Tag: microscopy

  • A Graphic Interface for the LuciLed illuminator

    After a month or so of testing, I considered the LuciLed (Neopixel-based condenser substitute) sufficiently useful to spend the time creating a graphic interface using a Nextion 2.8 (NX3224T028) inch display. Programming Nextions takes a bit of getting used to… to say the very least (!). I had an old Nextion display in my Arduino…

  • The ‘LuciLED’ illuminator – a NeoPixel-based light source for compound microscopes

    This is a temporary post to gauge interest in this form of illumination. I emphasize that this is a ‘work in progress’ and that I am happy to acknowledge that it isn’t a substitute for an Abbe condenser though it can produce some very interesting patterns of illumination both steady and that can change with…

  • Midges and mosquitoes under the microscope

    Some insects are so small it becomes very hard to photograph them with traditional macro lenses and even though my Loawa macro lens goes up to 5X magnification, unless the subject obligingly sits absolutely still, and even if you haven’t drunk too much coffee, at such high power it is very difficult to use on…

  • A polarising microscope on the cheap!

    Since there are many resources for polarisation microscopy on the web, this will be a short post. Any microscope can be converted to a polarising instrument. All that is required is a polariser below the condenser and second one, the so called analyser, above the objective. The former can sit on the glass above the…

  • Focus stacking and other modifications for the Bresser Infinity Microscope

    Work in progress – further details to be added! Important note regarding powering the relay board used to switch the ring-light power supply! It turns out that the relay board I used and probably many others, draw too much current to be powered from the Arduino 5V or 3.3V pins which allow a maximum current…

  • Adding a camera to the Bresser Infinity Microscope

    The Bresser Infinity microscope is pretty good but like all microscopes it has its limitations. I am a passionate macro-photographer and thus a camera port on a microscope was a ‘must’ for me. A few minutes reading on the microscope forums provides some information on how to best utilize the port but also flaged up…

  • Is an amoeba smarter than your dog?

    On the same drier side of humour; if you give a dog a hammer, nails and the wood, can it build its own kennel and even if it could, would it be a work of art? Obviously, both the title and the question that follows are tongue-in-cheek! However, there is a serious side to this…

  • Can an amoeba think?

    At 72 years of age one comes to reflect upon why it is that one chose a particular path through life. There are only a few things of which I am certain. The first is that I am a scientist and a firm believer in the Scientific Method. In a world where the irrational seems…

  • Spirostomum the fastest thing in Vaour?

    This is another short essay on some of the fascinating creatures that live in the water of the rather intriguing pond to be found at the Cite du Lac in Vaour. In this case, a unicellular worm that lives on the floor of that pond. When thinking about fast animals one’s mind usually springs to…

  • DIY Rheinberg, Darkfield and Other Filters

    If you are klutz like me, it’s hard to use most of the techniques one can find on-line for making your own Rheinberg and other microscope filters. Many involve cutting bits of electrical tape or colouring in bits of plastic with marker pens. All credit to those who have the skills to make neat filters…

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