, I know many people, myself included, rely heavily on diagrams, graphics, or even auditory cues and videos to truly grasp a concept. It was this realization that redefined my mission as a science communicator. I want to meet people where they learn. That meant branching out and partnering with others who could help bring my words to life across many different forms of media. 

In the winter of 2020, Cathleen and I began Everyday DNA to provide fun and accessible genetics information to the broader public. When she delivered the first set of illustrations, I was instantly in love. They were loose, fun, and approachable—the visual addition my writing desperately needed to turn complicated facts into inviting stories.

When it comes to learning and remembering, our brains are hard-wired to prioritize images. You could read a dense, detailed paragraph describing the structure of a mitochondrion, but your mind is likely working overtime, struggling to assemble those words into a coherent three-dimensional model.

Psychologists call this phenomenon the Picture Superiority Effect: our brains are wired to remember and understand visuals far more readily than text. A good science visual allows the mind to skip straight to insight. It’s the difference between hearing a list of driving directions and simply looking at a map.

Beyond cognitive benefits, science communication is crucial for our world today. Accurate and engaging visuals ensure the benefits of scientific research, from new medical breakthroughs to engineering solutions, are widely understood and can be practically applied across society.

As our community faces decisions about public health, innovation, and education, we benefit from having more communicators who bridge the gap between science and society. Science belongs to everyone, and visuals are one of the most effective tools we have to make sure everyone can see it clearly.

To all the science illustrators, graphic designers, data visualization experts, and medical illustrators out there: we thank you. Your work is often invisible because it is so seamlessly integrated into the learning process, but it is fundamentally essential. You are the specialized bridge builders, the visual interpreters who turn the complex realities of molecular biology into something accessible, relatable, and exciting for everyone. You are the reason so many people can finally visualize a double helix or track a protein’s journey through a cell.

For our loyal readers of Everyday DNA: Thank you for engaging with the science we share. We are excited about the future and the next evolution of our blog’s visual identity. The commitment to making genetics and genomics understandable remains our absolute priority, and we look forward to continuing that mission.

Happy holidays and best wishes for the new year,

Dr. Sarah Sharman