LGP 2026 | Batch 3 | Exploring the Microcosm | Day 2 | Potato Skin & Potato Flesh | Ashoka University
Jun 04, 2026 • 5:31 PM UTC
India
140x Magnification
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Aadit
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Day 1 taught me how the foldscope works, but Day 2 taught me that two parts of the same vegetable can look almost nothing like each other under a lens. The same potato looks completely different.
Today, we looked at two samples: the potato skin, which we had to peel and prepare ourselves, and the potato flesh, which was the inside of the potato. We created the sample of the flesh by smashing the potato super-thin.
The Potato Skin
Preparing the skin sample was its own challenge. Getting a thin enough peel without it folding or tearing, placing it cleanly on the slide, and then dealing with the inevitable air bubbles that crept in anyway, all familiar problems from Day 1, but still annoying the second time around, but with the experience, it was easier to manage.
At 50x , the skin cells appeared round and tightly compacted together, almost like a cluster of packed bubbles. Some groups of cells were noticeably darker than others, which immediately caught my attention. Whether that was overlapping layers or actual colour variation within the skin itself wasn't immediately clear, but it made the sample look more interesting than I expected. (I speculate that it's the overlapping layers of the peel itself)
Today, we looked at two samples: the potato skin, which we had to peel and prepare ourselves, and the potato flesh, which was the inside of the potato. We created the sample of the flesh by smashing the potato super-thin.
The Potato Skin
Preparing the skin sample was its own challenge. Getting a thin enough peel without it folding or tearing, placing it cleanly on the slide, and then dealing with the inevitable air bubbles that crept in anyway, all familiar problems from Day 1, but still annoying the second time around, but with the experience, it was easier to manage.
At 50x , the skin cells appeared round and tightly compacted together, almost like a cluster of packed bubbles. Some groups of cells were noticeably darker than others, which immediately caught my attention. Whether that was overlapping layers or actual colour variation within the skin itself wasn't immediately clear, but it made the sample look more interesting than I expected. (I speculate that it's the overlapping layers of the peel itself)
At 140x , the colour variation was still very much present and more enhanced. Certain cells had slightly thicker walls than others. The irregularity was hidden but visible when analysed further, and it made the whole sample look less uniform than Day 1's onion peel sample.
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At 340x , all of that became even clearer. The cells were round but irregularly shaped, each one slightly different from the next. The thick cell walls were evident here; some appeared as double walls, which I wasnt noticable at lower magnifications. The colour variation across cells was still present, making certain clusters look darker and denser than the rest. (Due to the structure or overlapping of the skin)
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The Potato Flesh
The flesh was completely different. Where the skin was dark brown and compact, whereas the flesh was pale, delicate, and very distinct.
At 50x , the cells were noticeably smaller than the skin cells. Some groups had spread to other parts of the slide during preparation, which made the sample look a little scattered, but you could still clearly make out the overall structure.
The flesh was completely different. Where the skin was dark brown and compact, whereas the flesh was pale, delicate, and very distinct.
At 50x , the cells were noticeably smaller than the skin cells. Some groups had spread to other parts of the slide during preparation, which made the sample look a little scattered, but you could still clearly make out the overall structure.
At 140x , the cells took on an almost bubble-like appearance, some slightly overlapping each other. Water droplets had also gotten into the slide. The cells were clearly rounder and more loosely arranged than the skin and less structured.
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At 340x , in some cells, the nucleus was observable, a small, darker structure inside the cell. The size variation between cells was also significant at this magnification, with some cells noticeably larger than their neighbours, which I wasn't expecting from something as "normal looking" as the inside of a potato.
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Day 2 Overall
The biggest takeaway from today was the contrast. Not just between the skin and the flesh visually, but the logic behind the contrast, the skin is the potato's outer protective layer, so it makes sense that its cells are compact, irregular, thick-walled, built to deal with the outside world. The flesh is the storage tissue on the inside, which is why it's softer, more loosely arranged, and packed with what the plant actually needs to survive. Which makes you realise how beautiful nature is and how everything has evolved, or is the way that it is as a consequence of thousands of years of adaptation.
The biggest takeaway from today was the contrast. Not just between the skin and the flesh visually, but the logic behind the contrast, the skin is the potato's outer protective layer, so it makes sense that its cells are compact, irregular, thick-walled, built to deal with the outside world. The flesh is the storage tissue on the inside, which is why it's softer, more loosely arranged, and packed with what the plant actually needs to survive. Which makes you realise how beautiful nature is and how everything has evolved, or is the way that it is as a consequence of thousands of years of adaptation.
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