How Microscopes Have Helped in Studying Living Organisms
How microscopes have contributed to our understanding of living organisms
There are 2 types of microscopes these are; light microscope and electron microscope. Light microscopes use a beam of light however the resolution is lower than the electron microscope so the image is not clear, however they can view living organisms. These types of microscopes are used in schools to view simple cellular structures, which is good to teach simple biology
Mitosis and meiosis can be seen with light microscopes. the different stages of mitosis; when the spindle fibers are formed in Prophase, the chromosomes lining up along the middle of the cell in Metaphase, the chromatids separating and moving to opposite sides of the cell in Anaphase and finally the cytoplasm splitting into 2 genetically identical daughter cells in Telophase.
However electron microscopes are used as they have a higher magnification and resolution than the light microscope. They use beams of electrons to form an image (starts of black and white however can be later colored using a computer). There are 2 types of electron microscopes; Transmission electron microscope (TEM), they use electromagnet s to focus a beam of electrons, which is then passed through the specimen. The dense parts of the specimen absorb more electrons so they come out darker on the image. TEMs are good as they produce high resolution images, so it is possible to look at smaller objects. However they have the be used in a vacuum s so are not good to look at living organisms with. The other electron microscope is a Scanning electron microscope (SEM), they scan a beam of electrons across a specimen, knocking off electrons from the specimen, that are then collected in a cathode ray tube to form an image. The images created are of the surface of the specimen and can be 3-D. SEMs are good as they can be used on thicker specimens. However the images are lower resolution compared to the TEMs and again cannot be used on living organisms. The
There are 2 types of microscopes these are; light microscope and electron microscope. Light microscopes use a beam of light however the resolution is lower than the electron microscope so the image is not clear, however they can view living organisms. These types of microscopes are used in schools to view simple cellular structures, which is good to teach simple biology
Mitosis and meiosis can be seen with light microscopes. the different stages of mitosis; when the spindle fibers are formed in Prophase, the chromosomes lining up along the middle of the cell in Metaphase, the chromatids separating and moving to opposite sides of the cell in Anaphase and finally the cytoplasm splitting into 2 genetically identical daughter cells in Telophase.
However electron microscopes are used as they have a higher magnification and resolution than the light microscope. They use beams of electrons to form an image (starts of black and white however can be later colored using a computer). There are 2 types of electron microscopes; Transmission electron microscope (TEM), they use electromagnet s to focus a beam of electrons, which is then passed through the specimen. The dense parts of the specimen absorb more electrons so they come out darker on the image. TEMs are good as they produce high resolution images, so it is possible to look at smaller objects. However they have the be used in a vacuum s so are not good to look at living organisms with. The other electron microscope is a Scanning electron microscope (SEM), they scan a beam of electrons across a specimen, knocking off electrons from the specimen, that are then collected in a cathode ray tube to form an image. The images created are of the surface of the specimen and can be 3-D. SEMs are good as they can be used on thicker specimens. However the images are lower resolution compared to the TEMs and again cannot be used on living organisms. The