Life in Micro

Life in Micro Life in Micro - looking at your everyday items in a little more detail.

Fingernails in different conditions. After the close up of the nail file, here the details of the aftermath. Images are ...
01/03/2022

Fingernails in different conditions. After the close up of the nail file, here the details of the aftermath.

Images are taken from a point of view as if pointing a finger towards your face and looking at the edge of the nail. The worn fingernail has a round profile and smooth surface, there are no distinct edges. The cut fingernail has a quite pronounced edge and flat surface. The filed nail has a round profile as well, but not a smooth surface like the worn nail. The second picture is a close-up of the cut fingernail surface and reveals the small parts, almost bristles, sticking up. Those are probably responsible for freshly cut fingernails catching fibers of clothing until they are worn down. 

Details of a nail file. The little shards are a kind of ceramic with edges sharp enough to remove material from nails an...
01/02/2022

Details of a nail file. The little shards are a kind of ceramic with edges sharp enough to remove material from nails and leave them smooth. They are stuck on the file in a soft nickel alloy. You can see where pieces broke off and left little holes in the the metal surface - wear and tear.

Pointy things. Comparison between a wasp stinger, two sizes of hypodermic needles, and a bush rose thorn. Note the serra...
12/31/2021

Pointy things. Comparison between a wasp stinger, two sizes of hypodermic needles, and a bush rose thorn.
Note the serrated edges on the wasp stinger, and also the dark and bright patches on the needles. Those are a silicone coating (dark), that acts as a lubricant during injection.

All images are colorized electron microscope pictures taken at the MicroAnalysis Laboratory of the University of Ottawa.




Hooks on a burr! These amazing little pointy structures make the dried flowers of burdock stick to pets' fur and your cl...
01/21/2021

Hooks on a burr!
These amazing little pointy structures make the dried flowers of burdock stick to pets' fur and your clothing, hijacking whatever they can cling onto to distribute their seeds.

SEM picture from the uOttawa Microanalysis Laboratories




01/21/2021

Hooks on a burr!
These amazing microscopic pointy canes make the dried old flowers of burlap stick to pets fur and your clothing, hijacking whatever and whoever they can latch onto to distribute their seeds.

Scanning electron microscope image, courtesy of uOttawa Microanalysis Laboratories.




With the SEM lab still running at limited capacity, I looked towards different ways of imaging my surroundings. These ar...
07/14/2020

With the SEM lab still running at limited capacity, I looked towards different ways of imaging my surroundings. These are near-visible infrared light images from around Ottawa. The surreal colours are due to the different absorption/reflection properties surfaces have towards infrared light compared to visible light.





@ Ottawa, Ontario

Paper. We handle it every day but hardly think of its intricate features and versatility. These images are colorized sca...
03/22/2020

Paper. We handle it every day but hardly think of its intricate features and versatility. These images are colorized scanning electron photomicrographs of a page out of a printed journal page (top) and plain white printer paper. The cellulose fibers in blue are the backbone of the paper, and calcite or kaolinite (pink) is added to make a smooth and bright white surface. The yellow ink in the case of the journal page forms a thin, brittle layer on top - the effect of that layer breaking up can be observed when folding a journal paper tightly.
The second image is a close-up to better illustrate the structures of the paper and small, crystalline features in the ink. Lastly, a side-by-side of a ripped vs. scissor cut edge of paper.

All images taken at the uOMicroanalysis lab.






Mold! It got to my precious blueberry jam, but at least it is making itself useful as a subject to study the intricate s...
03/15/2020

Mold! It got to my precious blueberry jam, but at least it is making itself useful as a subject to study the intricate structures of these hardy little fungi.
Captured here are only the fruiting body and spores, the rest of the organism is meanwhile feasting on my favourite spread.
The second image is a close up of the spores, but don't let their glassy appearance fool you, they are hardy little things!

And on the topic of scale, these spores at ~3 micrometres are right in the ballpark of bacteria, whereas you could line up about 25 viruses of the covid type inside a single spore.





Cork under the electron microscope. The honeycomb structure captures air that allows for the elasticity needed to seal b...
12/18/2019

Cork under the electron microscope. The honeycomb structure captures air that allows for the elasticity needed to seal bottles. From fancy champagne to the most precious messages in a bottle! More details and information: lifeinmicro.com/cork-and-wine-crystals



Irrefutable microscopic evidence of the massacre taking place in our bathrooms every day. Skin cells are left on a razor...
10/08/2019

Irrefutable microscopic evidence of the massacre taking place in our bathrooms every day. Skin cells are left on a razor blade after only a quick rinse with warm water.




Cotton (green) and merino wool (brown) fabrics imaged by electron microscopy. The fine merino fibers are about 1/4 the t...
10/01/2019

Cotton (green) and merino wool (brown) fabrics imaged by electron microscopy. The fine merino fibers are about 1/4 the thickness of a human hair. Sweater season ahead!

A thin coat of platinum (bright areas) on the plastic disk (dark) used in contact lens cleaning. The platinum layer is l...
09/13/2019

A thin coat of platinum (bright areas) on the plastic disk (dark) used in contact lens cleaning. The platinum layer is less than a micrometer thin, as you can see on the edge of the cut surface. Still, the thin coating of platinum is sufficient to act as a catalyst, neutralizing the hydrogen peroxide in the cleaning solution to water and oxygen safe for contact with our eyes.

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