Thumb-sized pinkies

These one-day old mouse pups, "pinkies" as I like to call them, were used by scientists at the University of Illinois at Chicago to test the effects of bisphenol A, a chemical found in many consumer plastic products.

Animal testing in controversial and, admittedly, the animal lover in me wanted to put them in my sunglasses case and smuggle them out. I wasn't sure how I'd feel seeing them exposed to the chemical via nose drops and injection, and was a tad apprehensive before arriving at the clinic.

But I also understand that this type of research has led to drugs that improve the lives of humans. It's not for me to say what's right or wrong -- a notion I go back to again and again as a journalist.

This photo makes me smile b/c it looks like they're wrestling, and clearly the one on the bottom is not happy about the outcome.
I photographed the little fellas on a microscope, using only the light from the base of the scope as my light source.