3D model, based on confocal laser scanning microscopy data, of a Pediastrum sp. green alga. This is a freshwater colonial algae. The colony comprises a central cell surrounded by concentric rings of cells, the outermost of which each have two lobes projecting outwards, giving the colony a spiky appearance. Each individual cell can form a complete new colony, enabling the organism to multiply rapidly. Confocal laser scanning microscopy is an imaging technique that focuses a laser beam on or inside a sample, and produces an image from only the point in focus. The focal point can be scanned over the subject, allowing images of very thin layers of an object to be obtained, which can be combined in a computer to form a detailed 3D image.