What Does an Atom Look Like?

Have you ever wondered what an atom actually LOOKS like? Does it look like that popular 50s illustration of those tiny balls connected with lines buzzing around a nucleus?



Guess again. As you can see from the startling image below, captured by a new breed of supercomputing scanning electron microscope, an individual atom actually looks strikingly like the 80s pop singer George Michael. The resemblance is undeniable, as you can indeed see from this admittedly blurry image.



If estimates are correct, since an average human weighing about 150 lbs. is composed of approximately 7,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 atoms, more than all the stars in the universe, there are many, many versions of "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" occurring inside you at this very moment. Classical, reggae, country, House, Dub, ska, disco, electronica, Ambient, jazz, blues, rock, metal, Bollywood, you name it. (Either that, or "You Gotta Have Faith.")

Luckily for us all, no public restrooms are involved.

Okay, just kidding. Go read my apology. And the following is what an atoms REALLY looks like: