Narrator: THERE IS A WORLD ALL AROUND US
THAT WE SIMPLY CAN'T SEE,
BUT WHAT IF WE COULD EXPLORE BEYOND THE LIMITS OF OUR SENSES?
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LET'S SLOW DOWN TIME...
FIX YOUR GAZE...
REVEAL THE UNSEEN...
AND DON'T BLINK.
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Morris: POINCARé FAMOUSLY SAID THAT THE SCIENTIST
DOES NOT STUDY NATURE BECAUSE IT IS USEFUL.
HE STUDIES IT BECAUSE IT IS BEAUTIFUL.
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NOT ONLY IS A SNOWFLAKE BEAUTIFUL,
BUT THERE ARE SUCH AN INFINITE NUMBER OF THEM
THAT YOU CAN NEVER EVEN BEGIN TO THINK ABOUT EXAMINING THEM ALL.
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SO, AS YOU WALK THROUGH THE SNOWY WOODS,
YOU CAN CONTEMPLATE OBVIOUSLY
THE STUPENDOUS NUMBER OF SNOWFLAKES,
EACH ONE OF WHICH IS A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE ARTWORK
AND NO ONE WILL EVER SEE IT
AND NO ONE WILL EVER BE ABLE TO HAVE TIME TO LOOK AT IT.
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SNOWFLAKES GROW HIGH IN THE ATMOSPHERE
WHERE IT'S VERY COLD, FAR BELOW ZERO.
AND AS YOU GET A SPECK OF DUST OR SOMETHING,
WATER WILL BEGIN TO ATTACH ITSELF TO THAT
AND MAKE ICE DIRECTLY FROM VAPOR.
AND THEN THE SNOWFLAKE WILL GROW
WHILE IT'S BEING BLOWN AROUND INSIDE THE CLOUD.
EVENTUALLY, IT GETS HEAVY ENOUGH AND THEN FALLS DOWN.
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Komarechka: LOOKING AT ONE SNOWFLAKE AND ONLY A SINGLE SNOWFLAKE,
YOU CAN TELL ITS ENTIRE PAST.
IT'S LIKE THERE'S A LITTLE UNIVERSE OF DECISIONS
AND CHOICES THAT WERE MADE ON A PHYSICS LEVEL
IN ORDER TO CREATE THAT STRUCTURE
UNIQUE TO THAT ONE SINGLE SNOWFLAKE.
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[ SNIFFS ]
WOW, THAT'S AN INTERESTING ONE.
MY GOAL IS TO TRY AND FIND ONE SNOWFLAKE
ISOLATED AMIDST ALL THE CHAOS
AND FIND THAT PERFECT ANGLE FROM WHICH TO PHOTOGRAPH IT.
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NOW, I SHOOT MULTIPLE IMAGES
BECAUSE I CAN ONLY GET A TINY SLIVER OF THE SNOWFLAKE
IN FOCUS AT ANY GIVEN TIME.
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ON AVERAGE, I MIGHT PHOTOGRAPH
BETWEEN 200 AND 300 IMAGES OF THE SAME SNOWFLAKE
AND COMBINE THE NEEDED PUZZLE PIECES TOGETHER AFTERWARDS
TO GET IT IN FOCUS FROM TIP TO TIP.
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Morris: A LOT OF SNOWFLAKES ARE ACTUALLY LITTLE HEXAGONS
IF YOU LOOK AT THEM.
BUT THE MORE INTRICATE ONES, THE MORE FAMOUS ONES,
ARE ONES WHERE THE TIPS OF THE POINTS OF THE HEXAGON
GROW A LITTLE FASTER THAN THE SIDES OF THE HEXAGON,
AND SO YOU GET THESE ARMS.
YOU GET SIX ARMS.
AS THE TIP OF THE ARM GROWS FAST,
IT MAKES WHAT'S CALLED A DENDRITE.
AND THAT DENDRITE CAN BE UNSTABLE TO SIDE BRANCHES,
SO LITTLE SIDE CRYSTALS
WHICH ARE IN EVERY WAY LIKE THE TIP OF THE DENDRITE,
ONLY AT 60 DEGREES TO THE SIDE.
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AND IT'S REALLY AN INSTABILITY.
THE ARM GROWS FOR A WHILE,
AND THEN THE SIDE OF THE ARM
RESEMBLES THE CRYSTAL FROM WHICH IT IS GROWING,
AND IT'S UNSTABLE TO GROWING ITS OWN ARM.
SO WHENEVER THE ARM IS BIG ENOUGH,
IT'S UNSTABLE TO GROW ANOTHER ARM.
AND THAT GIVES YOU THE DENDRITIC SHAPE.
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[ RUSTLING ]
Komarechka: I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER SEEN A SNOWFLAKE LIKE THIS ONE BEFORE.
SO IF I CAN JUST CLEAN IT UP...
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AND THEN I SNAP IT IN HALF.
WELL, THAT IS THE GAME.
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I MIGHT BE PHOTOGRAPHING A SINGLE SNOWFLAKE,
BUT I LOOK AROUND ME, AND I SEE MILLIONS OF THEM FALLING DOWN.
AND I CAN REPLICATE THAT BEAUTY IN MY MIND AND SAY, YES,
THIS ONE SNOWFLAKE MULTIPLIED BY A MILLION
MAKES THE WORLD A MORE BEAUTIFUL PLACE.
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