General Purpose
Procedural
A full understanding of biology would not be possible without a study of the features that exist at the cellular level. This includes how the cells in a multicellular organism interact to form tissues and the structural organization of cells (for both unicellular and multicellular organisms). In order to undertake an examination of cells, microscopy techniques must be employed. Microscopy techniques are also very useful for examining fine details of larger organisms. These fine details are often important in discerning differences between species. Depending on the organism or tissue being examined, various types of microscopy may be used. One of the most common microscopes used in biology is a compound microscope. This type of microscope uses two separate lenses, an objective lens and an eyepiece (or ocular) lens to produce high magnification light microscopy images. To get an understanding of some of the basic features of a compound microscope view the material at the following microscopy tutorial site:
You should also read the information in Appendix F of your on-line lab manual to learn about the care and use of the microscope.
One of the techniques you may need to use is dark field microscopy. Dark field is a useful way to view living organisms, compared to regular light microscopy which is used for organisms that have been fixed and stained. This fixing and staining technique allows the observation of the size, shape, and arrangement of cells.
Proceed to the Pre-Lab Quiz