This animation uses the process of smooth muscle cell contraction to depict the concept of scaling in cellular and molecular biology. It uses the following 3D dynamic processes and auditory cues to show four levels of organization within the cellular environment of a smooth muscle cell (protein, protein domain, amino acid, and atomic levels):

• "Powers-of-ten” grid to visually segue between spatial levels

• Sonification to aurally segue between spatial levels

• Speed change to transition between temporal levels

• Molecular crowding is emphasized to highlight its important role in cellular function

Visuals are required in order to grasp the abstract concepts associated with the discipline of cellular and molecular biology. The piecewise method of teaching cellular and molecular biology is important to isolate concepts for students to focus on, but this also creates a lack of context and connections. There are many levels of organization within the cell, each with events that occur simultaneously and at different spatial and temporal scales. Textbooks can serve as the main source of visuals in an undergraduate biology course, yet visuals of isolated events do not allow for an appreciation of how the event is part of a larger network of events within a cell. Three-dimensional animation, with its ability to show dynamic processes and its ability to include auditory cues, is a tool that is beneficial for depicting the concept of scaling.