Lesson 3 of 5 · Heredity
Experiment⭐ 30 XPMicroscopes and Magnification
Microscopes and Magnification.
🎯 Your mission
Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).
⚡ The twist
Nature loves to surprise the careful watcher.
Mind = Blown
🔬 The more you look, the more nature shows you.
Make a hypothesis first
Before you start: write down what you think will happen, and why.
What You'll Learn
Total magnification is the eyepiece lens multiplied by the objective lens, so a ×10 eyepiece with a ×40 objective gives ×400. Magnification makes an image bigger; resolution decides whether the extra size shows any new detail.
Key Words
Tap a word to see its definition.
Materials Needed
- microscope
- prepared slides
- notebook
Safety First
- Carry a microscope with two hands and rack the objective away from the slide before focusing.
Steps
Read the explanation above and note the two key terms before you start.
View a prepared slide at three objective settings and calculate the total magnification for each. Draw the same feature at each setting and note the point where extra magnification stops revealing new detail.
Record what actually happened, including anything that did not match what you expected.
Write a conclusion that answers the question this lesson opened with, and state your uncertainty.
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 2A ×10 eyepiece with a ×40 objective gives a total magnification of:
Where you see this in real life
This shows up in your everyday life more than you'd think.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Try one experiment in real life this week — even a tiny one.
For the dinner table
“What's the most surprising thing you learned today?”
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Microscopes and Magnification
Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).
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