Author Question: Describe the relationship between field of view size and total magnification. How does this affect ... (Read 66 times)

Tirant22 · **on:** Jul 21, 2018

Describe the relationship between field of view size and total magnification.
How does this affect microscope use?

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Under what circumstances would you use a dissecting microscope?

What will be an ideal response?

heyhey123 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 21, 2018

Answer to Question 1

As the total magnification of a microscope increases, the size of the field of view
decreases in proportion to the change in magnification. If an object occupies the entire
field of view at 100X, then only one fourth of the object will be visible at 400X.
Microscope users should be aware of this relationship. Students frequently get
distressed when their object disappears; in reality, they are looking at a small part
of the object at higher magnification.

Answer to Question 2

A dissecting (stereo) microscope should be used to look at surface features of
macroscopic objects. A stereo microscope is also useful when you want to observe the
behavior of a small, but still visible, live organism. Living specimens can be placed in
small transparent dishes that prevent the organism from injury or drying out due to
the heat produced by the microscope's light. The working distance (distance between
the stage and the objective lens) of a stereo microscope is much larger than that of a
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compound light microscope. It is possible to view living organisms in culture dishes
using a stereo microscope.