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10,000 microscope project

Started by Guest_Erica Lyons_* , Mar 11 2014 12:21 PM

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15 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 11 March 2014 - 12:21 PM

I just sent off an e-mail to request a microscope to participate in the 10,000 microscope project. In the e-mail, I said that if sent the microscope, I would take pictures of my elassoma okefenokee eggs, baby pond snails, freshwater copepods, and newly hatched baby brine shrimp nauplii. It then occurred to me that I should share the foldscope here with you all.

"Foldscope is an origami-based print-and-fold optical microscope that can be assembled from a flat sheet of paper. Although it costs less than a dollar in parts, it can provide over 2,000X magnification with sub-micron resolution (800nm), weighs less than two nickels (8.8 g), is small enough to fit in a pocket (70 × 20 × 2 mm3), requires no external power, and can survive being dropped from a 3-story building or stepped on by a person. Its minimalistic, scalable design is inherently application-specific instead of general-purpose gearing towards applications in global health, field based citizen science and K12-science education."

Here are examples of the images that can be captured. It can go up to 2,000x zoom:
Posted Image

http://www.foldscope.com/

What is the 10,000 microscope project?
"We intend to enlist 10,000 individuals who would be willing to beta-test Foldscope over the summer and develop single page science experiments, protocols, queries, questions, applications based on using Foldscope in a specific community. We aim to collectively write a crowd-sourced biology microscopy manual with examples collected from scientists, teachers, tinkerers, thinkers, hackers, kids and alike."

This sounds like a perfect project for NANFA members. Some of the example roles for individuals looking to sign up include:
"Nature lover - You often wonder what lies under the rocks and a leaf unturned.
Field trips - Collect samples from your neighborhoods to formulate questions that are context dependent and thus unique to your own environment."

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#2 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 11 March 2014 - 02:14 PM

You could easily take this microscope out on a collecting trip with you. It'll cost less than a dollar in parts, and is available now if you beta test it for them.

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#3 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 13 March 2014 - 03:12 PM

Seems to me this post is about 3 weeks too early.

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#4 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 13 March 2014 - 05:42 PM

Why? Ooooh lol, it's still cold outside. Well, it'll take time for your microscope to arrive in the mail.

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#5 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 14 March 2014 - 04:28 PM

Because I was thinking an April Fools joke. This is for real?
How does folded paper magnify an image, without a lens? And how are the images saved?

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#6 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 14 March 2014 - 05:34 PM

Short version:
The components are printed onto the single sheet of paper the microscope is then folded out of.

Posted Image

Here is a video that explains.
http://youtu.be/h8cF5QPPmWU

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#7 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 16 March 2014 - 12:48 PM

Would it be possible to coordinate something involving these field microscopes and the 2014 NANFA convention? It's a new, exciting opportunity to take microscopes out into the field, a place they've never been before.

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#8 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 16 March 2014 - 04:10 PM

OK so the lens is a tiny drop of plastic polymer - now I understand (the basic concept). Wow, that's quite amazing. Looks like it still needs a glass microscope slide; might not want to stomp on that. I've got a box of slides and coverslips i can bring if you can get us some foldscopes. I assume it has a single plane of focus for both direct viewing and projection? Or does the "paper microflexure" let you move the focus plane up & down by bending the paper?

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#9 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 16 March 2014 - 06:17 PM

He adjusts the focus in the video

I think if an admin asked the 10,000 microscope project, they'd supply foldscopes for our convention. I'm just a member and don't quite have the sway, but if, say a formal letter went out with NANFA letterhead, I bet they'd give us a foldscope per member if we offered to do a writeup on our field usage of the foldscopes for their textbook.

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#10 Guest_Irate Mormon_*

Guests

Posted 16 March 2014 - 11:44 PM

Keep in mind, this is a transmission scope, not a dissecting scope. It would be good for plankton and stuff, but not much help with Elassoma fry.

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#11 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 17 March 2014 - 10:01 AM

I sent an e-mail to the foldscope 'contact us'. I wish I'd copied and pasted it here before clicking send, but the basic gist was that I told them about NANFA, our mission statements, the upcoming convention, and how our North Carolina state representative Gerald has already volunteered to bring slides and coverslips. I said we'd be willing to write up something for their textbook on the plants, bugs, and other things we put under the microscope at the convention, as that coincides with our mission statement "to increase and disseminate knowledge about North America's native fishes and their habitats among aquarium hobbyists, biologists, fish and wildlife officials, anglers, educators, students, and others, through publications, electronic media, regional and national meetings, and other means" I will let everyone know if they get back to me about bulk foldscopes for all of us at the convention. In the meanwhile, please feel free to e-mail them to join the foldscope 10,000 microscope project individually.

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#12 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 17 March 2014 - 10:50 AM

Yup - semi-transparent things you can flatten: algae, protozoa, small nematodes, copepod nauplii. Objects that are more 3-dimensional like fish eggs, Daphnia, and insects might not work so well (except for legs and antennae, as shown in the demo). I wonder if a depression slide might work for slightly thicker objects, like an Elassoma fry? But if you cant focus up & down, then probably not. Could be a useful quick tool for checking the quality/density of "infusoria" food cultures.

Keep in mind, this is a transmission scope, not a dissecting scope. It would be good for plankton and stuff, but not much help with Elassoma fry.

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#13 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 17 March 2014 - 12:00 PM

Good Work! I agree this fits right in with our mission!

Since we are talking basic education, I am often amazed just to see a close up of a scale or a fin... these might look very nice under the microscope as well... not sure that we can say something super scientific about a close up of a basic structure like that, but I think it does show a side to fish that people don't normally see.

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#14 Guest_fundulus_*

Guests

Posted 17 March 2014 - 08:04 PM

With a confocal microscope you can get a picture like this, of a gill parasite of a snubnose darter from Estill Fork in Alabama. You can almost see all of the fun stuff even though it's only about 150 micrometers long.

Figure1a.jpg 9.33KB 2 downloads

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#15 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 14 April 2014 - 08:02 AM

I received an official response!
It's like a page long so I'll summarize: They basically said a conditional yes, and please fill out this form so they'll know how many to send. How do we feel about two things:

1) Our ability to pay the shipping cost
Options:
My circumstances make it difficult to pay for shipping costs.
I am comfortable paying shipping costs using a secure online form with a major credit card.
I am comfortable paying shipping costs using a secure online form with a major credit card AND would be potentially interested in donating a small amount to helping others who cannot afford these costs.

2) The number of foldscopes we estimate we'll need at the convention.
How many groups are going out each day? We could send at least one foldscope out per group.

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#16 Guest_Erica Lyons_*

Guests

Posted 23 May 2014 - 02:27 PM

I finally submitted the form, one month after receiving it. D'oh, my fault.
"Thank you for your interest in Foldscope! You will hear from us in the next few months if your application is selected."
hmm. We might or might not have them in time for the convention. I'll personally mail them to you all if we don't. I did tell them on the form how we need them by June 5th, so it's still possible.