How to Fix AI-Generated Scientific Images Before Using Them
Image generators can make a nice-looking cell or nanoparticle in seconds, but the result is rarely ready for a paper or thesis. The usual problems are easy to spot once you know them.
Common problems
- Misspelt or made-up labels such as "mitochondira" or random letters.
- Wrong science: a lipid bilayer with heads facing inward, a drug in the wrong compartment, arrows pointing the wrong way in a pathway.
- Extra or missing parts: six legs on an insect, a nucleus in a bacterium.
- Low resolution and no layers, so you cannot edit a single label.
A quick checklist
- Read every label out loud and check the spelling against a textbook.
- Check each structure: is it the right shape, in the right place, in the right number?
- Check arrows: activation vs inhibition, direction of flow, order of steps.
- Check the resolution: most journals want at least 300 dpi at the printed size.
- Check your journal's policy on AI-generated images. Some do not accept them at all.
The fix: redraw it as a real figure
Instead of patching pixels, redraw the figure with correct shapes and typed labels. In SciFigures you can upload the AI image, say what it should show, and get it redrawn with code: spell-checked labels, correct structure, 300 dpi PNG and editable SVG. Because the figure is drawn from code, every label is real text you can edit later. Try it with the sketch to figure tool.
Make your figure nowDescribe it or upload a sketch. Free to start.
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