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Ask Slashdot: Advice On Child-Friendly Microscopes?
OceanMan7 writes "My 7-year-old son is getting very interested in microscopic things — from bacteria to parameciums (paramecia?) Not being a biologist, I would appreciate advice on what type of microscope to get. I'd be operating it and he viewing with supervision. I'd like something better than a toy and plan to buy it used, if possible. Extra points if it's stereo and also allows me to view opaque objects at low magnification."
I'd suggest a $100 or so USB microscope. You can use it to look at opaque objects, and you can have the picture on your computer screen. That would be a big help when trying to point out what the kid is seeing.
One of the webcam models works well with kids because its cheap and displays on a big monitor, so you can look at stuff together. Some of the better ones show up as if they're normal webcams so you can have some weird internet chats with friends and family (G+ hangouts?) "Hey grandma, look at this giant ant leg" etc.
The other alternative is ebay. A kid is much better off with a worn out but "real" microscope that's probably cheaper than a hunk of Chinese plastic anyway. Some people are weirdly proud of being completely mechanically inept... they are a bad target market for used scopes.
Another alternative is new chinese steel. At a place like lwscientific.com you can spend about the cost of a good video card and get a new, "real" student grade scope that'll last forever.
Absolute worst case scenario is a cheap hunk of Chinese plastic with "900x" magnification listed on the box right next to ridiculous artists interpretations and electron microscope images. Oddly enough the marketing is just about as misleading and poor for other optical devices like telescopes.
You mentioned "parameciums". Its easy to find samples of plain ole dirt, grass leaves, etc. If you want "real prepared slides of weird or interesting organisms", go somewhere like carolina.com, "life sciences" "microscope slides". Note that a good prepared, preserved, stained slide is gonna be like $5 per slide. There are somewhat dodgier suppliers at a somewhat lower cost, but not as cheap as you'd think. On the other hand, my kids find it infinitely more interesting to run around in the yard, pick something up off the ground, and look at it under the 'scope.
Maybe the best place to start a kid with microscopes is a hand held magnifying glass. Much as you're supposed to "do astronomy" by starting with eyes first, then binocs, then get a scope...
I have no financial connection with any of the above other than spending money on stuff like this.
"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
>Consider also that you need thin translucent slices if you want to view tissues
You can make a microtome out of a bolt and a nut. UNF or UNEF thread pitch is helpful
Screw nut on to end of bolt by a couple of threads.
Put sample in cavity at end.
Pour paraffin wax into cavity and let cool to hold the sample in place.
Take a razor blade, screw bolt into nut by small partial turns and slice off thin slices of your sample on to slides.
taa, daa.
--
BMO
Usually, that means inexpensive and military grade toughness. Two things rarely found in a precision optic :D
However, depending on your budget, you have a lot of options. First, some clarification.
You mentioned stereo being a plus. This can mean two things. Stereo objective, or stereo eyepieces. Stereo objectives are
typically found on lower power scopes used for close up work on things like circuit boards, coins, stamps, gems, jewelery, insects, etc.
Stereo eyepieces ( binocs ) are can be found on both low and high power ( compound ) scopes and are typically an upgrade ( read that, more $$$ )
Considering the age of your interested viewer, you probably want to start on the low end and work your way up if they continue to express
an interest in the field as the years go by. The internet has many sites that sell scopes, some of which I would consider to be in the budget
range for the average seven year old. Some I've used in the past: ( in no particular order )
http://www.microscope.com
http://www.microscopenet.com
http://www.microscopeuniverse.com
Even Amazon and Ebay would probably be valid places to look.
Prices are typically dictated by type, options and manufacturer.
That said, consider the following:
The low end high power setups are going to start around $100 USD for monocular ( single eyepiece ) systems with a 1D stage ( It only moves
up and down ) and LED light source. Probably what you're going to want to look at for a starter scope.
Mid range will get into Binoc ( dual ) eyepieces, better light sources ( variable halogen ), better / more objectives and a multi-dimensional stage.
( stage movement up / down, slide movement forward / back / side )
High end simply builds on the mid range with better quality components and glass.
For a seven year old ? I would start with something along these lines:
http://www.microscope.com/best-seller-omano-om116l-school-microscope-p-741.html
http://www.microscopenet.com/monocular-compound-microscope-40x400x-with-tungsten-light-p-99.html
http://www.microscope.com/omano-omtm-85-monocular-teaching-compound-microscope.html
or, if you really want the binocs, maybe something like this:
http://www.microscope.com/omano-om118-b4-compound-microscope.html
http://www.microscopenet.com/binocular-compound-microscope40x1000x-light-p-415.html
It's certainly an interesting hobby. I have a pair of scopes ( low power and a compound ) on my desk here at home I use to look at whatever
strikes my fancy. Personally, I would rather have the physical scope vs the USB. That's just a personal preference though.
Get a decent microscope. "Child friendly" means "not frustrating" -- good light, smooth focus, good light, real optics, and good light. Mechanical stage for bonus points, because little fingers have a hard time moving the slide around in tiny increments.
Stereo vision isn't a big deal, but with a child of 7, I *strongly* suggest getting a "dual head" microscope. This is designed for teaching, the student has one viewing tube, and the other viewing tube can be used by the teacher or the eyepiece of the second tube can be replaced with a standard microscope video camera eyepiece. That way a parent can help with focusing, which is tricky for kids to learn. You can also talk about what they are seeing and give them a guided tour.
Remember that real optics will give a much, much sharper view than any USB microscope or video eyepiece, so adjust expectations accordingly, but we've found that it is a much more fun family activity when the microscope is set up with video in the second tube so that everyone can see and talk about the video while taking turns looking at the eye-poppingly sharp view through the optic path.
We bought our home microscope here:
http://www.hometrainingtools.com/microscopes/c/10/
they seem to have decent prices on nicer microscopes.