It's the UN's International Year of Light, and an interdisciplinary & international scientific community is looking into many facets of light, from the sun and the stars to photosynthesis and bioluminescence in nature. Scientists and engineers are figuring out amazing new ways to use many forms of light in medicine, communications, & culture, while the National Science Foundation has funded research in extreme UV and x-ray sources, biophotonics (where photonics meets biology), and much more.