Mariage Frères – Ecology of a Teacup
Nov 09, 2020 • 8:49 AM UTC
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kenzolacuarta
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After checking off a few items on my to-do list last Sunday, I decided to relax with a cup of flowery black tea and brainstorm objects to put under the scruitny of my foldscope. It wasn’t long before I heard of Alex Trebek’s passing, so I found it felt right to watch some episodes of Jeopardy while sipping on my tea.
Rest in peace. As my cup drained, I noticed clumps of leaves formed at the bottom. What exactly was I putting into my system? Of course, if it’s from nature, it can’t be that bad, right? The tea came from Le Marais, Paris, so I knew I was in good hands. How could these leaves increase my energy level? Could I just eat the leaves? (I didn’t test that hypothesis).
As I created the slide using only pieces of paper and stickers, I felt as if the dark brown leaves would not allow any light to pass through. With that, I surprised when the leaves appeared to be golden in color. I was able to see some streaks of dark brown. Changing the angle of the light also changed the percieved color of the leaf. On the right, it appeared to be a dark mocha color.
I think we as humans tend to believe that anything “natural” or coming from nature is good for us. But is this really the case? The lab revealed to me that even examining this leaf under a foldscope was not sufficient to know what this natural product was doing to me.
Ecology is everywhere; it’s in your food, drinks, and more. Given a bit more resources and time, I would be curious to put other food and drinks under the spotlight. After this lab, I’m not sure if that would comfort me or push me away from my favorite foods.
I conducted this project as part of Professor Pringle’s EEB321 class at Princeton University.
I think we as humans tend to believe that anything “natural” or coming from nature is good for us. But is this really the case? The lab revealed to me that even examining this leaf under a foldscope was not sufficient to know what this natural product was doing to me.
Ecology is everywhere; it’s in your food, drinks, and more. Given a bit more resources and time, I would be curious to put other food and drinks under the spotlight. After this lab, I’m not sure if that would comfort me or push me away from my favorite foods.
I conducted this project as part of Professor Pringle’s EEB321 class at Princeton University.
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