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Date: 3rd February 2020
… Science nerds in the class were excited about the person coming to our class this morning but I could not understand their excitement. For me, it will be another boring lecture filled with uninteresting theories and facts …
Date: 4th February 2020
…This morning our teacher escorted the guest speaker “Manu Prakash” to our class and introduced him to our class. A young man was wearing a jacket with his backpack, looking like one of us. He then pulled out colored papers from his backpack, keeping one to himself and distributed others among us and gave one to our teacher. The sheets had a few cut-outs and instructions to make folds. It was a fun activity, and I was happy because it was better than sitting in a dull and monotonous science classroom. Some students were surprised that instead of talking about real microscopes, he was teaching us to make origami microscopes. When everyone was finished making the origami microscope, Manu Prakash said that it is a 'foldscope,' an original and working microscope made of paper and material costing 97 cents. My friends and I thought that he is joking, and everyone laughed, as it was not close to the image of the microscope which is there in our book. When one of the students asked him a question about the lens, he then pointed out at the tiny hole in the center and that it is a lens and told us to look through it. The girl sitting next to me said, 'I have black things in my hand, a lot of them.' I was astonished, and the first thing I said was 'OH MY GOSH!' I could see the tiny things which were not visible otherwise.
He then showed us the video clip that he recorded on his smartphone camera lens by attaching it to the foldscope. It was like a scene from an alien horror movie, where a hairy mosquito was laying eggs, and one could also see the mosquito’s moving organs…
Everyone in the class was amazed and surprised, including our teacher.
For more information
Magnify Your Curiosity. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.foldscope.com/
Prakash, M. (2017, April). Lifesaving scientific tools made of paper. [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/manu_prakash_lifesaving_scientific_tools_made_of_paper
Newby, K. (2017). Widly frugal. Standford Medicine. https://stanmed.stanford.edu/2017spring/manu-prakashs-frugal-science-including-his-1-dollar-microscope-the-foldscope.html
Prakash, M. (2012, June). A 50-cent microscope that folds like origami [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/manu_prakash_a_50_cent_microscope_that_folds_like_origami/discussion?fb_ref=Default
MacCormick, H. (2016, July 6). Microscope for all: Standford bioengineer shares his pocket-sized vision with kids of the world. Stanford Bio- X. https://biox.stanford.edu/highlight/microscopy-all-stanford-bioengineer-shares-his-pocket-sized-vision-kids-world
How can a teacher incorporate this story in their lesson?
While talking about the different types of microscopes and their uses, do not forget to talk about the most recent development in the area by first introducing them to the story of Foldscope.
Activities
Read about the professor and the foldscope instruments. Write down questions you would like to ask him for an interview. Pretend to be him and answer the questions.
Another exciting hands-on activity could be getting your students to get involved with the foldscope by assigning specific tasks.
Links to curriculum
Developing skills of investigation and communication; in the Academic and Applied Science course of Grade 10 according to The Ontario Curriculum, Grade 9 and 10 (2008).
Topic Addressed: Microscopes and Human Health
Follow-up questions for discussion
Why did Manu Prakesh, design this Foldscope?
Why was it important to make an inexpensive microscope?
How can inexpensive instruments be helpful in the health sector?
What would you do with the Foldscope kit if you were given one?
What do you know about the Foldscope instruments?
What is Prakesh's aim/vision for Foldscope instruments?
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