Crochet Microscope!

Calling all crochet and science lovers! As part of Vancouver TELUS Science World's Future Science Leaders' Summer Internship 2016, we were tasked to design and build a microscope. Thanks to Yoshinok's Instructables for providing us a base to start with!

This microscope utilizes:

- Yarn

- Crochet hook (we used a 5mm aluminum crochet hook from 'The Crochet Dude')

- 3D Printer + Associated Software

- 4 Cylindrical Wooden Dowels (0.6 cm diameter x 30 cm height)

- 3 Wooden Blocks (1 block is 43 cm length x 1.5 cm height x 3.5 cm width, other 2 are 21.5 cm length x 1.5 cm height x 3.5 cm width)

- Approximately 20 rubber bands

- 2 pipe cleaners

- Plexiglass (7.7 cm x 15.2 cm)

- Drill (should match the wooden dowel diameter- we used 1/4 inch (0.635 cm) drill tip)

- Lens (can easily be found in a disposable camera/cheap laser pointer)

- Play-Doh

- Glue gun

- (if needed) White light

Use the yarn and crochet hook to crochet a 28 cm x 35 cm piece of cloth.

3D print the attached .STL file.

Once the middle lens piece has been placed inside the horseshoe-shaped piece, use the glue gun to glue the top piece's sides to the horseshoe piece's sides.

The lens size may be smaller than the hole. Use the Play-Doh to fill the rest of the hole once the lens has been inserted.

Use the drill to drill:

- 2 holes about 4.5 cm from each of the edges on the larger wooden piece

- 1 hole about 4.5 away from one of the edges on the smaller wooden pieces

Use the glue gun to glue the smaller wooden pieces to each side of the larger wooden piece. The side without the hole is the side which is being glued down. Each of the smaller wooden pieces are 90 degrees from each hole, and the holes are lined up. It should look like a horseshoe at the end (view the picture).

Wrap 4 rubber bands on each of the wooden dowels. Stick the wooden dowels in each of the holes.

Drill 2 holes about 4 cm along the width x 1.5 cm along the length in the plexiglass. Use the pipe cleaners to tie the plexiglass through the holes to the wooden dowels on the shorter side of the horseshoe.

Finally, place the crochet cloth on top. Slide the lens into one of the holes in the cloth. Place your phone on top of lens (may need to slide the lens apparatus before placing into the holes in the cloth depending where the camera on your phone is).

Optional: add a white light underneath the plexiglass on the wooden piece- it can illuminate the specimen if needed.

Place the specimen on the plexiglass, and explore! You can move the crochet cloth around to adjust what you want to see, and take pictures with your phone.