The Foldscope: my portal to another world

Hi, my name is Amy, I’m fifteen years old and I am here to tell you about my Foldscope!

What is a Foldscope?

A Foldscope is a portable, flat microscope that can fit into your back pocket. It is made of cardboard, cut then folded, and fitted together. The microscope is inspired by origami, hence the name Foldscope.

What sort of samples can you look at using the Foldscope?

Lots of things! Practically anything you are curious about. My favourite things to look at with my Foldscope so far have been Daphnia from our neighbour’s pond and a fern rhizome (the fern rhizome came with the kit I have). I thought the pond water looked rather unassuming at first, but once I looked closely I noticed tiny moving organisms. Obviously, some samples will be more suitable for the Foldscope than others. I find that thin things make a clearer image, for thick leaves you can use a razor blade to cut a thin piece. Things such as human hairs, flower petals or mouldy fruit work well.  My grandad taught me that moss leaves are only one cell thick – I got some great images from these!

How do you focus the Foldscope?

The design of the Foldscope is very clever, you can adjust the focus by sliding a wedge-shaped piece of cardboard left and right. I am not sure what the mechanics of it are, but it is very ingenious.

Any tips or tricks for using a Foldscope?

Some images look better in water. I didn’t want to get the Foldscope wet, so my mum showed me how to put a sample under a coverslip and seal it with nail varnish. You have to do this carefully to avoid air bubbles.  For live samples, the kit contains a trading-card-like sample-holder that you can seal with a plastic sticker- this is how I took my pond-life movies.

Use your phone camera to view your samples – the camera focuses automatically and can create a much clearer picture than you can see with your eye. This also means you can take photos and videos to share with family and friends and I’m sharing some with you here!

Would you recommend getting a Foldscope?

Yes, it is a lot cheaper than professional microscopes but works really well. For me, I have had a lot of enjoyment and fascination looking at tiny things through the microscope. It’s like a portal to another world!

Where can I find out more?

Check out Foldscope.com for lots of information and tutorials. I can also recommend a great talk by the creator of the Foldscope, Manu Prakash, who is a working scientist.  He talks about his motivation and inspiration for his invention, the inner workings of the Foldscope, and brief directions for use. I found this to be very intriguing and awe-provoking. There is also the Foldscope community page where Foldscope users can share their images for everyone to enjoy – I highly recommend having a look,  I have seen some extraordinary things there!

Check out some of the things I’ve seen through my Foldscope below.

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