Through the Magnifying Glass: a Short History of the Microscope
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How to Choose and Use Birding Optics
Blackburnian Warbler In association with Chestnut-sided Warbler CONTENTS Birding Optics 101 . 2 Optics Terms . 3 How Binoculars Work . 6 All About Spotting Scopes . 10 Top 10 Tips for Purchasing Your First Optics . 14 Adjusting Your Birding Optics . 18 Become a Birder in 5 Simple Steps . 22 Identifying Birds . 24 Three Tips for IDing Birds . 26 Traveling With Optics . 28 BIRDING OPTICS 101 No bird watcher’s toolkit is complete without optics, which means binoculars or a spotting scope . While you can bird without the magnifying power of optics, you won’t always get a satisfactory look at the birds, and will likely miss a few IDs . One barrier to entry for aspiring birders is the belief that quality optics are expensive . They can be, but they don’t have to be . Technological and manufacturing advances mean that today’s binoculars and spotting scopes are more affordable than ever, while still featuring high-end materials . So, where do you begin when selecting your first birding optics? In this guide, we discuss how binoculars and spotting scopes work, so you can select the best optics to enhance your birding experience . Once you’ve made your choice, we’ll teach you how to clean and care for your optics . You will learn to love them, because they are your gateway to discovering flocks’ worth of amazing birds . OPTICS DEFINED: WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET The vast majority of birders use binoculars—also known as “binos,” “binocs,” or “bins” for short . When you hear birders use the term “optics,” they are usually referring to binoculars . -
Antony Van Leeuwenhoek, the Father of Microscope
Turkish Journal of Biochemistry – Türk Biyokimya Dergisi 2016; 41(1): 58–62 Education Sector Letter to the Editor – 93585 Emine Elif Vatanoğlu-Lutz*, Ahmet Doğan Ataman Medicine in philately: Antony Van Leeuwenhoek, the father of microscope Pullardaki tıp: Antony Van Leeuwenhoek, mikroskobun kaşifi DOI 10.1515/tjb-2016-0010 only one lens to look at blood, insects and many other Received September 16, 2015; accepted December 1, 2015 objects. He was first to describe cells and bacteria, seen through his very small microscopes with, for his time, The origin of the word microscope comes from two Greek extremely good lenses (Figure 1) [3]. words, “uikpos,” small and “okottew,” view. It has been After van Leeuwenhoek’s contribution,there were big known for over 2000 years that glass bends light. In the steps in the world of microscopes. Several technical inno- 2nd century BC, Claudius Ptolemy described a stick appear- vations made microscopes better and easier to handle, ing to bend in a pool of water, and accurately recorded the which led to microscopy becoming more and more popular angles to within half a degree. He then very accurately among scientists. An important discovery was that lenses calculated the refraction constant of water. During the combining two types of glass could reduce the chromatic 1st century,around year 100, glass had been invented and effect, with its disturbing halos resulting from differences the Romans were looking through the glass and testing in refraction of light (Figure 2) [4]. it. They experimented with different shapes of clear glass In 1830, Joseph Jackson Lister reduced the problem and one of their samples was thick in the middle and thin with spherical aberration by showing that several weak on the edges [1]. -
Why Natural History Matters
Why Practice Natural History? Why Natural History Matters Thomas L. Fleischner Thomas L. Fleischner ([email protected]) is a professor in the Environmental Studies Program at Prescott College, 220 Grove Avenue, Prescott, Arizona 86301 U.S.A., and founding President of the Natural History Network. The world needs natural history now more children: we turn over stones, we crouch to than ever. Because natural history – which look at insects crawling past, we turn our I have defined as “a practice of intentional heads to listen to new sounds. Indeed, as focused attentiveness and receptivity to the we grow older we have to learn to not pay more-than-human world, guided by attention to our world. The advertising honesty and accuracy” (Fleischner 2001, industry and mass consumer culture 2005) – makes us better, more complete collude to encourage this shrinking of the human beings. This process of “careful, scope of our attention. But natural history patient … sympathetic observation” attentiveness is inherent in us, and it can be (Norment 2008) – paying attention to the reawakened readily. larger than human world – allows us to build better human societies, ones that are It is easy to forget what an anomalous time less destructive and dysfunctional. Natural we now live in. Natural history is the history helps us see the world, and thus oldest continuous human tradition. ourselves, more accurately. Moreover, it Throughout human history and encourages and inspires better stewardship “prehistory,” attentiveness to nature was so of the Earth. completely entwined with daily life and survival that it was never considered as a Natural history encourages our conscious, practice separate from life itself. -
The Voc and Swedish Natural History. the Transmission of Scientific Knowledge in the Eighteenth Century
THE VOC AND SWEDISH NATURAL HISTORY. THE TRANSMISSION OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY Christina Skott In the later part of the eighteenth century Sweden held a place as one of the foremost nations in the European world of science. This was mainly due to the fame of Carl Linnaeus (1707–78, in 1762 enno- bled von Linné), whose ground breaking new system for classifying the natural world created a uniform system of scientific nomenclature that would be adopted by scientists all over Europe by the end of the century. Linnaeus had first proposed his new method of classifying plants in the slim volume Systema Naturae, published in 1735, while he was working and studying in Holland. There, he could for the first time himself examine the flora of the Indies: living plants brought in and cultivated in Dutch gardens and greenhouses as well as exotic her- baria collected by employees of the VOC. After returning to his native Sweden in 1737 Linnaeus would not leave his native country again. But, throughout his lifetime, Systema Naturae would appear in numerous augmented editions, each one describing new East Indian plants and animals. The Linnean project of mapping the natural world was driven by a strong patriotic ethos, and Linneaus would rely heavily on Swed- ish scientists and amateur collectors employed by the Swedish East India Company; but the links to the Dutch were never severed, and he maintained extensive contacts with leading Dutch scientists through- out his life. Linnaeus’ Dutch connections meant that his own students would become associated with the VOC. -
Aerospace Micro-Lesson
AIAA AEROSPACE M ICRO-LESSON Easily digestible Aerospace Principles revealed for K-12 Students and Educators. These lessons will be sent on a bi-weekly basis and allow grade-level focused learning. - AIAA STEM K-12 Committee. MAKE YOUR OWN TELESCOPE One usually thinks of telescopes as professionally-made precision instruments—and a good telescope certainly is. Larger telescopes even have their own buildings, called observatories. It is possible, however, to create one’s own telescope very easily with a pair of magnifying glasses. You do not even need a tube. Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS): * Discipline: Physical science. * Crosscutting Concept: Scale, proportion, and quantity. * Science & Engineering Practice: Constructing explanations and designing solutions. Common Core State Standards (CCSS): * Geometry: Modeling with geometry. GRADES K-2 NGSS: Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer: Plan and conduct investigations to determine the effect of placing objects made with different materials in the path of a beam of light. The basic part of a telescope is a magnifying glass. You can show the kids a magnifying glass and point out that it makes objects look larger if you look at them through it. You can point out that they need to hold the magnifying glass a certain distance from the object for them to see it clearly. When an object looks clear in a magnifying glass, we say that it is “in focus.” When it looks blurry, we say that it is “out of focus.” There are several stories about the invention of the telescope. One of them recounts that there was a Dutch eyeglass maker about 400 years ago named Hans Lippershey (pronounced in Dutch as “Lippers-hey” rather than “Lipper-shay”). -
The Frog in Taffeta Pants
Evolutionary Anthropology 13:5–10 (2004) CROTCHETS & QUIDDITIES The Frog in Taffeta Pants KENNETH WEISS What is the magic that makes dead flesh fly? himself gave up on the preformation view). These various intuitions arise natu- Where does a new life come from? manded explanation. There was no rally, if sometimes fancifully. The nat- Before there were microscopes, and compelling reason to think that what uralist Henry Bates observed that the before the cell theory, this was not a one needed to find was too small to natives in the village of Aveyros, up trivial question. Centuries of answers see. Aristotle hypothesized epigenesis, the Tapajos tributary to the Amazon, were pure guesswork by today’s stan- a kind of spontaneous generation of believed the fire ants, that plagued dards, but they had deep implications life from the required materials (pro- them horribly, sprang up from the for the understanding of life. The vided in the egg), that systematic ob- blood of slaughtered victims of the re- 5 phrase spontaneous generation has servation suggested coalesced into a bellion of 1835–1836 in Brazil. In gone out of our vocabulary except as chick. Such notions persisted for cen- fact, Greek mythology is full of beings an historical relic, reflecting a total turies into what we will see was the spontaneously arising—snakes from success of two centuries of biological critical 17th century, when the follow- Medusa’s blood, Aphrodite from sea- research.1 The realization that a new ing alchemist’s recipe was offered for foam, and others. Even when the organism is always generated from the production of mice:3,4 mix sweaty truth is known, we can be similarly one or more cells shed by parents ex- underwear and wheat husks; store in impressed with the phenomena of plained how something could arise open-mouthed jar for 21 days; the generation. -
Lecture 15 Optical Instruments
LECTURE 15 OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS Instructor: Kazumi Tolich Lecture 15 2 ¨ Reading chapter 27.1 to 27.6 ¤ Optical Instruments n Eyes n Cameras n Simple magnifiers n Compound microscopes n Telescopes ¤ Lens aberrations Quiz: 1 3 ¨ If your near point distance is �, how close can you stand to a mirror and still be able to focus on your (beautiful) image? Answer in terms of �, i.e., what is � in ��? Quiz: 15-1 answer 4 ¨ 0.5 � ¨ The near point, �, is the closest point to the eye that the lens is able to focus (~ 25 cm for normal eyes). ¨ If you are a distance 0.5 � in front of a mirror, your image is a distance 0.5 � behind the mirror. ¨ Therefore, you can clearly see your image if the distance from you to your image is �. ¨ The far point is the farthest point at which the eye can focus (∞ for normal eyes). Cameras 5 ¨ The camera lens moves closer to or farther away from the film in order to focus. ¨ The amount of light reaching the film is determined by shutter speed and the �-number: ./012 234567 > �-number = = 891:363; /. 1<3;6=;3 ? Quiz: 2 6 ¨ A camera’s �-number is reduced from 2.8 to 1.4. Does the light entering the camera (the exposure) increase, decrease, or remains the same, assuming the shutter speed is unchanged? A. Increase B. Decrease C. Remains the same Quiz: 15-2 answer 7 ¨ Increase ./012 234567 > ¨ �-number = = 891:363; /. 1<3;6=;3 ? ¨ Decreasing the �-number will increase the diameter. ¨ This will increase the area through which light enters and thus increases the exposure. -
History and Scope of Microbiology the Story of Invisible Organisms
A study material for M.Sc. Biochemistry (Semester: IV) Students on the topic (EC-1; Unit I) History and Scope of Microbiology The story of invisible organisms Dr. Reena Mohanka Professor & Head Department of Biochemistry Patna University Mob. No.:- +91-9334088879 E. Mail: [email protected] MICROBIOLOGY 1. WHAT IS A MICROBIOLOGY? Micro means very small and biology is the study of living things, so microbiology is the study of very small living things normally too small that are usually unable to be viewed with the naked eye. Need a microscope to see them Virus - 10 →1000 nanometers Bacteria - 0.1 → 5 micrometers (Human eye ) can see 0.1 mm to 1 mm Microbiology has become an umbrella term that encompasses many sub disciplines or fields of study. These include: - Bacteriology: The study of bacteria - Mycology: Fungi - Protozoology: Protozoa - Phycology: Algae - Parasitology: Parasites - Virology: Viruses WHAT IS THE NEED TO STUDY MICROBIOLOGY • Genetic engineering • Recycling sewage • Bioremediation: use microbes to remove toxins (oil spills) • Use of microbes to control crop pests • Maintain balance of environment (microbial ecology) • Basis of food chain • Nitrogen fixation • Manufacture of food and drink • Photosynthesis: Microbes are involved in photosynthesis and accounts for >50% of earth’s oxygen History of Microbiology Anton van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) (Dutch Scientist) • The credit of discovery of microbial world goes to Anton van Leeuwenhoek. He made careful observations of microscopic organisms, which he called animalcules (1670s). • Antoni van Leeuwenhoek described live microorganisms that he observed in teeth scrapings and rain water. • Major contributions to the development of microbiology was the invention of the microscope (50-300X magnification) by Anton von Leuwenhoek and the implementation of the scientific method. -
2. Scientific Inquiry-S
Scientific Inquiry What do scientists do? Why? Science is a unique way of learning about the natural world. Scientists work hard to explain events, living organisms, and changes we see around us every day. Model 1 depicts typical activities or stages scientists engage in when conducting their work. The design of the model shows how various steps in scientific inquiry are connected to one another. None of the activities stands alone—they are all interdependent. Model 1 – Scientific Inquiry Observe Communicate Define the with the wider problem community Form a Reflect study on the question findings Questions Research Analyze the problem the results State the Experiment expectations and gather (hypothesis) data Scientific Inquiry 1 1. What is the central theme of all scientific inquiry as shown in Model 1? 2. What are the nine activities that scientists engage in as part of scientific inquiry? 3. Which of the activities would require a scientist to make some observations? 4. Which of the steps would require a scientist to gather data? 5. Considering the activity described as “communicating with the wider community,” in what ways might a scientist communicate? 6. Remembering that scientists often work in teams, which activities would require a scientist to communicate with others? 7. Given your responses to Questions 1–6, do you think these activities must be carried out in a specific order or can multiple activities be carried out at the same time? Justify your response by giving examples to support your answer. 2 POGIL™ Activities for High School Biology Model 2 – Redi’s Experiment Meat Fly eggs and maggots Fly Solid cover Screen cover Container 1 Container 2 Container 3 The table below represents the ideas the Italian scientist Francesco Redi (1626–1698) might have had as he was carrying out his experiments. -
The Fingerprint Sourcebook
CHAPTER HISTORY Jeffery G. Barnes CONTENTS 3 1.1 Introduction 11 1.6 20th Century 3 1.2 Ancient History 17 1.7 Conclusion 4 1.3 221 B.C. to A.D. 1637 17 1.8 Reviewers 5 1.4 17th and 18th Centuries 17 1.9 References 6 1.5 19th Century 18 1.10 Additional Information 1–5 History C H A P T E R 1 CHAPTER 1 HISTORY 1.1 Introduction The long story of that inescapable mark of identity has Jeffery G. Barnes been told and retold for many years and in many ways. On the palm side of each person’s hands and on the soles of each person’s feet are prominent skin features that single him or her out from everyone else in the world. These fea- tures are present in friction ridge skin which leaves behind impressions of its shapes when it comes into contact with an object. The impressions from the last finger joints are known as fingerprints. Using fingerprints to identify indi- viduals has become commonplace, and that identification role is an invaluable tool worldwide. What some people do not know is that the use of friction ridge skin impressions as a means of identification has been around for thousands of years and has been used in several cultures. Friction ridge skin impressions were used as proof of a person’s identity in China perhaps as early as 300 B.C., in Japan as early as A.D. 702, and in the United States since 1902. 1.2 Ancient History Earthenware estimated to be 6000 years old was discov- ered at an archaeological site in northwest China and found to bear clearly discernible friction ridge impressions. -
Conservation Update for Robert Hooke's Micrographia
Slide 1 Conservation Update Robert Hooke’s Micrographia London:1667 Eliza Gilligan, Conservator for UVa Library [[email protected]] Hello, my name is Eliza Gilligan and I am the Conservator for University Library Collections at the University of Virginia. This slide show is a “re-broadcast” of a presentation I made at a library staff “Town Meeting” on September 16, 2011. I hope my notes to the slides fill in the gaps left by the transition from live presentation to this show, but if you have a question, please feel free to email me <[email protected]>. I’d like to share a little bit of information about the process of conservation treatment and also a little bit of information about what a unique opportunity conservation treatment provides in terms of examining the components of a book, using my recent treatment of Robert Hooke’s Micrographia as an example. Conservation of this title and many volumes from our circulating collections were made possible by a generous gift from Kathy Duffy, friend of the University Library Slide 2 What is Micrographia? The landmark publication that initiated the field of microscopy. The first edition was published in London in 1665. Robert Hooke described his use of a microscope for direct observation, provided text of his findings but most importantly, large illustrations to demonstrate his findings. The UVa Library copy is from the second issue printed in 1667. Eliza Gilligan, Conservator for UVa Library [[email protected]] This book was brought to my attention by a faculty member of the Rare Book School who uses it every year in her History of Illustration class. -
Syllabus a History of Animals in the Atlantic World
Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala, El Primer Nueva Corónica y Buen Gobierno, ed. Rolena Adorno (Copenhagen: Royal Library Digital Facsimile, 2002), 1105. Special topics: A history of animals in the atlantic world History 497, section 001 Abel Alves Spring Semester 2011 Burkhardt Building 216 Monday, 6:30-9:10 PM [email protected]; 285-8729 Burkhardt Building 106 Office Hours: Monday, 5:00-6:30; also by appointment Prospectus The anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss once wrote that animals are not only “good to eat,” they are “good to think.” Throughout the course of human history, people have interacted with other animals, not only using them for food, clothing, labor and entertainment, but also associating with them as pets and companions, and even appreciating their behaviors intrinsically. Nonhuman animals have been our symbols and models, and they have even channeled the sacred for us. This course will explore the interaction of humans with other animals in the context of the Atlantic World from prehistoric times to the present. Our case studies will include an exploration of our early hominid heritage as prey as well as predators; our domestication of other animals to fit our cultural needs; how nonhuman animals were used and sometimes respected in early agrarian empires like those of Rome and the Aztecs; how Native American, African and Christian religious traditions have wrestled with the concept of the “animal”; the impact of the Enlightenment and Darwinian thought; and the contemporary mechanization of life and call for animal rights. Throughout the semester, we will be giving other animals “voice,” even as Aristotle in The Politics said they possessed the ability to communicate.