Grass Blade Observation
Dec 01, 2021 • 10:14 AM UTC
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minjip
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I conducted this project as part of Professor Pringle’s EEB321 class at Princeton University
After assembling my foldscope during lab, I went outside to look for a sample and chose the most plant I could find: grass. After some struggling with getting enough light and adjusting the focus, I was able to obtain this image. Here I see some ‘bubbles’ that look like water and what looks like a thick wall. I am wondering if this is the xylem or phloem which transport water and nutrients from the roots throughout the plant, or if its some fibrous structure that holds the structure of a grass blade (the vertical stripes you see). It would be interesting to observe a dead blade of grass that is dry, and compare it to this image to see.
I thought it was really cool how something I made out of colourful paper under 20 minutes was able to yield me such images. I wish I knew of the foldscope when I was younger as I would definitely have wanted to try observing different samples I could find around me, and I definitely see how it would be a useful tool to pique interest in science and make it accessible for younger users.
After assembling my foldscope during lab, I went outside to look for a sample and chose the most plant I could find: grass. After some struggling with getting enough light and adjusting the focus, I was able to obtain this image. Here I see some ‘bubbles’ that look like water and what looks like a thick wall. I am wondering if this is the xylem or phloem which transport water and nutrients from the roots throughout the plant, or if its some fibrous structure that holds the structure of a grass blade (the vertical stripes you see). It would be interesting to observe a dead blade of grass that is dry, and compare it to this image to see.
I thought it was really cool how something I made out of colourful paper under 20 minutes was able to yield me such images. I wish I knew of the foldscope when I was younger as I would definitely have wanted to try observing different samples I could find around me, and I definitely see how it would be a useful tool to pique interest in science and make it accessible for younger users.
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