Fig. 5.

Simple, straight, rod-like cell shapes require multiple parameters to describe them. A straight rod is defined by its centerline curvature, cylindrical uniformity, and diameter. Deviations in any of these properties result in non-straight rods in extreme cases, and qualitatively ambiguous rods when only small changes occur. Teal—as centerline defects increase in magnitude cells become more bent until they are no longer straight. Purple—as cylindrical uniformity decreases cells exhibit increase fluctuations in their diameter along the long axis. Red—as width increases cells become more sphere like and less rod-like. For each of these shape descriptors, a quantitative metric of shape provides a continuous rather than a binary description of rod vs. non-rod