MicrobeHunter.com Microscopy Forum

Hi.. I have an AMSCOPE 490 series telescope I bought many years ago which is just sitting on a desk under its protective cover, what can I do with it? Its my days off from work today and tomorow and wanted to look at realy cool things, so far i looked at salt and pond water and onion skin I think.. what are other ideas of something I should have at home?

You may try some of the (now polluted) water from a flower vase.

thanks but I don't happen to have one in my apartment

If it has a 4x objective you can look at anything with that, prep or no prep, since it doesn't require a cover slip. Reflected light (a flexible gooseneck led lamp is good for this but even a flashlight will do) can give you a whole mew range of subjects to look at.

Yes I just checked and it has a 4x objective lens, give me some examples of interesting things I can put under? like celery for example?

If you find any spiderwebs in your home that’s a good one-stray hairs from a brush or comb,fabrics,especially synthetic ones with interesting weave patterns-if you’ve got a small healing wound on your finger that can be really interesting-can see the layers of skin forming-in incidental light-(ie near a window)-there’s a few ideas
Have fun
Ross

Oh and celery!

Just about anything in your fridge or cupboard. Aspirin, starchy foods, dust, cheek swab, blood if you happen to have a cut, fabrics, paper towels, your fingerprint on tape, greenery around your apartment building, and the list goes on. My microscope is of the same 490 series and I've had lots of fun with it

Here's a link that will give you some other ideas.https://rsscience.com/microscope-activity/

Honey!

Salt crystals, particularly in different modes of light are worth a look.

Gerard