Topic B1- Microscopy

• What is the primary purpose of microscopy in biology?

  To study cells and their structures
• What are the key features of electron microscopes compared to light microscopes?

  • Use electrons instead of light
  • Higher magnification than light microscopes
  • Higher resolution, allowing for sharper images
• What does resolution refer to in microscopy?

  Resolution is the ability to distinguish between two points
• What internal structures can electron microscopes help visualize in detail?

  They can visualize structures like mitochondria, chloroplasts, ribosomes, and plasmids
• What is the formula for calculating magnification?

  Magnification = image size / real size
• If a specimen is 50 µm wide and the magnification is 100, what is the width of the image?

  The width of the image is 5000 µm or 5 mm
• How do you convert a number into standard form?

  • Move the decimal point left or right
  • Count the number of places moved
  • Represent this count as a power of 10 (positive for left, negative for right)
• How would you write 0.0025 mm in standard form?

  It can be written as $2.5 \times 10^{-3} \text{ mm}$
• What is the approximate length of a mitochondrion in mm?

  Approximately 0.0025 mm
• Why is it useful to write numbers in standard form when using microscopes?

  Because it makes very large or small numbers more manageable